Healthcare (Healthcare Workforce)

in committee · United States · House Dec 18, 2025

HR 6894: Increasing Access to Quality Cardiac Rehabilitation Care Act of 2025

This bill expands Medicare coverage for cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation programs by allowing more healthcare providers to prescribe these services. It specifically permits physician assistants, nurse practitioners, and clinical nurse specialists (in addition to physicians) to prescribe rehabilitation exercises under Medicare. The bill modifies existing Medicare definitions to include these providers, removing the exclusive reference to "physicians" in program requirements. These changes apply to both cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation programs and take effect six months after the bill becomes law. The policy directly affects Medicare beneficiaries seeking these rehabilitation services and healthcare facilities providing them.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareExpands Medicare coverage for cardiac rehab by allowing non-physician providers to prescribe, improving patient access to care under existing Medicare framework.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Medicare

Track

in committee · United States · House Sep 16, 2025

HR 5370: To provide low-income individuals with opportunities to enter and follow a career pathway in the health professions, and for other purposes.

The Pathways to Health Careers Act creates federal grants to help low-income individuals (with family income up to 200% of the Federal poverty level) enter health profession careers. It funds training programs that include adult basic education, career coaching, child care, transportation, and legal assistance for people with arrest or conviction records. The bill specifically supports two demonstration projects: one helping individuals with criminal records enter health careers, and another focused on training doulas and midwives for pregnancy, birth, and postpartum care. Programs must provide structured career pathways to recognized health profession credentials and include support services like case management. The bill requires evaluations to assess effectiveness in addressing workforce shortages and improving participant outcomes.

Topics ✓ Criminal JusticeSupports Criminal JusticeBill provides legal assistance and a dedicated project for individuals with criminal records to enter health careers, directly addressing barriers to reentry and promoting rehabilitation.95% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill provides federal grants for low-income individuals to enter health careers through training programs, directly advancing healthcare workforce development and access.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentFunds training/support for low-income individuals to enter health careers, advancing employment opportunities for underserved groups.92% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Workforce Development

Track

in committee · United States · Senate May 12, 2025

S 632: IHS Workforce Parity Act of 2025

The IHS Workforce Parity Act of 2025 amends two key programs supporting healthcare professionals serving Native American communities: the Indian Health Service (IHS) scholarship program and loan repayment program. It allows scholarship and loan recipients to fulfill their service obligations through either full-time practice in IHS settings or half-time practice (with a doubled service period), and for loan recipients, it adds a 50% reduced payment option for half-time service over two years. The bill clarifies that half-time service periods must be converted to full-time equivalents when calculating breach-of-contract penalties. This directly affects healthcare professionals who receive IHS scholarships or loan repayment assistance, providing more flexible practice options while maintaining service requirements.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareAmends IHS workforce programs to expand service flexibility, strengthening healthcare access for Native American communities through enhanced provider recruitment and retention.95% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentExpands employment flexibility for healthcare workers by allowing part-time service options with adjusted obligations, enhancing workforce participation opportunities without reducing benefits.85% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce

Track

in committee · United States · House Jul 23, 2025

HR 4731: Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025

Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2025 This bill increases the number of residency positions eligible for graduate medical education payments under Medicare for qualifying hospitals, including hospitals in rural areas and health professional shortage areas. The bill provides for an additional increase of 2,000 positions per fiscal year from FY2026-FY2032; during this period, each hospital may receive up to 75 additional positions in total under the bill and current law. Additionally, one-third of the positions that are made available under the bill must be allocated to hospitals that are already operating above applicable resident limits. The bill also requires the Government Accountability Office to report on strategies to increase the diversity of the health professional workforce, including with respect to representation from rural, low-income, and minority communities.

Topics ✓ Budget & TaxesSupports Budget & TaxesIncreases Medicare funding for hospital residency programs, directly expanding federal healthcare spending under existing budget framework90% confidence ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill increases Medicare-funded residency positions to address physician shortages, especially in rural/underserved areas, directly improving healthcare access and workforce supply.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Hospitals Medicare

Track

in committee · United States · House Sep 16, 2025

HR 5378: Tribal Healthcare Careers Act

This bill requires 15% of certain federal healthcare workforce funds to be reserved annually for Indian tribes, tribal organizations, and Tribal Colleges and Universities. It guarantees at least 10 grants to these tribal entities each year if they submit qualifying applications. The changes modify existing Social Security Act funding rules to prioritize tribal healthcare workforce development. The provisions take effect October 1, 2025.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill reserves 15% of federal healthcare funds for tribal workforce development and guarantees annual grants, directly increasing funding for healthcare workforce in tribal communities.90% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentBill reserves 15% of healthcare funds for tribal workforce development, guaranteeing grants to create healthcare employment opportunities under tribal entities.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Workforce Development Tags Tribal Nations

