Healthcare

died · Iowa · House May 13, 2025

HF 1042: A bill for an act relating to matters under the purview of the department of health and human services, including administrative services organizations, child foster care, child and dependent adult abuse, internal audit and examination information, and the region incentive fund in the mental health and disability services regional service fund, health maintenance organization’s premium tax, and making appropriations and including effective date and retroactive applicability provisions.

This bill addresses various matters under the purview of the Department of Health and Human Services. It introduces new definitions related to mental health and disability services, such as "disability access point," and modifies who can serve as an advocate for involuntarily hospitalized patients, excluding certain affiliated employees. For child foster care, the bill updates terminology to explicitly include "individual licensees" and "approved kinship caregivers." These caregivers are granted decision-making authority under the "reasonable and prudent parent standard" for children in their care, and eligibility for extended foster care is updated to reflect these roles.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill updates mental health definitions, expands caregiver roles in foster care, and includes funding provisions for health services under HHS, aligning with mental health support indicators.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Insurance Mental Health

Track

in committee · Iowa · Senate Jun 16, 2025

SF 168: A bill for an act modifying provisions related to shared operational functions and school district supplementary weighting.

This bill modifies Iowa school funding rules by changing how certain shared staff positions count toward a school district's annual funding cap. Starting July 1, 2024, funding for college/career transition counselors no longer counts toward the 21-pupil maximum. Starting July 1, 2025, funding for master social workers, licensed social workers, mental health professionals, and school resource officers also won't count toward this cap. School districts using these staff will have more flexibility to allocate funding toward other shared operational functions within the 21-pupil limit. The change affects all Iowa school districts receiving supplementary funding for shared staff services.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesBill removes certain staff funding from district cap calculations, increasing budget flexibility for schools without new appropriations, promoting efficient fiscal management within existing budget constraints.85% confidence ✓ EducationSupports EducationRemoves funding cap barriers for counselors/social workers, enabling expanded student support services without triggering district budget constraints.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareExcludes mental health professionals' funding from school budget cap, enabling increased hiring for school-based mental health services without triggering funding limits.90% confidence

Sub-Topics School Funding School Safety Student Health

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in committee · Iowa · Senate Jun 16, 2025

SF 476: A bill for an act relating to the personal needs allowance under the medical assistance program.

SF 476 increases Iowa's personal needs allowance under the medical assistance program from $50 to $65 per month for residents of nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities for intellectual/mental disabilities, or psychiatric medical institutions for children. It requires the state to provide supplements to residents with income below $65 to reach the full allowance amount, and mandates annual inflation adjustments starting July 2026 based on the Midwest CPI index (capped at $100 monthly). The Department of Health and Human Services must biennially report on recipients and disbursements to the legislature, beginning January 2027. This directly affects low-income residents in long-term care facilities by increasing their monthly personal spending allowance.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareIncreases medical assistance personal needs allowance from $50 to $65/month for nursing/mental health facilities, with inflation adjustments, directly strengthening patient support under healthcare programs.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Long-Term Care

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in committee · Iowa · Senate Jan 14, 2026

SF 399: A bill for an act relating to the licensure of medical cannabidiol dispensaries.

SF 399 increases Iowa's maximum number of licensed medical cannabidiol dispensaries from five to ten. It removes a requirement that dispensaries must begin operations by December 1, 2018, and specifies that the Iowa Department of Health will accept applications for new or renewed licenses by April 1 each year, with final licensing decisions by December 1. This bill directly affects medical cannabis dispensaries seeking to operate in Iowa and the state department responsible for issuing licenses. The changes simplify the licensing process by expanding capacity and eliminating a specific start-date deadline.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareExpands medical cannabis access by increasing dispensary licenses, improving patient access to healthcare services per bill's intent.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing

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passed · Iowa · House Feb 24, 2026

HF 970: A bill for an act relating to the double up food bucks program, the supplemental nutrition assistance program and making appropriations and including effective date provisions.

HF 970 allocates $1 million for Iowa's Double Up Food Bucks program, which helps SNAP recipients buy fresh produce at farmers markets and grocery stores. It requires grant recipients to match funds dollar-for-dollar and ensures the funds remain available beyond the fiscal year. The bill also seeks federal approval to restrict SNAP-eligible foods to healthy items like fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. This food eligibility change would take effect only after the USDA approves the modification. The program funding becomes effective upon federal approval of the food rules.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesAllocates $1M for SNAP food assistance program, directly funding an essential public service per appropriations language.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareAllocates $1M for Double Up Food Bucks program, promoting healthy food access for SNAP recipients under public health nutrition initiatives.95% confidence

Track

signed · Iowa · Senate Jun 6, 2025

SF 288: A bill for an act relating to students who are pregnant or who recently gave birth who attend state institutions of higher education governed by the board of regents and community colleges.

