Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act of 2021

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 959 To end preventable maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity in the United States and close disparities in maternal health outcomes, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 8, 2021 Ms. UNDERWOOD (for herself, Ms. ADAMS, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mrs. MCBATH, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Ms. SCANLON, Mr. CARSON, Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Mrs. HAYES, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Ms. STRICKLAND, Mr. MICHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Ms. OMAR, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Mr. RYAN, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. HORSFORD, Ms. SEWELL, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. MEEKS, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Ms. NORTON, Mr. SUOZZI, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. CRAIG, Ms. LOIS FRANKEL of Flor- ida, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. SOTO, Mr. NADLER, Mr. TRONE, Mrs. LURIA, Mr. SARBANES, Ms. SPANBERGER, Ms. SPEIER, Ms. JOHNSON of Texas, Mrs. BUSTOS, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. BOWMAN, Ms. DAVIDS of Kansas, Ms. SCHRIER, Mr. HASTINGS, Ms. BASS, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. LEE of California, Ms. HOULAHAN, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. COHEN, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. EVANS, Ms. BUSH, Mr. CROW, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, Ms. CHU, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. CONNOLLY, Ms. JACOBS of California, Mrs. DEMINGS, Mr. BERA, Ms. KUSTER, Mrs. TORRES of California, Mr. TONKO, Mrs. FLETCHER, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. MCNERNEY, Ms. PINGREE, Mr. STANTON, Mr. JONES, Ms. WILD, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, and Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Geor- gia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Finan- cial Services, Transportation and Infrastructure, Education and Labor, the Judiciary, Natural Resources, Agriculture, and Veterans’ Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the com- mittee concerned VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 959 IH A BILL To end preventable maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity in the United States and close disparities in maternal health outcomes, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Black Maternal Health 4 Momnibus Act of 2021’’. 5 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 6 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 7 Sec. 1. Short title. Sec. 2. Table of contents. Sec. 3. Definitions. Sec. 4. Sense of Congress. TITLE I—SOCIAL DETERMINANTS FOR MOMS Sec. 101. Task force to develop a strategy to address social determinants of maternal health. Sec. 102. Housing for Moms grant program. Sec. 103. Department of Transportation. Sec. 104. Department of Agriculture. Sec. 105. Environmental study through National Academies. Sec. 106. Child care access. Sec. 107. Grants to local entities addressing social determinants of maternal health. TITLE II—HONORING KIRA JOHNSON Sec. 201. Investments in community-based organizations to improve Black ma- ternal health outcomes. Sec. 202. Investments in community-based organizations to improve maternal health outcomes in underserved communities. Sec. 203. Respectful maternity care training for all employees in maternity care settings. Sec. 204. Study on reducing and preventing bias, racism, and discrimination in maternity care settings. Sec. 205. Respectful maternity care compliance program. Sec. 206. GAO report. TITLE III—PROTECTING MOMS WHO SERVED Sec. 301. Support for maternity care coordination. VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 959 IH Sec. 302. Report on maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity among pregnant and postpartum veterans. TITLE IV—PERINATAL WORKFORCE Sec. 401. HHS agency directives. Sec. 402. Grants to grow and diversify the perinatal workforce. Sec. 403. Grants to grow and diversify the nursing workforce in maternal and perinatal health. Sec. 404. GAO report. TITLE V—DATA TO SAVE MOMS Sec. 501. Funding for maternal mortality review committees to promote rep- resentative community engagement. Sec. 502. Data collection and review. Sec. 503. Review of maternal health data collection processes and quality meas- ures. Sec. 504. Indian Health Service study on maternal mortality and severe mater- nal morbidity. Sec. 505. Grants to minority-serving institutions to study maternal mortality, severe maternal morbidity, and other adverse maternal health outcomes. TITLE