[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4713 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4713

   To codify the Rural Hospital Technical Assistance Program of the 
                       Department of Agriculture.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 18, 2023

 Mr. Jackson of Texas (for himself, Mr. Kilmer, Mr. Zinke, Ms. Tokuda, 
  Mrs. Boebert, Ms. Sewell, Mr. Arrington, Ms. Kuster, Mr. Mann, Ms. 
Wild, Mr. Sessions, Ms. Pettersen, Mr. Carl, Mr. Larsen of Washington, 
     Mr. LaMalfa, Ms. Schrier, Ms. Perez, Ms. Hoyle of Oregon, Ms. 
 Budzinski, Mr. Davis of North Carolina, Mr. Schiff, Mr. Pfluger, Mr. 
Trone, and Mrs. Miller of West Virginia) introduced the following bill; 
           which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To codify the Rural Hospital Technical Assistance Program of the 
                       Department of Agriculture.

    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 ``Rural Hospital Technical Assistance 
Program Act''.

SEC. 2. CODIFICATION OF THE RURAL HOSPITAL TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM 
              OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE.

    (a) In General.--In lieu of any other authority under which the 
Secretary of Agriculture (in this section referred to as the 
``Secretary'') may provide technical assistance to any eligible rural 
hospital facility, the Secretary shall establish, and maintain, 
directly or by grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, a Rural 
Hospital Technical Assistance Program (in this section referred to as 
the ``Program'') to provide technical assistance and training, tailored 
to the capacity and needs of each eligible hospital facility, to help 
eligible hospital facilities in rural areas with a population of not 
more than 50,000 inhabitants--
            (1) identify development needs for maintaining essential 
        health care services, and support action plans for financial, 
        operational, and quality improvement projects to meet the 
        development needs;
            (2) better manage their financial and business strategies; 
        and
            (3) identify, and apply for assistance from, loan and grant 
        programs of the Department of Agriculture for which the 
        facilities are eligible.
    (b) Goals.--The goals of the Program shall be to--
            (1) improve the long-term financial position and 
        operational efficiency of eligible rural hospital facilities;
            (2) prevent the closure of eligible rural hospital 
        facilities;
            (3) strengthen the delivery of health care in rural areas; 
        and
            (4) help eligible rural hospital facilities better access 
        and compete for loans and grants from programs administered by 
        the Department of Agriculture.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Development needs.--The term ``development needs'' 
        includes--
                    (A) constructing, expanding, renovating or 
                otherwise modernizing health care facilities;
                    (B) increasing telehealth capabilities;
                    (C) acquiring or upgrading health care information 
                systems such as electronic health records; and
                    (D) such other needs as the Secretary deems 
                critical to maintaining health care services in the 
                community in which an eligible rural hospital facility 
                is located.
            (2) Eligible hospital facility.--The term ``eligible 
        hospital facility'' means a facility that is--
                    (A)(i) a hospital (as defined in section 1861(e) of 
                the Social Security Act);
                    (ii) a psychiatric hospital (as defined in section 
                1861(f) of such Act);
                    (iii) a long-term care hospital (as defined in 
                section 1861(ccc) of such Act);
                    (iv) a critical access hospital (as defined in 
                section 1861(mm)(1) of such Act);
                    (v) a religious nonmedical health care institution 
                (as defined in section 1861(ss)(1) of such Act);
                    (vi) a rural health clinic (as defined in section 
                1861(aa)(2) of such Act);
                    (vii) a sole community hospital (as defined in 
                section 1886(d)(5)(C)(iii) of such Act);
                    (viii) a rural emergency hospital (as defined in 
                section 1861(kkk)(2) of such Act);
                    (ix) a community health center (as defined in 
                section 330 of the Public Health Service Act); or
                    (x) any other rural hospital as determined by the 
                Secretary of Agriculture in consultation with the 
                Secretary of the Department of Health and Human 
                Services; and
                    (B) located in a rural area.
            (3) Rural area.--The term ``rural area'' has the meaning 
        given the term in section 343(a)(13)(A) of the Consolidated 
        Farm and Rural Development Act.
            (4) Health professional shortage area.--The term ``health 
        professional shortage area'' has the meaning given the term in 
        section 332(a)(1)(A) of the Public Health Service Act).
            (5) Medically underserved area.--The term ``medically 
        underserved area'' has the meaning given the term in section 
        330I(a)(5) of the Public Health Service Act.
            (6) Medically underserved population.--The term ``medically 
        underserved population'' has the meaning given the term in 
        section 330(b)(3) of the Public Health Service Act.
    (d) Program Participation.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall engage in outreach and 
        engagement strategies to encourage eligible hospital facilities 
        to participate in the Program.
            (2) Hospital selection.--In selecting eligible hospital 
        facilities to participate in the Program, the Secretary shall 
        give priority to borrowers and grantees of the Rural Housing 
        Service, Rural Business-Cooperative Service, and Rural 
        Utilities Service. The Secretary may also consider--
                    (A) the age and physical state of the hospital or 
                clinic facilities involved;
                    (B) the financial vulnerability of the hospital or 
                clinic facilities, and the ability of the hospital or 
                clinic facilities to meet debt obligations;
                    (C) the electronic health record implementation 
                needs of the hospital or clinic facilities;
                    (D) whether the hospital or clinic is located in a 
                health professional shortage area or a medically 
                underserved area;
                    (E) whether the hospital serves a medically 
                underserved population; and
                    (F) such other criteria and priorities as are 
                determined by the Secretary.
    (e) Reporting Requirements.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
of the enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the 
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 
Forestry of the Senate a written report describing the progress and 
results of the program conducted under this section, which should 
include--
            (1) a brief description of each project to provide 
        technical assistance to an eligible hospital facility under 
        this section, including--
                    (A) the name and location of the facility;
                    (B) a description of the assistance provided;
                    (C) a description of the outcomes for completed 
                projects;
                    (D) the cost of the technical assistance; and
                    (E) any other information the Secretary deems 
                appropriate;
            (2) a summary of the technical assistance projects 
        completed;
            (3) a summary of the outcomes of the technical assistance 
        projects;
            (4) an assessment of the effectiveness of the Program; and
            (5) recommendations for improving the Program.
    (f) Limitations on Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out 
this section, there are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 
not more than $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028.
                                 <all>