Rep. Rodney Davis

Springfield Race Riot National Historic Monument Act This bill establishes the Springfield Race Riot National Historic Monument in Illinois as a unit of the National Park System to preserve, protect, and interpret the resources associated with the Springfield Race Riot of 1908 and its role in the forming of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Freight Rail Assistance and Investment to Launch Coronavirus-era Activity and Recovery Act of 2021 or the Freight RAILCAR Act of 2021 This bill provides a new tax credit for 50% of freight railcar fleet modernization expenses. The bill defines freight railcar fleet modernization expenses to include amounts for railcar replacement and modernization, railcar scrap amounts, and for railcar facility and technology modernization. The Department of the Treasury must report to Congress on the credit to provide information on the number of times the credit was claimed and the number of railcars scrapped or built as a result of the credit.

Resident Physician Shortage Reduction Act of 2021 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. Current law provides for an increase of up to 200 positions per fiscal year beginning in FY2023, with a total increase of 1,000 positions; each hospital may receive up to 25 additional positions. The bill provides for an additional increase of 2,000 positions per fiscal year from FY2023-FY2029; 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.

Innovative Materials for America's Growth and Infrastructure Newly Expanded Act of 2021 or the IMAGINE Act This bill encourages the use of innovative construction materials and techniques to accelerate the deployment, extend the service life, improve the performance, and reduce the cost of domestic transportation and water infrastructure projects. Among other things, the bill establishes an Interagency Innovative Materials Standards Task Force to assess existing standards and test methods for the use of innovative materials in infrastructure, identify key barriers in the standards area that inhibit broader market adoption, and develop new methods and protocols to better evaluate innovative materials; requires the Department of Transportation to enhance the development of innovative materials in the United States by providing awards to entities for establishing and operating new innovative material innovation hubs; directs the Federal Highway Administration to provide grants to states' departments of transportation, tribal governments, public toll authorities, and units of local government for coastal or rural infrastructure bridge projects and value engineering projects to enhance the performance of bridges through the use of innovative materials; and provides grants for the design and installation of water infrastructure projects.

Willie O'Ree Congressional Gold Medal Act This bill provides for the award of a Congressional Gold Medal to Willie O'Ree or, if unavailable, to a member of his family, in recognition of his contributions and commitment to hockey, inclusion, and recreational opportunity.

Access to Genetic Counselor Services Act of 2021 This bill provides for coverage under Medicare of genetic counseling services that are furnished by genetic counselors. Covered services include those services, as well as incidental services and supplies, that would otherwise be covered under Medicare if provided by a physician.

Expanded Telehealth Access Act This bill permanently allows audiologists, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech-language pathologists, and other providers designated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to provide telehealth services under Medicare. Currently, the CMS is authorized to waive requirements for Medicare telehealth services during the public health emergency relating to COVID-19, and it has done so to allow all providers that are otherwise eligible to furnish in-person services under Medicare to also furnish telehealth services.

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.

Providing Americans with LNG Safely Act or the PALS Act This bill prohibits the Department of Transportation (DOT) from issuing any regulation or order that (1) prohibits the transportation of liquefied natural gas (LNG) by rail, or (2) restricts the transportation of LNG by rail in DOT-113 tank cars. The bill does not limit the authority of DOT to issue short-term emergency orders related to the transportation of LNG by rail.

Veterans Serving Veterans Act of 2021 This bill updates the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) current recruiting database by requiring the VA to maintain a single searchable database to be known as the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs Recruitment Database . With respect to vacant positions for critical jobs or mental health professionals, the database must list (1) the military occupational specialty or skill that corresponds to the position, and (2) each qualified member of the Armed Forces who may be recruited to fill the position before such qualified member has been discharged and released from active duty. Qualified members of the Armed Forces are those service members who (1) are being separated or recently separated from active duty, (2) elect to be listed in the database, and (3) have been determined by the VA to have a military occupational specialty. The database must list the following for each qualified member of the Armed Forces: name, contact information, expected discharge date, and military occupational specialty. The VA must implement direct hiring and appointment procedures for vacant database positions and may authorize relocation bonuses. The bill also requires the VA to train and certify veterans who served as basic health care technicians in the Armed Forces to work as VA intermediate care technicians.