Dental Care for Veterans Act This bill expands eligibility for veterans for dental care provided by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Specifically, the bill makes all veterans who are enrolled in the VA health care system eligible for VA-provided dental services. Currently, only veterans who have a service-connected dental issue or meet other narrow criteria are eligible for certain dental services. The bill phases in eligibility over four years based upon existing eligibility, degree of service-connected disability or other disability, prisoner of war status, award of a Purple Heart, financial need, or VA health care eligibility.
Ethan's Law This bill establishes a framework to regulate the storage of firearms on residential premises at the federal, state, and tribal levels. At the federal level, the bill establishes statutory requirements for firearms on residential premises to be safely stored if a minor is likely to gain access without permission or if a resident is ineligible to possess a firearm. An individual who violates the requirements is subject to criminal penalties. A firearm stored in violation of the requirements is subject to seizure and forfeiture. At the state and tribal levels, the bill requires the Department of Justice to award grants to implement functionally identical requirements for the safe storage of firearms.
Pandemic Treatment Access and Affordability Act of 2021 This bill imposes licensing and price restrictions on federally supported drugs and other medicines intended to address COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) or other public health emergencies. With respect to a COVID-19 drug patent developed using certain types of federal support, any license granted by the federal government shall be open and nonexclusive. Similarly, a licensee or assignee for such a patent shall grant open nonexclusive licenses for the patent. An entity that receives a license shall pay reasonable royalties to (1) the patent holder, or (2) the owner of marketing exclusivity rights granted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that were terminated under this bill. The bill requires that such drugs be offered at a fair and reasonable price based on certain considerations, such as access. If the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) finds that the price of any drug to address a public health emergency is excessive, HHS must void any FDA-granted exclusivity for the drug and grant open and nonexclusive licenses to other manufacturers. Such licenses are subject to reasonable royalty requirements.
War Powers Act Enforcement Act This bill prohibits the use of federal funds in contravention of the War Powers Resolution. That resolution provides procedures for Congress and the President to participate in decisions to send the Armed Forces into hostilities.
Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act of 2021 This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to negotiate with pharmaceutical companies regarding prices for drugs covered under the Medicare prescription drug benefit. Current law prohibits the CMS from doing so.
Stephanie Tubbs Jones Uterine Fibroid Research and Education Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to expand research on, and take other actions to address, uterine fibroids. These are muscular tumors that grow in the wall of the uterus and may cause pain, heavy menstrual bleeding, and reproductive issues. In coordination with the National Institutes of Health and appropriate federal agencies, HHS must undertake research activities on uterine fibroids. In addition, HHS must establish a database of services furnished to individuals diagnosed with uterine fibroids under Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program and must develop a report on federal and state expenditures for such services. Additionally, HHS must disseminate information on uterine fibroids to the public and to health care providers, including information on the elevated risk for minority women and available treatments.
Federal Employee Access to Information Act This bill prohibits personnel retaliation against federal employees and applicants for employment who file requests under the Freedom of Information Act or the Privacy Act or who seek related administrative or judicial actions.
Mental Health Access Improvement Act of 2021 This bill provides for coverage of marriage and family therapist services and mental health counselor services under Medicare. It also excludes such services from the skilled nursing facility prospective payment system, and authorizes marriage and family therapists and mental health counselors to develop discharge plans for post-hospital services.
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. 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.
EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2021 This bill reauthorizes the EB-5 Regional Center program through FY2026 and makes various changes to the program, such as imposing various oversight requirements. (EB-5 visas provide permanent resident status to qualified alien investors. A regional center allows EB-5 aliens to pool investments to meet various investment and job creation requirements.) Oversight-related provisions include requiring each center to (1) notify the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of proposed changes to the center's structure, (2) maintain certain records and make such records available to DHS for audits, (3) obtain approval for each particular investment offering, and (4) annually report to DHS. The bill prohibits certain individuals and entities from involvement in a center, such as (1) a person who had committed a violation involving fraud in the previous 10 years, (2) a non-U.S. national not admitted for permanent residence, or (3) a foreign government official. DHS shall deny petitions, such as a petition to certify a regional center or to classify an alien as an alien investor, if approval would threaten U.S. national interest. The bill provides various enforcement authority to DHS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, including the ability to permanently bar an individual from participating in the regional center program. The bill establishes the EB-5 Integrity Fund to fund program enforcement activities. The bill contains various provisions related to EB-5 petitions, such as a provision authorizing DHS to extend an alien's conditional permanent residence status.
Protect DREAMer Confidentiality Act of 2021 This bill directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to prevent disclosing information from applications to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), except to implement the program. Application information may be shared only to identify or prevent fraudulent claims, for particularized national security purposes relating to the applicant, or to investigate or prosecute a felony not related to immigration status. The bill also prohibits DHS from referring any individual with deferred action status to ICE, CBP, the Department of Justice, or any law enforcement agency.
Environmental Justice For All Act This bill establishes several environmental justice requirements, advisory bodies, and programs to address the disproportionate adverse human health or environmental effects of federal laws or programs on communities of color, low-income communities, or tribal and indigenous communities. Specifically, the bill prohibits disparate impacts on the basis of race, color, or national origin as discrimination. Aggrieved persons may seek legal remedy when faced with such discrimination. In addition, the bill directs agencies to follow certain requirements concerning environmental justice. For example, agencies must prepare community impact reports that assess the potential impacts of their actions on environmental justice communities under certain circumstances. Further, it creates a variety of advisory bodies and positions, such as the White House Environmental Justice Interagency Council. Among other things, the council must issue an environmental justice strategy. It also establishes requirements and programs concerning chemicals or toxic ingredients in certain products. For example, the bill (1) requires certain products (e.g., cosmetics) to include a list of ingredients or warnings; and (2) provides grants for research on designing safer alternatives to chemicals in certain consumer, cleaning, toy, or baby products that have an inherent toxicity or that are associated with chronic adverse health effects. Finally, it creates a variety of funding programs, such as a grant program to enhance access to park and recreational opportunities in an urban areas.
