This bill requires all states to submit detailed data on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) fraud to the Department of Agriculture. The data must include information on fraud cases, enforcement actions, recoveries, and specific instances involving deceased individuals or false social security numbers. States must provide this information within 180 days of enactment for historical data and annually thereafter, with funds withheld if they fail to comply. The Secretary of Agriculture will compile and publish annual reports to Congress based on the submitted data.
This bill establishes a federal task force to address maternal health disparities by coordinating efforts across multiple government agencies and community stakeholders to reduce preventable maternal deaths and serious health complications. The task force will include representatives from various departments such as Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and Transportation, along with community leaders, patients, and healthcare providers focused on maternal health. Additionally, the bill authorizes $100 million over five years to provide grants to community organizations for addressing social determinants of maternal health including housing, transportation, nutrition, employment, and environmental conditions. These grants prioritize areas with high rates of maternal mortality and poverty, and recipients must submit annual reports on their activities and outcomes. The legislation defines key terms such as maternal mortality and social determinants of maternal health to guide implementation and reporting requirements.
This bill expands federal labor protections to incarcerated workers by explicitly including them under the Fair Labor Standards Act, regardless of whether they work in publicly or privately operated correctional facilities. It defines these workers as individuals performing labor within prison programs, work release initiatives, or facility operations, and clarifies that they are employed by either the public agency or the private contractor running the facility. A key provision allows employers to deduct the cost of board, lodging, and certain court-imposed fees from an incarcerated worker's wages without counting these deductions against minimum wage requirements. The legislation also specifies which fees qualify for deduction, such as court surcharges and filing costs, while explicitly excluding payments for child support, victim compensation, civil judgments, and criminal fines.
This bill establishes a task force to study how artificial intelligence speech-to-text and automatic speech recognition technologies are used in federal and state courts across the United States. The 15-member group, composed of government officials, legal experts, and technology specialists, will examine issues like accuracy, privacy, civil liberties, and costs associated with these AI tools in judicial proceedings. Within 18 months of enactment, the task force must submit a final report to Congress detailing its findings on whether AI affects court record quality, impacts individuals with speech impediments, creates cybersecurity risks, and recommends any necessary policy changes. The task force will also provide quarterly status updates to congressional committees and will dissolve once its final report is submitted.
This bill allocates $30 million annually (2026-2030) for research on family caregivers under the Older Americans Act. It defines "family caregiver" to include adults providing in-home care to older adults or those with Alzheimer's, and specifically creates a new "older relative caregiver" category for adults 55+ caring for children or disabled relatives. The bill updates the National Family Caregiver Support Program to focus exclusively on family caregivers (removing prior references to "older relative caregivers" in program descriptions) and requires new definitions to align with the updated terminology. These changes directly affect millions of unpaid caregivers by expanding research funding and clarifying eligibility for support services.
S 2903, the Safe Step Act, requires health insurance plans and employers offering health coverage to establish a clear, timely process for patients or doctors to request exceptions when step therapy protocols (where insurers require trying cheaper drugs first) would harm a patient. It mandates approval for exceptions if prior drugs failed, delay would cause severe harm, a drug is unsafe, or a patient is stable on their current medication. Plans must respond to requests within 72 hours (or 24 hours in emergencies) and cover the requested drug without extra cost-sharing. The bill also requires annual reports to the government on exception requests, approvals, denials, and trends by medical condition or specialty. This directly affects patients on health plans with step therapy, their doctors, and the insurers managing those plans.
This bill requires the 988 Suicide Prevention Lifeline to establish a dedicated "Press 3" option for LGBTQ+ youth seeking crisis support, directly affecting LGBTQ+ youth in crisis. It amends federal law to mandate that 9% of funding for the 988 program be reserved specifically for this specialized service, which provides trained support addressing LGBTQ+ youth needs. The bill builds on existing 988 services that already handle over 1,500,000 annual contacts from LGBTQ+ youth, including 2,200 daily interactions as of May 2025. This policy change ensures dedicated resources and accessibility for a high-risk group, as LGBTQ+ youth are four times more likely to attempt suicide than their peers.
S 2287, the Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act, establishes federal funding to expand training for health professionals in palliative and hospice care. The bill creates multiple programs including grants for education programs, fellowships for faculty to gain specialized training, and career incentive awards for students pursuing palliative care specialties. It prioritizes training in rural and underserved areas, for pediatric populations, and for racial and ethnic minorities. The bill authorizes $15 million annually through 2030 to build a more skilled palliative care workforce for patients with serious or life-threatening illnesses.
S 1830, the Right to Treat Act, prohibits federal agencies like the FDA from regulating the practice of medicine and bans restrictions on prescribing FDA-approved drugs for unapproved uses. It directly affects doctors, patients, and pharmaceutical companies by removing federal barriers to off-label drug prescriptions. The bill explicitly excludes federal laws related to abortion, assisted suicide, euthanasia, or gender transition medical interventions from its scope. This is a procedural change to federal regulatory authority, not a new program or funding measure.
This bill (S 1677, Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act) requires health insurance plans to cover medically necessary treatments for congenital anomalies or birth defects affecting the eyes, ears, teeth, mouth, or jaw. It mandates coverage for reconstructive services, dental/orthodontic care, and related treatments during the course of medical treatment, while excluding purely cosmetic procedures not medically necessary. Plans may apply cost-sharing requirements similar to those for other medical services but must provide notice about these coverage requirements to participants by January 1, 2026. The bill also directs a study on provider network adequacy and cost impacts related to these coverage requirements, to be completed by December 2027.
Bill to Outlaw Wounding of Official Working Animals Act or the BOWOW Act This bill establishes that a non-U.S. national ( alien under federal law) convicted of, or who admits to having committed, an offense related to harming animals used in law enforcement is inadmissible and deportable.
Deporting Fraudsters Act of 2026 This bill makes certain acts related to public benefits fraud grounds for (1) barring a non-U.S. national ( alien under federal law) from admission into the United States, or (2) deporting the individual. The bill also makes such an individual ineligible for immigration enforcement relief, including relief for an individual in danger of subjection to torture. Specifically, this bill applies to individuals who have been convicted of, admit to having committed, or admit to acts which constitute certain offenses. Offenses covered by this bill include (1) fraud involving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, (2) fraud involving Social Security benefits, (3) fraud involving programs that receive federal funds, and (4) the production of fraudulent identification documents.