VI—MOMS MATTER Sec. 601. Maternal mental health equity grant program. Sec. 602. Grants to grow and diversify the maternal mental and behavioral health care workforce. TITLE VII—JUSTICE FOR INCARCERATED MOMS Sec. 701. Ending the shackling of pregnant individuals. Sec. 702. Creating model programs for the care of incarcerated individuals in the prenatal and postpartum periods. Sec. 703. Grant program to improve maternal health outcomes for individuals in State and local prisons and jails. Sec. 704. GAO report. Sec. 705. MACPAC report. TITLE VIII—TECH TO SAVE MOMS Sec. 801. Integrated telehealth models in maternity care services. Sec. 802. Grants to expand the use of technology-enabled collaborative learning and capacity models for pregnant and postpartum individuals. Sec. 803. Grants to promote equity in maternal health outcomes through digital tools. Sec. 804. Report on the use of technology in maternity care. TITLE IX—IMPACT TO SAVE MOMS Sec. 901. Perinatal Care Alternative Payment Model Demonstration Project. Sec. 902. MACPAC report. TITLE X—MATERNAL HEALTH PANDEMIC RESPONSE Sec. 1001. Definitions. VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 959 IH Sec. 1002. Funding for data collection, surveillance, and research on maternal health outcomes during the COVID–19 public health emer- gency. Sec. 1003. COVID–19 maternal health data collection and disclosure. Sec. 1004. Inclusion of pregnant individuals and lactating individuals in vaccine and therapeutic development for COVID–19. Sec. 1005. Public health communication regarding maternal care during COVID–19. Sec. 1006. Task force on birthing experience and safe maternity care during a public health emergency. Sec. 1007. GAO report on maternal health and public health emergency pre- paredness. TITLE XI—PROTECTING MOMS AND BABIES AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE Sec. 1101. Definitions. Sec. 1102. Grant program to protect vulnerable mothers and babies from cli- mate change risks. Sec. 1103. Grant program for education and training at health profession schools. Sec. 1104. NIH Consortium on Birth and Climate Change Research. Sec. 1105. Strategy for identifying climate change risk zones for vulnerable mothers and babies. TITLE XII—MATERNAL VACCINATIONS Sec. 1201. Maternal vaccination awareness and equity campaign. SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 1 In this Act: 2 (1) CULTURALLY CONGRUENT.—The term ‘‘cul- 3 turally congruent’’, with respect to care or maternity 4 care, means care that is in agreement with the pre- 5 ferred cultural values, beliefs, worldview, language, 6 and practices of the health care consumer and other 7 stakeholders. 8 (2) MATERNITY CARE PROVIDER.—The term 9 ‘‘maternity care provider’’ means a health care pro- 10 vider who— 11 (A) is a physician, physician assistant, 12 midwife who meets at a minimum the inter- 13 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 959 IH national definition of the midwife and global 1 standards for midwifery education as estab- 2 lished by the International Confederation of 3 Midwives, nurse practitioner, or clinical nurse 4 specialist; and 5 (B) has a focus on maternal or perinatal 6 health. 7 (3) MATERNAL MORTALITY.—The term ‘‘mater- 8 nal mortality’’ means a death occurring during or 9 within a one-year period after pregnancy, caused by 10 pregnancy-related or childbirth complications, in- 11 cluding a suicide, overdose, or other death resulting 12 from a mental health or substance use disorder at- 13 tributed to or aggravated by pregnancy-related or 14 childbirth complications. 15 (4) PERINATAL HEALTH WORKER.—The term 16 ‘‘perinatal health worker’’ means a doula, commu- 17 nity health worker, peer supporter, breastfeeding 18 and lactation educator or counselor, nutritionist or 19 dietitian, childbirth educator, social worker, home 20 visitor, language interpreter, or navigator. 21 (5) POSTPARTUM AND POSTPARTUM PERIOD.— 22 The terms ‘‘postpartum’’ and ‘‘postpartum period’’ 23 refer to the 1-year period beginning on the last day 24 of the pregnancy of an individual. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 959 IH (6) PREGNANCY-ASSOCIATED DEATH.—The 1 term ‘‘pregnancy-associated death’’ means a death of 2 a pregnant or postpartum individual, by any cause, 3 that occurs during, or within 1 year following, the 4 individual’s pregnancy, regardless of the outcome, 5 duration, or site of the pregnancy. 6 (7) PREGNANCY-RELATED DEATH.—The term 7 ‘‘pregnancy-related death’’ means a death of a preg- 8 nant or postpartum individual that occurs during, or 9 within 1 year following, the individual’s pregnancy, 10 from a pregnancy complication, a chain of events 11 initiated by pregnancy, or the aggravation of an un- 12 related condition by the physiologic effects of preg- 13 nancy. 