[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 123 (Thursday, July 17, 2025)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4458-S4459]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS
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By Mr. REED (for himself and Mr. Justice):
S. 2338. A bill to amend the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to
establish the Strengthening Local Food Security Program, and for other
purposes; to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
Mr. REED. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Strengthening
Local Food Access Act with my colleague from West Virginia, Mr.
Justice. Our bipartisan bill would create a grant program for State and
Tribal governments to procure local foods for distribution to nearby
hunger relief and school meal programs.
Local food systems that connect farmers and fishermen directly to the
people they feed can be a real economic driver for communities. These
local networks not only support the growth of local farmers and small
businesses; they also ensure that food is readily available even when
there is a breakdown in the broader food supply chain due natural
disaster, transportation disruption, or disease. This bill would
strengthen these local food systems by creating a market for producers
to provide nutritious local food to children and those in need.
Indeed, the Strengthening Local Food Access Act would support local
food systems by helping States and Tribes purchase food from producers
within their geographic bounds or within 400 miles of the final
delivery destination, for distribution to nearby feeding programs and
for use in school meals.
This is a win-win-win. First, the bill supports local economic
development by providing local producers with access to the hunger
relief market. By establishing a new, reliable stream of orders for
small local growers and harvesters, the bill will give these businesses
the financial security to invest and further expand. Second, the bill
strengthens our domestic agriculture supply chain by investing in local
food distribution, in turn helping build local businesses that support
durable and resilient local food systems. Third, the Strengthening
Local Food Access Act would help combat food insecurity and improve
food access by providing fresh, nutritious, local food to underserved
communities and school feeding programs.
I am pleased that the bill is supported by the National Association
of State Departments of Agriculture NASDA, National Farmers Union, and
the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition. And in Rhode Island,
the bill is supported by the Rhode Island Community Food Bank, Farm
Fresh Rhode Island, and the Rhode Island Food Policy Council. I hope
that my colleagues will join me in supporting this legislation and in
working to include it in the farm bill.
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By Mr. PADILLA (for himself, Mr. Booker, Mr. Schiff, and Mr.
Gallego):
S. 2347. A bill to prohibit discrimination in health care and require
the provision of equitable health care, and for other purposes; to the
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Mr. PADILLA. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the Equal Health Care
for All Act, which appropriately frames healthcare discrimination as a
civil rights issue.
Inequitable access to quality, affordable healthcare is the result of
centuries of structural and systemic racism, all of which continues to
result in poorer health outcomes in communities of color.
Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous individuals are disproportionately
more likely than their White counterparts to suffer from a range of
illnesses, from asthma, to heart disease, to prostate cancer.
Inequitable outcomes are not exclusive to racial trends, however.
Women are both diagnosed with and die from lung cancer at a higher rate
than men, even when they don't smoke. And while rates of lung cancer
have dropped for men, they have risen for women.
The Equal Health Care for All Act seeks to address structural
inequities by establishing a legal definition of ``inequitable
healthcare'' and creating a formal process to enforce the standard.
The bill would also establish a grant program to assist hospitals and
other providers in implementing reforms to ensure equitable care and
would establish a permanent Federal Health Equity Commission to study
and make recommendations on health equity issues.
I would like to thank my coleads, Senators Booker and Schiff, and I
look forward to working with my colleagues to enact the Equal Health
Care for All Act as quickly as possible.
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By Mr. BARRASSO (for himself and Mr. Bennet):
[[Page S4459]]
S. 2356. A bill to expand psychological mental and behavioral health
services to Medicare, Medicaid, and CHIP beneficiaries by permitting
reimbursement of psychological services provided by certain supervised
psychology trainees, and facilitating the reimbursement of those
services; to the Committee on Finance.
Mr. BARRASSO. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of
the bill be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be
printed in the Record, as follows:
S. 2356
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 ``Accelerating the Development
of Advanced Psychology Trainees Act'' or the ``ADAPT Act''.
SEC. 2. COVERAGE AND CODING FOR QUALIFIED PSYCHOLOGIST
SERVICES FURNISHED BY ADVANCED PSYCHOLOGY
TRAINEES UNDER THE MEDICARE PROGRAM.
(a) Coverage.--
(1) In general.--Section 1861(ii) of the Social Security
Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(ii)) is amended--
(A) by inserting ``(1)'' after ``(ii)'';
(B) in paragraph (1), as added by subparagraph (A), by
inserting ``(or furnished by an advanced psychology trainee
under the general supervision of a clinical psychologist (as
so defined) and billed by the supervising psychologist)''
after ``(as defined by the Secretary)''; and
(C) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(2) In this subsection:
``(A) The term `advanced psychology trainee' means--
``(i) a doctoral intern who is completing a required period
of supervised experiential training through a program
accredited by the American Psychological Association, not
less than one year in duration, before being awarded a
doctoral degree; or
``(ii) a postdoctoral resident who has obtained a doctoral
degree in psychology, is seeking a license to practice
psychology, and is engaged in a 1- or 2-year period of
additional supervised experiential training to acquire the
skills or hours required for licensure through a program
accredited by the American Psychological Association or a
member of the Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and
Internship Centers.
``(B) The term `general supervision' means, with respect to
a service, that the service is furnished under the overall
direction and control of a clinical psychologist (as defined
for purposes of paragraph (1)), but the supervising
psychologist's presence is not required during the furnishing
of the service.''.
(2) Effective date.--The amendments made by this subsection
shall apply to services furnished on or after the date that
is 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(b) Development of GC Modifier Code.--Not later than 1 year
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of
Health and Human Services shall develop a ``GC'' modifier
code to identify and accurately bill for services furnished
by an advanced psychology trainee pursuant to the amendments
made by subsection (a).
SEC. 3. GUIDANCE TO STATES ON COVERAGE OF SERVICES PROVIDED
BY ADVANCED PSYCHOLOGY TRAINEES UNDER MEDICAID
AND CHIP.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this
Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall issue
and disseminate guidance to States on strategies to overcome
existing barriers to coverage of services furnished by
advanced psychology trainees (as defined under section
1861(ii)(2) of the Social Security Act, as added by section
2(a), through the Medicaid program under title XIX of the
Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) and the
Children's Health Insurance Program under title XXI of such
Act (42 U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.)). Such guidance shall include
technical assistance and best practices regarding each of the
following:
(1) Recommended legal mechanisms for activating coverage of
services furnished by advanced psychology trainees under such
programs.
(2) Recommended billing codes and code modifiers for
services furnished by advanced psychology trainees.
(3) Examples of States that have used waivers under the
Medicaid program or Children's Health Insurance Program to
enable coverage of services furnished by advanced psychology
trainees under such programs.
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