This bill prohibits the attachment of a 2021 recovery rebate by legal process, including assignment, levy, or garnishment. A 2021 recovery rebate is a stimulus payment provided by the American Rescue Plan of 2021 for individual taxpayers and their dependents who have been affected by the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic.
Empowering Medicare Seniors to Negotiate Drug Prices Act of 2021 This bill allows the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to negotiate drug prices under the Medicare prescription drug benefit and to institute a price structure for the reimbursement of drugs covered under the benefit.
Fostering Postsecondary Success for Foster and Homeless Youth Act of 2021 This bill establishes a program through which the Department of Education (ED) must annually recognize institutions of higher education (IHEs) that offer outstanding services and programs to foster care and homeless youth. Further, ED must establish a Center for Fostering Postsecondary Success for Foster and Homeless Youth to assist IHEs with creating and maintaining their programs for these youth.
Huntington's Disease Disability Insurance Access Act of 2021 This bill expedites payment of Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits and eligibility for Medicare coverage for those with Huntington's disease. This is an inherited disorder that causes brain cells to die, including in areas of the brain that help to control voluntary movement. Specifically, the bill eliminates the 5-month waiting period for SSDI benefits and the subsequent 24-month waiting period for Medicare coverage for individuals with Huntington's disease. Under current law, individuals generally must wait five months after the onset of disability to begin receiving SSDI benefits and an additional 24 months to become eligible for Medicare.
Let States Cut Taxes Act This bill removes a prohibition on states and territories using COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) relief funding under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 to offset a reduction in revenue resulting from a reduction in taxes or a delay in the imposition of a tax or tax increase.
Wise Investment in Children Act of 2021 or the WIC Act of 20 21 This bill expands eligibility for children to receive benefits under the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). The bill authorizes the Department of Agriculture to grant a waiver to a state, on request, that waives certification deadline requirements under the program if such state demonstrates there are unusual technological barriers to implementation, operational costs are not affordable within the nutrition services and administration grant of the state, or it is in the best interest of the program. If a waiver is granted, the bill extends eligibility for the program until the period that ends on the earlier of the sixth birthday of a child or when the child enters kindergarten; extends the certification period under the program for infants to up to two years, instead of the current one year; and increases the certification time under the program for postpartum women to a period of up to two years.
College Transparency Act This bill requires the National Center for Education Statistics to establish a secure and privacy-protected data system that contains information about postsecondary students. Specifically, the data system must evaluate student enrollment patterns, progression, completion, and postcollegiate outcomes, and higher education costs and financial aid; provide complete and customizable information for students and families making decisions about postsecondary education; reduce the requirements for reporting by institutions of higher education; and periodically match with other federal systems of data. The bill also establishes a postsecondary student data system advisory committee.
American Dream Employment Act of 2021 This bill establishes that, for the purposes of eligibility to be an officer or employee of an office of Congress, an individual shall be treated as a U.S. citizen if that individual has (1) employment authorization under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, (2) employment authorization under a grant of deferred enforced departure, or (3) temporary protected status. (Generally, these programs and statuses allow eligible aliens to remain and work in the United States.)
Jumpstart Our Businesses by Supporting Students Act of 2021 or the JOBS Act of 2021 This bill expands student eligibility for Pell Grants by establishing the Job Training Federal Pell Grant program. Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Education to award a job training Pell Grant to a student who does not have a degree; attends an institution of higher education (IHE); is enrolled in a career and technical education program at an IHE that provides 150 to 600 clock hours of instructional time over a period of 8 to 15 weeks and provides training aligned with high-skill, high-wage, or in-demand industry sectors (i.e., job training programs); and meets all other eligibility requirements for a Pell Grant. It also specifies that any period during which a student receives a job training Pell Grant counts toward that student's Pell Grant eligibility period.
Increasing Access to Quality Cardiac Rehabilitation Care Act of 2021 This bill accelerates and expands certain changes that are scheduled to take effect relating to the coverage of cardiac, intensive cardiac, and pulmonary rehabilitation programs under Medicare. Currently, such programs require physician supervision. Effective January 1, 2024, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and clinical nurse specialists may also supervise these programs. The bill expedites the effective date of these changes to January 1, 2022, and also allows these practitioners to administer programs in their offices, prepare and sign treatment plans, and prescribe exercise.
Nursing Home Reform Modernization Act of 2021 This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish a ranking system and related programs for Medicare skilled nursing facilities and Medicaid nursing facilities, taking into account the findings and recommendations of a specified advisory council. Specifically, the bill establishes the Advisory Council on Skilled Nursing Facility Rankings under Medicare and Nursing Facility Rankings under Medicaid. The council must study processes and make related recommendations for rankings, including with respect to appropriate metrics, data sources, and quality control. The CMS must then develop a ranking system and use the system to implement a high-rated facility program and a low-rated facility program. Facilities in the low-rated facility program are subject to progressive enforcement actions of increasing severity until they meet applicable standards; facilities in the high-rated facility program may also have their designations suspended if they fail to meet the requisite standards. The CMS must post facility designations on the Nursing Home Compare website in a specified manner. The Government Accountability Office must report on the quality of services provided by facilities and their compliance with applicable requirements, including the effectiveness of the bill's low-rated facility program.
Energy Efficient Public Buildings Act of 2021 This bill requires the Department of Energy to provide grants to states, local governments, or nonprofit organizations for making energy improvements in (1) public libraries, (2) public hospitals, (3) community centers, or (4) state or local government buildings.