SF 288 requires public colleges and universities governed by the Board of Regents and community colleges to provide academic accommodations for students who are pregnant or who recently gave birth. The law specifically allows these students to withdraw from courses without academic penalty if pregnancy or childbirth prevents them from continuing their studies. Institutions must also provide clear information about available support services, including health care and childcare resources. This policy directly affects pregnant and postpartum students enrolled at these specific public higher education institutions.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationBill mandates academic accommodations and support services for pregnant/students, directly enhancing educational access and equity in higher education institutions.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill mandates institutions to provide health care resource information, improving student access to health services for pregnancy-related needs.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Early Childhood Higher Education Women's Health

passed · Iowa · Senate May 15, 2025

SF 315: A bill for an act relating to pharmacy benefits manager reverse auctions and group insurance for public employees and including effective date provisions.

SF 315, known as the "Iowa Competitive Pharmacy Benefits Managers Marketplace Act," aims to reduce prescription drug costs for public employees in self-funded state health plans. The bill mandates that the state department procure pharmacy benefits manager (PBM) services through a "reverse auction" process. This online, competitive bidding system allows PBMs to offer progressively lower prices for their services. Additionally, the department must acquire a technology platform to conduct these auctions and perform detailed, line-by-line audits of PBM claims to ensure contract compliance. The first PBM contract awarded through this new system is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2026.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareMandates reverse auctions for PBMs to reduce prescription drug costs in public employee health plans, directly lowering healthcare expenses for covered populations.85% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill reduces prescription drug costs for public employees' health benefits, enhancing employment-related benefits under group insurance standards.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Prescription Drugs

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in committee · Iowa · House May 15, 2025

HF 384: A bill for an act providing an exception to a minor’s legal capacity to consent to the provision of medical care or services for a sexually transmitted disease or infection.

House File 384 amends the current law concerning a minor's ability to consent to medical care for sexually transmitted diseases or infections. Under existing law, minors can consent to prevention, diagnosis, or treatment for STDs/STIs without parental consent. This bill creates an exception, stipulating that minors would no longer have the legal capacity to consent specifically to vaccinations for sexually transmitted diseases or infections. Minors would still be able to consent to other forms of care, such as diagnosis or treatment, without requiring consent from a parent, guardian, or spouse.

Topics ✗ HealthcareOpposes HealthcareRestricts minors' access to STD/STI vaccinations without parental consent, limiting healthcare access for this group.95% confidence

Track

signed · Iowa · House May 27, 2025

HF 300: A bill for an act enacting the physician assistant licensure compact.

HF 300 creates a multi-state agreement (compact) allowing physician assistants licensed in one participating state to practice in other compact states without needing separate licenses. It directly affects physician assistants seeking to work across state lines and healthcare facilities in participating states. The key provision establishes a standardized licensing process where a license issued by one compact state is recognized by all others in the agreement. This reduces administrative barriers for physician assistants and expands their ability to provide care in multiple states without reapplying for licenses. The bill was signed into law by the Governor on May 27, 2025.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareRemoves licensing barriers for physician assistants across states, improving healthcare access and provider mobility without additional requirements.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Medical Licensing

signed · Iowa · House Jun 11, 2025

HF 516: A bill for an act relating to medical residency and fellowship positions, including priority for admission to the university of Iowa’s colleges of medicine and dentistry, and hospitals and clinics.

HF 516 creates priority access for residency and fellowship positions at the University of Iowa’s colleges of medicine and dentistry, directly affecting UI’s medical programs and their affiliated hospitals and clinics. The bill requires state-funded training programs to prioritize applicants from these UI institutions when filling medical residency and fellowship roles. Now law after Governor signed it on June 11, 2025, this policy change aims to strengthen UI’s medical education pipeline without altering broader admission standards for other institutions.

Topics ✓ EducationSupports EducationPrioritizes University of Iowa medical students for residency positions, strengthening its medical education pipeline and directly supporting higher education at a specific institution.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill prioritizes University of Iowa medical residency programs to strengthen healthcare workforce pipeline, directly advancing medical education and future provider capacity per its summary.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Higher Education