Rep. Barbara Lee

Quit Because of COVID-19 Act This bill provides for Medicaid and Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage of certain tobacco cessation services. Specifically, the bill provides for coverage, without cost-sharing, of diagnostic, therapy, and counseling services and pharmacotherapy, including prescription and nonprescription tobacco cessation agents, that are provided under medical supervision and in accordance with specified guidelines. It also applies a 100% Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (i.e., federal matching rate) for such items and services during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19 and for two years after the emergency period ends.

Minority Diabetes Initiative Act This bill authorizes grants for diabetes-related health care services in minority communities. The Department of Health and Human Services may make these grants to public and nonprofit health care providers.

Affordable Insulin for the COVID-19 Emergency Act This bill eliminates cost-sharing under the Medicare prescription drug benefit and Medicare Advantage for insulin and associated medical supplies during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019). The bill also allows beneficiaries to receive their insulin and supplies via mail order during the emergency period.

This resolution recognizes the disparity between wages paid to men and women, and its impact on women, families, and the nation and reaffirms Congress' commitment to supporting equal pay and to narrowing the gender wage gap.

This resolution expresses congressional disapproval of the rule submitted by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) that revises the EEOC settlement process to provide employers with the factual and legal basis that the EEOC relied on to make a reasonable cause finding of a discriminatory practice.

This joint resolution eliminates the deadline for the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment, which prohibits discrimination based on sex. The amendment was proposed to the states in House Joint Resolution 208 of the 92nd Congress, as agreed to in the Senate on March 22, 1972. The amendment shall be part of the Constitution whenever ratified by the legislatures of three-fourths of the states.

Neighborhood Homes Investment Act This bill establishes a new business-related tax credit to finance home building and rehabilitation in neighborhoods that meet certain eligibility criteria relating to poverty rates, income, and home values. The credit is limited to 35% of the lesser of the qualified development cost (i.e., the cost of construction, substantial rehabilitation, demolition, and environmental remediation of residential properties) or 80% of the national median sale price for new homes. The credit applies to single family homes containing four or fewer residential units, condominiums, or houses or apartments owned by cooperative housing corporations.

Safe Step Act This bill requires a group health plan to establish an exception to medication step-therapy protocol in specified cases. A medication step-therapy protocol establishes a specific sequence in which prescription drugs are covered by a group health plan or a health insurance issuer.  A request for such an exception to the protocol must be granted if (1) an otherwise required treatment has been ineffective, (2) such treatment is expected to be ineffective and delaying effective treatment would lead to irreversible consequences, (3) such treatment will cause or is likely to cause an adverse reaction to the individual, (4) such treatment is expected to prevent the individual from performing daily activities or occupational responsibilities, (5) the individual is stable based on the prescription drugs already selected, or (6) there are other circumstances as determined by the Employee Benefits Security Administration. The bill requires a group health plan to implement and make readily available a clear process for an individual to request an exception to the protocol, including required information and criteria for granting an exception. The bill further specifies timelines under which plans must respond to such requests.

Holistic Economic Aid for Low-Income Neighborhood Growth Act of 2021 or the HEALING Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to make grants to states, local governments, Indian tribes, insular areas, and other institutions serving or owned by minorities to carry out Community Development Block Grant activities and other assistance in low- and moderate-income areas. Additionally, HUD must carry out a Civil Unrest Business Recovery Program to provide compensation to certain for-profit entities for damages from social and civil unrest during 2020 and to support business-led economic development.

Farm Workforce Modernization Act of 2021 This bill contains provisions related to alien farmworkers, including provisions establishing a certified agricultural worker (CAW) status and changing the H-2A temporary worker program. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) may grant CAW status to an applying alien who (1) performed at least 1,035 hours of agricultural labor during the two-year period prior to March 8, 2021; (2) on that date was inadmissible, deportable, or under a grant of deferred enforced departure or temporary protected status; and (3) has been continuously present in the United States from that date until receiving CAW status. The bill imposes additional crime-related inadmissibility grounds on CAW applicants and makes some other grounds inapplicable. CAW status shall be valid for 5.5 years and may be extended. DHS may grant dependent status to the spouse or children of a principal alien. An alien with a pending application may not be detained or removed by DHS and shall be authorized for employment until DHS makes a final decision on the application. A CAW alien (and dependents) may apply for lawful permanent resident status after meeting various requirements, including performing a certain amount of agricultural labor for a number of years. DHS shall create an electronic platform for (1) filing H-2A petitions, (2) facilitating the processing of H-2A cases, and (3) providing agencies a single tool for obtaining H-2A-related case information. The bill makes various changes to the H-2A program, such as (1) modifying the method for calculating and making adjustments to the H-2A worker minimum wage, (2) specifying how an employer may satisfy requirements that it attempted to recruit U.S. workers, (3) requiring H-2A employers to guarantee certain minimum work hours, (4) making the program available for agricultural work that is not temporary or seasonal, and (5) reserving a visa allocation for the dairy industry. DHS shall establish a pilot program allowing certain H-2A workers to apply for portable status, which gives the worker 60 days after leaving a position to secure new employment with a registered H-2A employer. DHS shall establish an electronic system patterned on the E-Verify Program for employers to verify an individual's identity and employment authorization. Employers hiring individuals for agricultural employment must use the system. This bill permanently establishes the Housing Preservation and Revitalization Program, which provides financing assistance for rural rental housing and off-farm labor housing and rental assistance for qualified tenants of such housing. It also authorizes the Department of Agriculture to provide various assistance, including funding for insuring loans and grants for new farmworker housing.