[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4238 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4238

   To amend title III of the Public Health Service Act to direct the 
      Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the 
 Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, to 
    award grants to eligible entities to carry out construction or 
  modernization projects designed to strengthen and increase capacity 
 within the specialized pediatric health care infrastructure, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 2, 2024

Mr. Padilla (for himself and Mr. Casey) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title III of the Public Health Service Act to direct the 
      Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the 
 Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, to 
    award grants to eligible entities to carry out construction or 
  modernization projects designed to strengthen and increase capacity 
 within the specialized pediatric health care infrastructure, and for 
                            other purposes.

    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 ``Pediatric Access to Critical Health 
Care Act''.

SEC. 2. PEDIATRIC HEALTH CARE CAPACITY GRANTS.

    Part D of title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
254b et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

             ``Subpart XIII--Pediatric Health Care Capacity

``SEC. 340J. PEDIATRIC HEALTH CARE CAPACITY GRANTS.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary, acting through the Administrator 
of the Health Resources and Services Administration, shall award grants 
to eligible entities to carry out construction or modernization 
projects designed to strengthen and increase capacity within pediatric 
health care infrastructure.
    ``(b) Eligible Entities.--To be eligible to receive a grant under 
subsection (a), an entity shall be a--
            ``(1) children's hospital;
            ``(2) a facility that is eligible to receive funds under 
        section 340E; or
            ``(3) a nonprofit medical facility that predominantly 
        treats individuals under the age of 21.
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--An eligible entity selected to receive a grant 
under subsection (a) may use funds received through the grant for--
            ``(1) expanding pediatric critical health care 
        infrastructure, including the expansion, renovation, 
        remodeling, and alteration of existing buildings (but not 
        including the cost of acquisition of land or off-site 
        improvements);
            ``(2) maintaining and enhancing pediatric emergency 
        preparedness;
            ``(3) increasing the training, development, and retention 
        of the pediatric health care workforce;
            ``(4) upgrading digital health infrastructure, including 
        upgrades related to preventing and addressing cybersecurity 
        threats;
            ``(5) building additional patient care capacity to expand 
        access to care; and
            ``(6) other activities related to strengthening and 
        increasing capacity within the pediatric health care 
        infrastructure, as determined by the Secretary.
    ``(d) Application.--An eligible entity seeking a grant under 
subsection (a) shall submit to the Secretary an application, at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary 
may require, including--
            ``(1) a description of the activities described in 
        subsection (c) that the entity plans to carry out; and
            ``(2) such documentation as may be necessary to 
        demonstrate, to the Secretary's satisfaction, the estimated 
        cost of the project for which the grant is made. 
    ``(e) Considerations.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
Secretary, to the extent practicable, may ensure equitable distribution 
of awards among the geographical regions of the United States.
    ``(f) Priority.--In selecting eligible entities to receive a grant 
under subsection (a), the Secretary shall give priority to eligible 
entities--
            ``(1) with respect to which over 60 percent of the patients 
        served are receiving medical assistance under a State plan (or 
        a waiver of such plan) under title XIX of the Social Security 
        Act or child health assistance under a State child health plan 
        (or a waiver of such plan) under title XXI of such Act; or
            ``(2) that primarily serve children from diverse and 
        traditionally underserved populations, including racial and 
        ethnic minorities.
    ``(g) Supplement, Not Supplant.--Funds provided under this section 
shall be used to supplement, and not supplant, Federal and non-Federal 
funds available for carrying out the activities described in this 
section.
    ``(h) Matching Funds.--An eligible entity receiving a grant under 
this section shall provide funds from sources other than funds provided 
through such grant in an amount that is at least equal to 50 percent of 
the amount of such grant.
    ``(i) Reporting.--
            ``(1) Reports from grantees.--Following project completion, 
        each entity awarded a grant under this section shall submit a 
        report to the Secretary on the activities conducted under such 
        grant, and other information as the Secretary may require.
            ``(2) Reports to congress.--Not later than September 30, 
        2026, and every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary shall submit 
        to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
        and Pensions of the Senate a report on the activities conducted 
        through the grant program under this section, and the outcomes 
        of such projects. Such reports shall include--
                    ``(A) the number of projects supported by the 
                grants under subsection (a);
                    ``(B) an overview of the impact, if any, of such 
                projects on pediatric health care infrastructure, 
                including any impact on access to health care for 
                pediatric populations;
                    ``(C) recommendations for improving the grant 
                program under this section; and
                    ``(D) any other considerations as the Secretary 
                determines appropriate.
    ``(j) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $600,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2024 through 2033.''.
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