14 (8) RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY GROUP.— 15 The term ‘‘racial and ethnic minority group’’ has the 16 meaning given such term in section 1707(g)(1) of 17 the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u– 18 6(g)(1)). 19 (9) SEVERE MATERNAL MORBIDITY.—The term 20 ‘‘severe maternal morbidity’’ means a health condi- 21 tion, including mental health conditions and sub- 22 stance use disorders, attributed to or aggravated by 23 pregnancy or childbirth that results in significant 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 959 IH short-term or long-term consequences to the health 1 of the individual who was pregnant. 2 (10) SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF MATERNAL 3 HEALTH DEFINED.—The term ‘‘social determinants 4 of maternal health’’ means non-clinical factors that 5 impact maternal health outcomes, including— 6 (A) economic factors, which may include 7 poverty, employment, food security, support for 8 and access to lactation and other infant feeding 9 options, housing stability, and related factors; 10 (B) neighborhood factors, which may in- 11 clude quality of housing, access to transpor- 12 tation, access to child care, availability of 13 healthy foods and nutrition counseling, avail- 14 ability of clean water, air and water quality, 15 ambient temperatures, neighborhood crime and 16 violence, access to broadband, and related fac- 17 tors; 18 (C) social and community factors, which 19 may include systemic racism, gender discrimi- 20 nation or discrimination based on other pro- 21 tected classes, workplace conditions, incarcer- 22 ation, and related factors; 23 (D) household factors, which may include 24 ability to conduct lead testing and abatement, 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 959 IH car seat installation, indoor air temperatures, 1 and related factors; 2 (E) education access and quality factors, 3 which may include educational attainment, lan- 4 guage and literacy, and related factors; and 5 (F) health care access factors, including 6 health insurance coverage, access to culturally 7 congruent health care services, providers, and 8 non-clinical support, access to home visiting 9 services, access to wellness and stress manage- 10 ment programs, health literacy, access to tele- 11 health and items required to receive telehealth 12 services, and related factors. 13 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 14 It is the sense of Congress that— 15 (1) the respect and proper care that birthing 16 people deserve is inclusive; and 17 (2) regardless of race, ethnicity, gender iden- 18 tity, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, fa- 19 milial status, socioeconomic status, immigration sta- 20 tus, incarceration status, or disability, all deserve 21 dignity. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 959 IH TITLE I—SOCIAL 1 DETERMINANTS FOR MOMS 2 SEC. 101. TASK FORCE TO DEVELOP A STRATEGY TO AD- 3 DRESS SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF MATER- 4 NAL HEALTH. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 6 Human Services shall convene a task force (in this section 7 referred to as the ‘‘Task Force’’) to develop a strategy 8 to coordinate efforts between Federal agencies to address 9 social determinants of maternal health with respect to 10 pregnant and postpartum individuals. 11 (b) EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—The ex officio members 12 of the Task Force shall consist of the following: 13 (1) The Secretary of Health and Human Serv- 14 ices (or a designee thereof). 15 (2) The Secretary of Housing and Urban Devel- 16 opment (or a designee thereof). 17 (3) The Secretary of Transportation (or a des- 18 ignee thereof). 19 (4) The Secretary of Agriculture (or a designee 20 thereof). 21 (5) The Secretary of Labor (or a designee 22 thereof). 23 (6) The Administrator of the Environmental 24 Protection Agency (or a designee thereof). 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:43 Mar 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H959.IH H959 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 959 IH (7) The Assistant Secretary for the Administra- 1 tion for Children and Families (or a designee there- 2 of). 3 (8) The Administrator of the Centers for Medi- 4 care & Medicaid Services (or a designee thereof). 5 (9) The Director of the Indian Health Service 6 (or a designee thereof). 7 (10) The Director of the National Institutes of 8 Health (or a designee thereof). 9 (11) The Administrator of the Health Re- 10 sources and Services Administration (or a designee 11 thereof). 12 (12) The Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minor- 13 ity Health of the Department of Health and Human 14 Services (or [Text truncated for display. 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