Track

in committee · United States · Senate Mar 11, 2025

S 958: Tech to Save Moms Act

The Tech to Save Moms Act expands access to telehealth for pregnant and postpartum individuals in underserved communities by allowing remote screening and management of pregnancy complications through digital tools. It authorizes $6 million annually (2026-2030) for grants to train maternal health providers on reducing racial disparities, using telehealth during emergencies, and addressing social health risks. The grants prioritize health professional shortage areas, rural communities, and populations with high maternal mortality rates, requiring grantees to evaluate outcomes and develop best practices. The bill also mandates a study on AI and monitoring devices to address racial biases in maternal health technology.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareExpands telehealth access for maternal care, authorizes $6M for provider training to reduce disparities, and targets underserved communities in healthcare access.95% confidence ✓ TechnologySupports TechnologyBill explicitly uses digital tools (telehealth) to expand healthcare access in underserved communities, authorizing $6M for training on telehealth use. This advances technology application in healthcare, promoting digital equity.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Telehealth Women's Health Artificial Intelligence

Track

in committee · United States · House Nov 7, 2025

HR 5985: Expanding Health Care Providers for Veterans Act

This bill modifies U.S. immigration law to allow foreign healthcare professionals to work at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities or state veterans homes certified by the VA, removing numerical limits for these workers. It adds a new category to visa eligibility (section 214(g)(5)(D)) specifically for nonimmigrants employed or offered employment at VA facilities or certified state homes. The bill also ensures this category is exempt from certain presidential restrictions on nonimmigrant workers, effective six months after enactment. This directly affects foreign healthcare workers seeking to serve veterans and VA facilities needing qualified staff.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareRemoves immigration barriers for foreign healthcare workers at VA facilities, directly increasing provider access for veterans' healthcare services.95% confidence ✓ VeteransSupports VeteransBill removes immigration barriers for healthcare workers at VA facilities, expanding access to veteran healthcare services.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Veteran Education Veteran Employment Veteran Healthcare

Track

in committee · United States · House Jun 11, 2025

HR 3670: IHS Provider Expansion Act

The IHS Provider Expansion Act creates a new Office of Graduate Medical Education Programs within the Indian Health Service (IHS) to expand healthcare workforce training. It directly affects IHS facilities and Native American communities by establishing pipelines for healthcare professionals through residency programs and improving recruitment/retention at IHS sites. Key provisions include overseeing existing programs, coordinating with academic institutions, and forming an interagency working group (with VA, HHS, and CMS) to develop long-term plans. The bill authorizes $4 million annually for the office starting in fiscal year 2027, requiring quarterly progress reports to Congress until the working group terminates after 10 years.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareCreates new office to expand healthcare workforce training via residency programs, directly improving recruitment/retention at IHS facilities serving Native American communities.90% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Tags Tribal Nations

Track

in committee · United States · House Sep 30, 2025

HR 5621: Physical Therapist Workforce and Patient Access Act of 2025

Physical Therapist Workforce and Patient Access Act of 2025 This bill expands certain health professional programs and Medicare covered services to include physical therapists. Specifically, the bill expands the National Health Service Corps to include physical therapists and provides for the designation of specific health professional target areas for physical therapists under the program. The bill also expands covered services of rural health clinics and federally qualified health centers under Medicare to include physical therapy services. The bill increases funds for FY2025 for the corps and requires a certain amount of funds to be used for student loan repayments for participating physical therapists in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill expands Medicare covered services to include physical therapists and expands National Health Service Corps to include them, improving patient access to physical therapy services.95% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce Medicare

Track

in committee · United States · House Aug 26, 2025

HR 5052: Train More Nurses Act

This bill requires the Health and Human Services and Labor Secretaries to review all federal grant programs supporting the nursing workforce and submit a report to Congress within one year. The report must include recommendations to improve specific goals: increasing nursing faculty (especially in underserved areas), creating pathways for experienced nurses to become faculty, and expanding opportunities for licensed practical nurses to become registered nurses. It does not create new funding or programs but mandates a comprehensive review of existing initiatives. The bill directly affects federal agencies managing nursing workforce grants and aims to identify ways to strengthen nursing education pipelines.

Topics ✓ HealthcareSupports HealthcareBill targets nursing workforce development via grant reviews and recommendations to boost faculty, expand LPN-to-RN pathways, and improve underserved area access, directly strengthening healthcare workforce capacity.92% confidence ✓ Labor & EmploymentSupports Labor & EmploymentExpands nursing career pathways (LPN to RN) and faculty development, directly supporting workforce advancement in healthcare employment.75% confidence

Sub-Topics Healthcare Workforce

Track