Rep. Summer L. Lee

Maddy summaryHR 8220, the Occupational Therapy Mental Health Parity Act, requires the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to educate Medicare stakeholders about existing coverage rules for occupational therapy services treating mental health or substance use disorders. Specifically, within one year of enactment, the Secretary must clarify how current Medicare policies apply using specific medical codes (HCPCS). This bill does not change coverage rules but ensures providers and beneficiaries understand existing Medicare benefits for these services. It directly affects Medicare beneficiaries seeking mental health care and healthcare providers billing under Medicare.

Maddy summaryThe Community Housing Act of 2024 significantly increases federal investment in affordable housing through major funding boosts, including $44.5 billion for the Housing Trust Fund and $1.5 billion for the Capital Magnet Fund over the next decade. It repeals the Faircloth amendment, which had limited public housing construction since 1992, allowing public housing authorities to build new units without the previous cap. The bill establishes a permanent emergency rental assistance program providing $3 billion annually through 2029 to help low-income households with rent payments and creates the Unlocking Possibilities program to fund local efforts to streamline housing regulations and reduce zoning barriers. These provisions directly affect low- and moderate-income households, community land trusts, and rural communities facing housing insecurity and affordability challenges.

Maddy summaryThis bill updates the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) program to better support low-income elderly, blind, and disabled individuals. It raises key financial thresholds: the resource limit for single individuals increases from $2,250 to $20,000 (adjusted annually for inflation), and the general income exclusion rises from $240 to $1,797 per month. The bill also removes a penalty that reduced benefits for married couples, excludes retirement accounts and tribal general welfare payments from resource calculations, and eliminates outdated requirements like dedicated accounts for past-due benefits. These changes directly affect SSI recipients by making it easier to qualify and maintain benefits without losing support due to minor income or resource fluctuations.

Maddy summaryThe Marriage Equality for Disabled Adults Act removes a rule requiring disabled adult children to remain unmarried to receive Social Security benefits. It ensures married disabled adult children, or their spouses, can maintain eligibility for Social Security Disability Insurance and Medicaid without losing benefits due to marriage. The bill changes how income and resources are counted, so a spouse's income and resources are no longer deemed against the disabled adult child for benefit calculations. It also requires states to preserve Medicaid eligibility for these individuals at the same level as if they were unmarried.

Maddy summaryThe Black Lung Benefits Improvement Act of 2023 makes key changes to improve benefits for coal miners with black lung disease (pneumoconiosis) and their families. It clarifies eligibility using medical evidence like chest scans and biopsies, creates a program to pay attorneys' fees and medical expenses for qualifying claims, and restores cost-of-living adjustments to benefits that had been frozen for years. The bill also requires a strategy to reduce delays in processing claims and improves how employment and earnings information is shared to support claims. These changes aim to make it easier for miners and their families to access the benefits they're entitled to under the Black Lung Benefits Act.

Maddy summaryHR 6257, the Emergency Medical Services Reimbursement for On-Scene and Support Act, amends federal law to expand Medicare reimbursement for ambulance services. It specifically allows ambulance providers to receive payment for on-scene medical care (without transportation) starting January 1, 2025, regardless of whether they also provide transport services. This directly affects ambulance providers who offer non-transport emergency medical services, ensuring they can be reimbursed for those specific on-scene treatments. The key provision modifies Section 1861(s)(7) of the Social Security Act to include these services under reimbursement eligibility. The change applies only to services furnished on or after the effective date, not retroactively.

Maddy summaryThis bill creates a framework for states to develop their own universal health care systems by applying for waivers from certain federal health care requirements. States must demonstrate they can provide comprehensive coverage meeting or exceeding current federal standards (like Medicaid, Medicare, and CHIP) for at least 95% of residents within 5 years, with the federal government redirecting funds that would have gone to federal programs to support state systems. States must include specific protections like reproductive health care coverage and submit regular reports on coverage rates, affordability, and quality. The bill includes special provisions to protect Indian health care services and ensure they remain accessible under state plans. States that fail to meet coverage goals may face consequences, including potential termination of their waiver.

Maddy summaryHR 6063, the Empowering Striking Workers Act of 2023, modifies unemployment insurance rules to provide benefits for workers unable to work due to strikes or lockouts. It directs that unemployment compensation begins 14 days after a strike starts, or earlier if permanent replacements are hired, a lockout begins, or the dispute ends. The bill directly affects workers participating in labor disputes by making them eligible for benefits under these specific conditions, rather than requiring them to meet standard job search requirements. This change is implemented through amendments to the Internal Revenue Code and Social Security Act.

Maddy summaryThe Climate Resilience Workforce Act establishes a coordinated federal system to build a workforce for climate resilience, directly affecting workers in climate-related sectors and prioritizing frontline communities (low-income, communities of color, Tribal communities) and populations facing employment barriers (undocumented individuals, formerly incarcerated people). Key mechanisms include grant programs for state and local climate resilience planning, job creation grants requiring 40% of jobs to go to frontline communities and populations facing barriers, and minimum labor standards including $15/hour wages (increasing annually), employer-paid health insurance, and protections against discrimination. The bill creates an Office of Climate Resilience, a Climate Resilience Equity Advisory Board, and a Center for the Climate Resilience Workforce to define climate resilience sectors and ensure equitable hiring practices. It also removes employment barriers through immigration status protections, criminal record reforms, and drug testing policy changes for climate resilience workers.

Maddy summaryThe MORE Act (HR 5601) would federally decriminalize cannabis by removing it from the Schedule I list of controlled substances under the Controlled Substances Act. It requires federal courts to expunge non-violent cannabis convictions and associated arrests, with a focus on addressing racial disparities in cannabis enforcement. The bill creates an Opportunity Trust Fund that would allocate 50% of funds to criminal justice programs, 20% to small business assistance for minority cannabis entrepreneurs, and 20% to community reinvestment grants for individuals impacted by the War on Drugs. It also prohibits federal agencies from denying benefits or security clearances based on cannabis use or past cannabis convictions, and establishes a Cannabis Justice Office to administer these programs.