Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act This bill expressly prohibits health care providers and other entities involved in matching donated organs with recipients from denying or restricting an individual's access to organ transplants solely on the basis of the individual's disability, except in limited circumstances. Specifically, these entities may consider an individual's disability when making decisions about transplants only if a physician finds, based on an individualized evaluation, that the individual's physical or mental disability is medically significant to the provision of the transplant. A disability shall not be considered medically significant if the individual has an adequate support system in place to comply with transplant-related medical requirements. These entities must also make reasonable changes to their policies to make transplants and related care more available to individuals with disabilities. Aggrieved individuals may bring claims of discrimination to the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services or before a federal court. The bill provides for expedited resolutions of these claims.
Sponsored bills
Living Donor Protection Act of 2021 This bill prohibits certain insurance carriers from discriminating against, and provides other protections for, living organ donors. Specifically, carriers may not deny, cancel, or otherwise impose conditions on policies for life insurance, disability insurance, or long-term care insurance based on an individual's status as a living organ donor. The bill also expressly specifies that recovery from organ-donation surgery constitutes a serious health condition that entitles eligible employees to job-protected medical leave. In addition, the Department of Health and Human Services must update educational materials on live organ donation to include information about the benefits of live organ donation and about access to insurance for living organ donors.
Saving America's Mines Act This bill bars the President, the Department of the Interior, or the Department of Agriculture from declaring a moratorium on or reversing any existing lease, permit, or claim, for the mining and extraction of any critical mineral or common varieties of sand, stone, and gravel on National Forest System or Bureau of Land Management land unless specifically authorized by statute or upon the lessee, permittee, or claimant's failure to comply with any of the provisions of its agreement.
ABLE Age Adjustment Act This bill increases from 26 to 46 the age threshold for tax-favored ABLE (Achieving a Better Life Experience) accounts. (ABLE accounts are designed to enable individuals with disabilities to save for and pay for disability-related expenses. To establish an account, an individual must have a qualifying impairment that began before the individual attained the age threshold.)
Safe Home Act of 2021 This bill makes unregulated custody transfers a form of child abuse and neglect under federal child-welfare law. Specifically, an unregulated custody transfer occurs when a child is placed with a non-relative or otherwise unfamiliar adult, with the intention of severing the parental or guardian relationship with the child, without reasonably ensuring the child's safety, and without legally transferring parental or guardian rights. The bill also requires the Department of Health and Human Services to (1) report on the causes, effects, and prevalence of unregulated custody transfers; (2) develop policy recommendations for preventing such transfers; and (3) issue guidance to the states.
Helping Experts Accelerate Rare Treatments Act of 2021 This bill addresses rare diseases, including by requiring the Food and Drug Administration to ensure the inclusion of rare disease experts and staff members in various parts of the drug review process. The bill also requires certain reports to address issues related to rare diseases and drugs for treating such diseases (sometimes referred to as orphan drugs if the rarity of the disease makes it difficult for the drug to be profitable).
Opioid Patients' Right to Know Act of 2021 This bill requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to award grants to states to educate health care providers about opioid prescribing practices. To receive a grant, a state must have a law or regulation that requires providers to, before issuing an initial opioid prescription to treat acute pain, inform patients about the risks of opioids and the availability of non-opioid treatment alternatives. States must use the grants to educate providers about relevant laws or regulations and safe opioid prescribing recommendations.
Renewable Fuel Standard Integrity Act of 2021 This bill revises requirements for exemptions from the renewable fuel standard (RFS) given to small refineries of crude oil. The existing RFS requires transportation fuel to contain a minimum volume of renewable fuel. The bill establishes an annual deadline for petitions by small refineries for exemptions from the RFS. In addition, the bill subjects information in the petition to public disclosure requirements.
Iran Hostages Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill requires the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate to arrange for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal commemorating the bravery and endurance of the 53 hostages of the Iran Hostage Crisis. Following its award, the medal shall be given to the National Museum of American History of the Smithsonian Institution for display and research. The Department of the Treasury must strike duplicate medals in silver for presentation to a hostage (or the personal representative of a deceased hostage), and Treasury may also strike and sell duplicate medals in bronze.
Stop Foreign Donations Affecting Our Elections Act This bill requires political committees, when accepting a credit card contribution over the internet, to collect the credit card's verification value. The card's billing address must be in the United States unless the contributor is a U.S. citizen living outside of the United States, in which case the contributor must provide his or her voter registration address.