[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 862 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 862
To address health workforce shortages through additional funding for
the National Health Service Corps, and to establish a National Health
Service Corps Emergency Service demonstration project.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 16, 2023
Mr. Durbin (for himself and Mr. Rubio) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To address health workforce shortages through additional funding for
the National Health Service Corps, and to establish a National Health
Service Corps Emergency Service demonstration project.
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 ``Restoring America's Health Care
Workforce and Readiness Act''.
SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR THE NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE CORPS.
(a) Additional Funding.--Section 10503(b)(2) of the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 254b-2(b)(2)) is
amended--
(1) in subparagraph (G), by striking ``; and'' and
inserting a semicolon;
(2) in subparagraph (H), by striking the period and
inserting a semicolon; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(I) $625,000,000 for fiscal year 2024;
``(J) $675,000,000 for fiscal year 2025; and
``(K) $825,000,000 for fiscal year 2026.''.
(b) National Health Service Corps Emergency Service Demonstration
Project.--Part B of title XXVIII of the Public Health Service Act is
amended by inserting after section 2812 (42 U.S.C. 300hh-11) the
following:
``SEC. 2812A. NATIONAL HEALTH SERVICE CORPS EMERGENCY SERVICE
DEMONSTRATION PROJECT.
``(a) In General.--For each of fiscal years 2024 through 2026, from
the amounts made available under section 10503(b)(2) of the Patient
Protection and Affordable Care Act, to the extent permitted by, and
consistent with, the requirements of applicable State law, the
Secretary shall allocate up to $50,000,000 to establishing, as a
demonstration project, a National Health Service Corps Emergency
Service (referred to in this section as the `emergency service') under
which a qualified individual currently or previously participating in
the National Health Service Corps agrees to engage in service through
the National Disaster Medical System established under section 2812, as
described in this section.
``(b) Participants.--
``(1) NHSC alumni.--
``(A) Qualified individuals.--An individual may be
eligible to participate in the emergency service under
this section if such individual participated in the
Scholarship Program under section 338A or the Loan
Repayment Program under section 338B, and satisfied the
obligated service requirements under such program, in
accordance with the individual's contract.
``(B) Priority and increased funding amounts.--
``(i) Priority.--In selecting eligible
individuals to participate in the program under
this paragraph, the Secretary shall give
priority--
``(I) first, to qualified
individuals who continue to practice at
the site where the individual fulfilled
his or her obligated service under the
Scholarship Program or Loan Repayment
Program through the time of the
application to the program under this
section; and
``(II) secondly, to qualified
individuals who continue to practice in
any site approved for obligated service
under the Scholarship Program or Loan
Repayment Program other than the site
at which the individual served.
``(ii) Increased funding amounts.--The
Secretary may grant increased award amounts to
certain participants in the program under this
section based on the site where a participant
fulfilled his or her obligated service under
the Scholarship Program or Loan Repayment
Program.
``(C) Private practice.--An individual
participating in the emergency service under this
section may practice a health profession in any private
capacity when not obligated to fulfill the requirements
described in subsection (c).
``(2) Current nhsc members.--
``(A) In general.--An individual who is
participating in the Scholarship Program under section
338A or the Loan Repayment Program under section 338B
may apply to participate in the program under this
section while fulfilling the individual's obligated
services under such program.
``(B) Clarifications.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law or any contract with respect to
service requirements under the Scholarship Program or
Loan Repayment Program, an individual fulfilling
service requirements described in subsection (c) shall
not be considered in breach of such contract under such
Scholarship Program or Loan Repayment Program, provided
that the individual give advance and reasonable
notification to the site at which the individual is
fulfilling his or her obligated service requirements
under such contract, and the site approves the
individual's deployment through the National Disaster
Medical System.
``(C) No credit toward obligated service.--No
period of service under the National Disaster Medical
System described in subsection (c)(1) shall be counted
toward satisfying a period of obligated service under
the Scholarship Program or Loan Repayment Program.
``(c) Participants as Members of the National Disaster Medical
System.--
``(1) Service requirements.--An individual participating in
the program under this section shall participate in the
activities of the National Disaster Medical System under
section 2812 in the same manner and to the same extent as other
participants in such system.
``(2) Rights and requirements.--An individual participating
in the program under this section shall be considered
participants in the National Disaster Medical System and shall
be subject to the rights and requirements of subsections (c)
and (d) of section 2812.
