Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragán

Equity in Neuroscience and Alzheimer's Clinical Trials Act of 2021 or the ENACT Act of 2021 This bill sets out activities and requirements to increase the participation of underrepresented populations in research and clinical trials for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Specifically, the National Institute on Aging (NIA) must establish and provide technical assistance to Alzheimer's research centers located in areas with higher concentrations of minority groups. These centers must establish diagnostic and treatment clinics designed to serve minority, rural, and other underserved populations; operate clinical trials; and carry out public outreach to encourage members of minority populations to participate in clinical trials and research. Additionally, the NIA must disseminate information to members of minority populations about participating in clinical trials and take other actions to enhance diversity with respect to the Alzheimer's research that it conducts or supports. The bill also directs the NIA to increase diversity among Alzheimer's researchers by encouraging the participation of individuals who are from groups that are underrepresented in clinical, behavioral, and social sciences.

Servicemember Parental Leave Equity Act This bill modifies Department of Defense parental leave provisions for members of the Armed Forces. Specifically, the bill increases parental leave for primary caregivers to 18 weeks (currently 12) following the birth of a child and to 12 weeks (currently 6) following the adoption of a child. The bill increases parental leave for a secondary caregiver from 21 days to 12 weeks in connection with the birth or adoption of a child. Primary or secondary caregivers of a long-term foster child are authorized to take up to 12 weeks of leave in connection with such placement. Parental leave for a primary or secondary caregiver for a birth, adoption, or foster child placement may be taken in more than one increment. For primary caregivers, the leave must be utilized within one year of the event. The bill authorizes up to 12 weeks of leave to certain service members who would have been secondary caregivers but for a miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death. The following activities required of an active-duty member within a 12-month postpartum period must have the approval of a health care provider and be at the election of the member or in the interest of national security: (1) an order of temporary duty overnight travel or to participate in physically demanding field training exercises, (2) meeting of body composition standards, or (3) passing a physical fitness test. The bill also reduces the service commitment required for participation in the Career Intermission Program.

Personal Health Investment Today Act of 2021 or the PHIT Act of 2021 This bill allows a medical care tax deduction for up to $1,000 ($2,000 for a joint return or a head of household) of qualified sports and fitness expenses per year. The bill defines qualified sports and fitness expenses as amounts paid exclusively for participating in a physical activity, including (1) fitness facility memberships, (2) physical exercise or activity programs, or (3) equipment for a physical exercise or activity program.

COVID Vaccine Transportation Access Act This bill establishes a grant program to remove transportation barriers in accessing COVID-19 vaccination sites. It also requires the federal government to cover the full cost of nonemergency transportation benefits related to accessing a COVID-19 vaccine for Medicaid recipients. Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services must award the grants through state health agencies to nonprofits that have experience providing services to communities with disparities in health status and health care access. Grant-funded projects may include prescheduled or on-demand transportation to and from COVID-19 vaccination sites.

Connecting America's Active Transportation System Act This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to carry out an active transportation investment program to provide competitive grants to state, local, and regional government entities, and Indian tribes to construct projects that connect walking and bicycling infrastructure within and between communities, metropolitan regions, or states. The bill sets forth various limitations on the use of funds by DOT, including that it must obligate at least 30% of funds to projects that connect people with public transportation, businesses, workplaces, schools, residences, recreation areas, and other community activity centers; set aside at least $3 million to provide planning grants for eligible entities; and set aside at least $2 million to cover the costs of administration, research, technical assistance, communications, and training activities under the program. The federal share of grants must not exceed 80% of the total project cost. However, DOT may increase the federal share to 100% for disadvantaged communities with a poverty rate of over 40%.

Transit to Trails Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Transportation (DOT) to establish the Transit to Trails Grant Program to award grants to certain governmental and private entities for projects that increase transportation access and mobility to public lands, inland and coastal waters, parkland, or monuments for critically underserved communities. For example, DOT must (1) prioritize approving certain projects, such as projects that use low-or zero-emission vehicles and those that provide free or discounted rates for low-income riders; (2) develop transportation planning procedures for projects conducted under the program that are consistent with metropolitan and statewide planning processes; and (3) ensure that all new transportation connectors and routes developed under the program are accessible to people with disabilities. The bill requires grant awards to be at least $25,000 and not more than $500,000. Further, the bill requires publicized schedules and routes for transportation systems that are developed after the receipt of a grant under the program.

Transform, Heal, and Renew by Investing in a Vibrant Economy Act or the THRIVE Act This bill establishes a program to address the economy, racial justice, and climate change. The President must establish a board to advise the President and the heads of federal departments and agencies regarding the implementation of this bill. The President, in consultation with the board, must establish a 10-year plan to create a society that enables and supports greater racial, Indigenous, gender, environmental, and economic justice; work opportunities; healthy communities; a stable climate; and healthy ecosystems. In addition, the President, in consultation with the board, must implement a program that provides support to public or private entities that carry out qualified programs. The programs must meet certain labor, equity, and environmental conditions and support infrastructure, including to expand access to pollution-free, renewable, and affordable energy; care workers and social infrastructure (e.g., health care infrastructure); expanded access to housing; efforts to protect and restore biodiversity or natural habitats and efforts to remediate pollution in communities harmed by environmental, economic, or socioeconomic injustice; agriculture, including agricultural workers; or the development and transformation of the U.S. industrial base, including by expanding manufacturing of clean technologies.

Green Climate Fund Authorization Act of 2021 This bill authorizes $4 billion in both FY2022 and FY2023 for U.S. contributions to the Green Climate Fund (a fund established under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change to finance projects that address climate change).

Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act of 2021 or the CONNECT for Health Act of 2021 This bill expands coverage of telehealth services under Medicare. Among other provisions, the bill allows the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to waive certain restrictions, such as restrictions on the types of technology that may be used; permanently removes geographic restrictions on originating sites (i.e., the location of the beneficiary) and allows the home of the beneficiary to serve as the originating site for all services; permanently allows federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics to serve as the distant site (i.e., the location of the health care practitioner); and allows the CMS to generally waive coverage restrictions during any public health emergency. Additionally, the CMS must report on the effects of expanded telehealth services during the COVID-19 public health emergency, including with respect to the utilization, quality, and outcomes of services. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation may also test alternative payment models relating to expanded telehealth services.

This concurrent resolution (1) affirms, on the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first slave ship, that the nation owes a debt of remembrance not only to those who lived through the injustices of slavery but also to their descendants; and (2) urges the establishment of a U.S. Commission on Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation to properly acknowledge, memorialize, and be a catalyst for progress, including toward permanently eliminating persistent racial inequities.