[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 811 Introduced in House (IH)]







108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 811

    To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make 
    demonstration grants to promote the well-being and educational 
     achievement of children through school-based health programs.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 13, 2003

  Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas (for herself, Mr. Cummings, Ms. 
DeLauro, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Mr. Sessions, and Mr. Crane) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
    Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Education and the 
 Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make 
    demonstration grants to promote the well-being and educational 
     achievement of children through school-based health programs.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

     This Act may be cited as the ``Student Medical Access Raising Test 
Scores Health Act'', or the ``SMARTS Health Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

     The Congress finds as follows:
            (1) The Journal of the American Medical Association reports 
        that protecting children's health requires two key elements, 
        which are (A) that a caring adult is engaged in the life of the 
        child, and (B) that there is a connection between the child and 
        his or her school.
            (2) Schools offer the most natural community setting in 
        which individuals live, work, and play. Schools are a respected 
        element of community infrastructure and are recognized as the 
        most valuable element in creating connection and support for 
        children, families, and communities.
            (3) Primary care and behavioral health services are among 
        the most important elements of a comprehensive approach to 
        promoting health and education and preventing illness in 
        children and youth.
            (4) School safety and violence prevention are critical to 
        the well-being of each student, and early intervention and 
        mental health care significantly reduce school discipline 
        problems.
            (5) Good health is a prerequisite for optimal learning, and 
        schools can help students achieve academic success by 
        participating in efforts that promote good health, including 
        access to regular medical and mental health care.
            (6) Children are experiencing increasing rates of 
        behavioral and physical illness, such as attention deficit 
        hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and asthma and diabetes, and are 
        experiencing increasing rates of obesity that portend 
        increasing rates of diabetes, heart disease, and cancer later 
        in life.
            (7) In order to be effective, new strategies for prevention 
        must be built on community-based, community-designed, and 
        community-implemented strategies.
            (8) Effective behavioral and physical health services can 
        be provided in a school-based setting in such a way as to 
        prevent later disease.
            (9) Schools are ideal settings in which to provide care for 
        children, especially those who would otherwise have inadequate 
        access to health services. Limited access contributes directly 
        to the growing rates of disease among children. Prevention 
        strategies should be joined with treatment to develop an 
        understanding of what types of prevention can reduce rates of 
        illness, and therefore the need for treatment. Higher rates of 
        disease, even with adequate access to health services, portend 
        loss of vitality and higher complications from disease.
            (10) School-based health programs should focus on improving 
        behavioral and physical health, including with respect to 
        obesity.
            (11) By reducing the incidence of disease, effective 
        community-based prevention programs (whether through school-
        based approaches or otherwise) result in significant savings to 
        the Federal Government and to the States by reducing 
        expenditures in Federal and State health services programs. 
        Such savings should be dedicated to further prevention efforts, 
        which in turn will result in further savings. Savings that 
        result from prevention programs should not be redirected to 
        unrelated purposes, and prevention programs that achieve 
        savings should not be penalized by having their funding levels 
        reduced.

SEC. 3. DEMONSTRATION GRANTS FOR EXPANSION OF SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH 
              PROGRAMS.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Program of grants.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
        Services may make demonstration grants to eligible entities for 
        the purpose of expanding school-based health programs that are 
operated by such entities.
            (2) Consultation.--The Secretary shall coordinate the 
        program under this section with the program under title XIX of 
        the Social Security Act (relating to Medicaid); the program 
        under title XXI of such Act (relating to the State children's 
        health insurance program); programs of the Substance Abuse and 
        Mental Health Services Administration; programs of the Health 
        Resources and Services Administration; programs of the Centers 
        for Disease Control and Prevention; programs of the Agency for 
        Healthcare Research and Quality; programs of the National 
        Institutes of Health; and the National Center on Minority 
        Health and Health Disparities.
    (b) Eligible Entities.--An entity is an eligible entity for 
purposes of this Act if--
            (1) the entity is a public or nonprofit private institution 
        of higher education or a local educational agency;
            (2) the entity operates a school-based health program;
            (3) the health services provided by such program include 
        preventive health services and behavioral health services, 
        including with respect to nutrition, physical activity, and 
        otherwise preventing or treating obesity; and
            (4) such program is carried out in coordination with public 
        and nonprofit private entities in the community involved that 
        provide health, education, or social services to children.
    (c) Certain Programs.--Grants under subsection (a) shall be made 
only to the following entities (subject to the submission of an 
application in accordance with subsection (d) demonstrating status as 
an eligible entity), and for the following purposes:
            (1) To the University of Maryland for expanding the school-
        based health program operated by such University in the 
        vicinity of Baltimore, in the State of Maryland.
            (2) To the local educational agency that operates a school-
        based health program in an independent school district in the 
        vicinity of Dallas, in the State of Texas, for expanding such 
        program.
            (3) To the University of New Mexico for expanding the 
        school-based health program operated by such University in the 
        State of New Mexico.
            (4) To the University of California, Los Angeles, for 
        expanding the school-based health program operated by such 
        University in the vicinity of Los Angeles, in the State of 
        California.
            (5) To the Child Study Center Outpatient Clinic, Yale 
        University, for expanding the school-based health program 
        operated by such Center in the vicinity of New Haven, in the 
        State of Connecticut.
            (6) To the University of Illinois at Chicago, for expanding 
        the school-based health program operated by such University in 
        the vicinity of Chicago, in the State of Illinois.
    (d) Application for Grant.--A grant may be made under subsection 
(a) only if an application for the grant is submitted to the Secretary 
and the application is in such form, is made in such manner, and 
contains such agreements, assurances, and information as the secretary 
determines to be necessary to carry out this section.
    (e) Outcome Goals.--In making a grant under subsection (a) for a 
school-based health program, the Secretary shall establish goals for 
the program in terms of health outcomes for the children served by the 
program. Such goals shall be based on the objectives established by the 
Secretary as part of the initiative known as Healthy People 2010, or on 
other measures determined by the Secretary to be appropriate.
    (f) Evaluations; Report.--
            (1) Evaluations.--The Secretary, directly or through grants 
        or contracts, shall provide for evaluations of the school-based 
        programs for which grants under subsection (a) are made. Such 
        evaluations shall determine whether the programs have met the 
        applicable goals under subsection (e), and shall determine the 
        extent to which the programs have increased the access of the 
        children involved to health services, have enhanced the overall 
        health status of the children, and have reduced disease rates.
            (2) Report.--Not later than December 31, 2004, the 
        Secretary shall submit to the Congress a report that describes 
        the findings made through evaluations under paragraph (1) and 
        that provides the recommendations of the Secretary for a 
        comprehensive national program to provide grants for the 
        establishment and operation of school-based health programs, 
        including a recommendation on the amount of funds that should 
        be made available for the comprehensive national program, 
        taking into account the savings that can be achieved in Federal 
        and State health services programs by reducing the incidence of 
        disease in the populations served by the program.
    (g) Definitions.--
            (1) The term ``institution of higher education'' has the 
        meaning given such term in section 101(a) of the Higher 
        Education Act of 1965.
            (2) The term ``local educational agency'' has the meaning 
        given such term in section 9101(26) of the Elementary and 
        Secondary Education Act of 1965.
            (3) The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of Health 
        and Human Services.
    (h) Authorization of Appropriations.--For the purpose of carrying 
out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as 
may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2003 through 2008.
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