``(d) Emergency Service Plan.--In carrying out this section, the
Secretary, in consultation with the Administrator of the Health
Resources and Services Administration and the Assistant Secretary for
Preparedness and Response, shall establish an action plan for the
service commitments, deployment protocols, coordination efforts,
training requirements, liability, workforce development, and such other
considerations as the Secretary determines appropriate. Such action
plan shall--
``(1) ensure adherence to the missions of both the National
Health Service Corps and National Disaster Medical Service;
``(2) outline the type of providers determined by the
Assistant Secretary to be priorities for participation in the
program established under this section;
``(3) describe how such deployments will be determined and
prioritized in a manner consistent with--
``(A) the National Health Service Corps contracts;
and
``(B) the National Disaster Medical System's
deployment policy of not hindering civilian responders
already engaged in an emergency response;
``(4) ensure an adequate health care workforce during a
public health emergency declared by the Secretary under section
319 of this Act, a major disaster declared by the President
under section 401 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and
Emergency Assistance Act, an emergency declared by the
President under section 501 of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster
Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, or a national emergency
declared by the President under the National Emergencies Act;
and
``(5) describe how the program established under this
section will be implemented in a manner consistent with, and in
furtherance of, the assessments and goals for workforce and
training described in the review conducted by the Secretary
under section 2812(b)(2).
``(e) Contracts for Certain Participating Individuals.--An
individual who is participating in the emergency service program under
this section shall receive loan repayments in an amount up to 50
percent (as determined by the Secretary) of the highest new award made
for the year under the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment
Program pursuant to a contract entered into at the same time under
section 338B(g), in a manner similar to the manner in which payments
are made under such section, pursuant to the terms of a contract
between the Secretary and such individual. The Secretary shall
establish a system of contracting for purposes of this subsection which
shall be similar to the contract requirements and terms under
subsections (c), (d), and (f) of section 338B. Amounts received by an
individual under this subsection shall be in addition to any amounts
received by an individual described in subsection (b)(2) pursuant to
the Scholarship Program under section 338A or the Loan Repayment
Program under section 338B, as applicable.
``(f) Breach of Contract, Termination, Waiver, and Suspension.--
``(1) Recovery of amounts in the event of a breach.--If an
individual breaches the written contract of the individual
under subsection (e) by failing either to begin such
individual's service obligation in accordance with such
contract or to complete such service obligation, the United
States shall be entitled to recover from the individual an
amount equal to the sum of--
``(A) the total of the amounts paid by the United
States under such contract on behalf of the individual
for any period of such service not served;
``(B) an amount equal to the product of the number
of months of service that were not completed by the
individual, multiplied by $3,750; and
``(C) the interest on the amounts described in
subparagraphs (A) and (B), at the maximum legal
prevailing rate, as determined by the Treasurer of the
United States, from the date of the breach.
``(2) Termination of contract.--The Secretary may terminate
a contract under subsection (e) in accordance with the
termination standards that are--
``(A) applicable to contracts entered into under
section 338B; and
``(B) in effect in the fiscal year in which such
contract was entered.
``(3) Waiver or suspension of obligation.--If an individual
participating in the program under this section submits a
written request to the Secretary, the Secretary may waive or
suspend a service or payment obligation arising under this
subsection or a contract under subsection (e), in whole or in
part, in accordance with the standards set forth in section
62.12 of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations (or any
successor regulations).
``(g) Report.--Not later than 4 years after the date of enactment
of this section, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on
Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report that
evaluates the demonstration project established under this section,
including--
``(1) the effects of such program on health care access in
underserved areas and health professional shortage areas and on
public health emergency response capacity;
``(2) the effects of such program on the health care
provider workforce pipeline, including any impact on the fields
or specialties pursued by students in approved graduate
training programs in medicine, osteopathic medicine, dentistry,
behavioral and mental health, or other health profession;
``(3) the impact of such program on the enrollment,
participation, and completion of requirements in the underlying
scholarship and loan repayment programs of the National Health
Service Corps;
``(4) the effects of such program on the National Disaster
Medical System's response capability, readiness, and workforce
strength; and
``(5) recommendations for improving the demonstration
project described in this section, and any other considerations
as the Secretary determines appropriate.''.
<all>