HF 2292 Iowa House · 2025-2026 Regular Session

A bill for an act directing the department of health and human services to increase the number of inpatient psychiatric beds at each state mental health institute.

HF 2292 mandates Iowa's Department of Health and Human Services to double the number of inpatient psychiatric beds at each state mental health institute by 2028. The bill requires applying for a federal Medicaid waiver by July 2027 to fund this expansion, using the 2025 bed count as the baseline. It directly affects homeless individuals with mental health conditions or substance use disorders, as cited in the bill's findings linking untreated mental health to public safety concerns. The key mechanism is the Medicaid waiver process, which would allow state-funded bed increases beyond current federal restrictions. This policy change aims to expand institutional treatment capacity without specifying outcomes or advocating for particular approaches.
Bill status passed 3 of 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Feb 2026
Committee Review
Mar 2026
House Passage
Feb 2026
Senate Passage
Governor
Introduced Feb 5, 2026 Last action Mar 27, 2026
Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Reprinted · 4 edits
MODERATE
The bill was reprinted in a more formal legislative format with significant substantive additions. The most important change is the addition of legislative findings that justify the bill's purpose, including references to a presidential executive order and statistics about homelessness and mental health. The bill's core requirement to double inpatient psychiatric beds by July 1, 2027, remains unchanged, but new language clarifies that the state must apply for a Medicaid waiver before implementing the bed increase.
Scope change
The bill's scope was expanded to include legislative findings that provide context and justification for the bill's provisions. The applicability to the department of health and human services and state mental health institutes remains the same.
REQUIREMENT

Added a new Section 1 with legislative findings that cite a presidential executive order on crime and disorder, statistics about homeless individuals with substance use disorders or mental health conditions, and the need for long-term institutional treatment to address homelessness root causes.

Reorganized the bill structure from a single section to two sections, with Section 1 containing legislative findings and Section 2 containing the operational requirements for bed increases and Medicaid waiver applications.

Clarified the timeline by specifying that the Medicaid waiver application must occur no later than one calendar year after the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services approves the waiver, rather than just setting the bed increase deadline.

TECHNICAL

Added formal legislative formatting including bill title, committee information, successor bill reference, and amendment dates, along with updated page numbering and tracking codes.

Floor votes · House Feb 26, 2026

How they voted

880
Passed · 11 other
Total votes 99
Feb 26, 2026
D Democratic32
27 Yea 5
84% Yea
R Republican67
61 Yea 6
91% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea All Nay Mixed No data
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
11
Key actions
3
Committee
1
Amendments
2
Mar 4, 2026
Upper · Passed
Subcommittee: Warme, Costello, and Zimmer.
upper
Feb 26, 2026
Lower · Passed
Passed House, yeas 90, nays 0.
lower
Feb 26, 2026
Lower · Passed
Amendment H-8019 adopted.
lower
Feb 23, 2026
Introduced
Amendment H-8019 filed.
lower
Feb 5, 2026
Introduced
Introduced, placed on calendar.
lower
0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors

No sponsor information available.