Rep. Brittany Pettersen

Maddy summaryThe SEARCH Act of 2024 directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to launch public awareness campaigns increasing women’s participation in NIH clinical trials, particularly for rare diseases disproportionately affecting women, with $10 million annually from 2025-2029. It also creates a permanent Interagency Task Force on Rare Diseases, including HHS agency heads, biopharma representatives, and patient advocates, to coordinate federal research efforts and assess funding for rare disease treatments. The bill requires HHS to submit an action plan within 180 days of enactment outlining how it will incentivize research on rare diseases that disproportionately impact women. These provisions directly affect women seeking clinical trial participation, NIH research programs, and HHS agencies responsible for rare disease initiatives.

Maddy summaryThis bill amends existing federal laws to authorize the USDA Forest Service to fund native seed and seedling programs. It allows the agency to provide contracts, grants, or agreements to state forestry agencies, local nonprofits, and universities for collecting native seeds and producing seedlings. These funds will support habitat restoration projects by enabling the collection of native seeds and the production of seedlings for replanting degraded lands. The key mechanism is creating a formal process within current law to streamline these conservation activities, directly affecting state and local conservation groups working on ecosystem recovery.

Maddy summaryThis bill extends Medicare payment adjustments for physicians and other practitioners through 2025 instead of ending in 2024. It specifically adds a 4.73% payment increase for services provided between January 1, 2025, and January 1, 2026. The legislation modifies existing Medicare payment rules to stabilize practice revenues during transition periods. It directly affects doctors and healthcare providers who bill Medicare for patient services. The key change is the extended timeframe and the defined 4.73% rate for the 2025-2026 period.

Maddy summaryHR 9811, the Child Care Infrastructure Act, provides $10 billion in federal funding to improve child care facilities across the U.S. It requires the government to conduct immediate and long-term assessments of facility conditions, prioritizing pandemic-impacted centers serving low-income families, infants/toddlers, rural communities, and non-traditional-hour programs. The bill funds grants for states to renovate, build, or improve facilities (up to $35 million per state annually) and awards grants to intermediary organizations like community development groups to support financing and technical assistance. These grants must be used to address specific needs identified in the assessments, with labor standards requiring prevailing wage rates for construction work. The funding is authorized for fiscal years 2025-2029, with 3% reserved for tribal nations and territories.

Maddy summaryHR 9774, the Health Care Affordability Act of 2024, would expand premium tax credits under the Affordable Care Act for households earning between 150% and 400% of the federal poverty level. It modifies the sliding scale calculation to reduce the percentage of monthly insurance premiums these households must pay, with the lowest out-of-pocket costs for those near 400% of poverty. This directly affects individuals and families purchasing health insurance through marketplace plans who qualify for these tax credits. The changes apply to tax years beginning after December 31, 2025.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a new Medicare payment model for emergency medical services (EMS) that allows coverage when ambulance providers deliver critical care on-site without transporting patients to a hospital. It directly affects Medicare beneficiaries receiving such on-site emergency care and ambulance providers who would previously not be reimbursed for non-transport services. The key provision requires Medicare to pay for these services at rates matching what would have been paid for transport, based on state protocols and emergency call responses, for a 5-year trial period. A report due 4 years after implementation will evaluate impacts on patient outcomes, system efficiency, and regional access.

Maddy summaryHR 8796, the "Stop Comstock Act," removes outdated restrictions from federal law that previously banned the distribution of materials related to contraception and abortion as "obscene" or "indecent." The bill amends Title 18 and the Tariff Act by deleting references to "indecent," "immoral," "unlawful abortion," and "procuring abortion" from provisions governing obscene materials. It clarifies that the law only prohibits "obscene materials" in commerce, eliminating broad restrictions on reproductive health information. This directly affects internet platforms, healthcare providers, and individuals sharing reproductive health resources by removing legal barriers to their distribution.

Maddy summaryHR 8738, the Rural Health Preceptor Tax Fairness Act, provides a $1,000 annual tax credit to eligible health professionals who mentor qualified health students in rural areas. It directly affects licensed providers (including doctors, nurses, psychologists, dentists, and social workers) who supervise students in designated rural health shortage areas or covered rural regions. The credit applies when the fourth week of supervision ends during the tax year, with a maximum $1,000 limit per professional annually. Qualified students must be enrolled in health degree or licensure programs at accredited institutions. The bill aims to incentivize rural clinical training by reducing tax burdens for providers.

Maddy summaryThe Ensuring Excellence in Mental Health Act (HR 8543) establishes a permanent Medicaid payment system for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs) and adds their services to Medicare coverage. It creates a new Medicaid payment system that calculates payments based on clinic costs with annual inflation adjustments, and sets Medicare reimbursement at 80% of the lesser of actual charges or determined amounts. The bill also creates a new grant program providing $552.5 million annually from 2024-2028 to support CCBHC operations, with specific certification requirements including 24/7 crisis services, sliding scale fees, and care coordination across providers. The legislation requires clinics to meet new certification standards and establishes a data collection system to track clinic performance.

Maddy summaryThe Essential Caregivers Act of 2024 requires nursing homes and similar facilities to allow residents to designate essential caregivers who provide emotional support or assistance with daily activities. During emergencies when regular visitation is restricted, facilities must permit at least one essential caregiver access to residents daily and cannot deny access without following specific procedures. Facilities may deny access for a maximum of 7 days during emergencies (or 14 days with state approval), and must provide a written explanation and appeal process if access is denied. The bill establishes a 48-hour appeal process for residents and caregivers to challenge denials, with facilities required to prove violations during appeals. This law applies to Medicare skilled nursing facilities, Medicaid nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities, and certain inpatient rehabilitation facilities.