Pathways to Health Careers Act

IB Union Calendar No. 211 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3398 [Report No. 116–265] To provide low-income individuals with opportunities to enter and follow a career pathway in the health professions, to extend and expand dem- onstration projects, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 21, 2019 Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means OCTOBER 29, 2019 Additional sponsors: Mr. SABLAN, Mr. BEYER, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. EVANS, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. HORSFORD, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. LEWIS, Ms. MOORE, Mrs. MURPHY of Florida, Mr. PANETTA, Mr. PASCRELL, Ms. SEWELL of Alabama, Mr. SUOZZI, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mr. SAN NICOLAS, Mr. SCHNEIDER, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. TONKO, Ms. NOR- TON, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. CLAY, Mr. KHANNA, Mr. RUSH, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, and Mr. CLEAVER OCTOBER 29, 2019 Reported with an amendment, committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union, and ordered to be printed [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] [For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on June 21, 2019] VerDate Sep 11 2014 21:18 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 2 •HR 3398 RH A BILL To provide low-income individuals with opportunities to enter and follow a career pathway in the health professions, to extend and expand demonstration projects, and for other purposes. VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 3 •HR 3398 RH 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 ‘‘Pathways to Health Ca- 4 reers Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. EXTENSION THROUGH FISCAL YEAR 2020 OF FUND- 6 ING FOR DEMONSTRATION PROJECTS TO AD- 7 DRESS HEALTH PROFESSIONS WORKFORCE 8 NEEDS. 9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2008(c)(1) of the Social Se- 10 curity Act (42 U.S.C. 1397g(c)(1)) is amended by striking 11 ‘‘2019.’’ and inserting ‘‘2020, and to provide technical as- 12 sistance and cover administrative costs associated with im- 13 plementing the successor to this section $15,000,000 for fis- 14 cal year 2020.’’. 15 (b) AVAILABILITY OF OTHER FUNDS.—Upon the date 16 of the enactment of this section— 17 (1) amounts expended pursuant to section 1501 18 of division B of Public Law 116–59, or any other 19 prior law making amounts available for fiscal year 20 2020 for activities authorized by section 2008 of the 21 Social Security Act, shall be charged to the appro- 22 priation made by subsection (c)(1) of such section 23 2008 for fiscal year 2020 (not including the amount 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 4 •HR 3398 RH for technical assistance and administrative costs); 1 and 2 (2) if such enactment occurs on or before Novem- 3 ber 21, 2019, the availability of funds appropriated 4 in, and the authority provided under, such section 5 1501 shall terminate. 6 SEC. 3. CAREER PATHWAYS THROUGH HEALTH PROFES- 7 SION OPPORTUNITY GRANTS. 8 Effective October 1, 2020, section 2008 of the Social 9 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1397g) is amended to read as fol- 10 lows: 11 ‘‘SEC. 2008. CAREER PATHWAYS THROUGH HEALTH PROFES- 12 SION OPPORTUNITY GRANTS. 13 ‘‘(a) APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS.—An eligible enti- 14 ty desiring a grant under this section for a project shall 15 submit to the Secretary an application for the grant, that 16 includes the following: 17 ‘‘(1) A description of how the applicant will use 18 a career pathways approach to train eligible individ- 19 uals for health professions that pay well or will put 20 eligible individuals on a career path to an occupation 21 that pays well, under the project. 22 ‘‘(2) A description of the adult basic education 23 and literacy activities, work readiness activities, 24 training activities, and case management and career 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 5 •HR 3398 RH coaching services that the applicant will use to assist 1 eligible individuals to gain work experience, connec- 2 tion to employers, and job placement, and a descrip- 3 tion of the plan for recruiting, hiring, and training 4 staff to provide the case management, mentoring, and 5 career coaching services, under the project directly or 6 through local governmental, apprenticeship, edu- 7 cational, or charitable institutions. 8 ‘‘(3) In the case of an application for a grant 9 under this section for a demonstration project de- 10 scribed in subsection (c)(2)(B)(i)(I)— 11 ‘‘(A) a demonstration that the State in 12 which the demonstration project is to be con- 13 ducted has in effect policies or laws that permit 14 certain allied health and behavioral health care 15 credentials to be awarded to people with certain 16 arrest or conviction records (which policies or 17 laws shall include appeals processes, waivers, 18 certificates, and other opportunities to dem- 19 onstrate rehabilitation to obtain credentials, li- 20 censure, and approval to work in the proposed 21 health careers), and a plan described in the ap- 22 plication that will use a career pathway to assist 23 participants with such a record in acquiring cre- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 6 •HR 3398 RH dentials, licensing, and employment in the speci- 1 fied careers; 2 ‘‘(B) a discussion of how the project or fu- 3 ture strategic hiring decisions will demonstrate 4 the experience and expertise of the project in 5 working with job seekers who have arrest or con- 6 viction records or employers with experience 7 working with people with arrest or conviction 8 records; 9 ‘‘(C) an identification of promising innova- 10 tions or best practices that can be used to pro- 11 vide the training; 12 ‘‘(D) a proof of concept or demonstration 13 that the applicant has done sufficient research on 14 workforce shortage or in-demand jobs for which 15 people with certain types of arrest or conviction 16 records can be hired; 17 ‘‘(E) a plan for recruiting students who are 18 eligible individuals into the project; and 19 ‘‘(F) a plan for providing post-employment 20 support and ongoing training as part of a career 21 pathway under the project. 22 ‘‘(4) In the case of an application for a grant 23 under this section for a demonstration project de- 24 scribed in subsection (c)(2)(B)(i)(II)— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 7 •HR 3398 RH ‘‘(A) a description of the partnerships, stra- 1 tegic staff hiring decisions, tailored program ac- 2 tivities, or other programmatic elements of the 3 project, such as training plans for doulas and 4 other community health workers and training 5 plans for midwives and other allied health pro- 6 fessions, that are designed to support a career 7 pathway in pregnancy, birth, or post-partum 8 services; and 9 ‘‘(B) a demonstration that the State in 10 which the demonstration project is to be con- 11 ducted recognizes doulas or midwives, as the case 12 may be. 13 ‘‘(5) A demonstration that the applicant has ex- 14 perience working with low-income populations, or a 15 description of the plan of the applicant to work with 16 a partner organization that has the experience. 17 ‘‘(6) A plan for providing post-employment sup- 18 port and ongoing training as part of a career path- 19 way under the project. 20 ‘‘(7) A description of the support services that 21 the applicant will provide under the project, includ- 22 ing a plan for how child care and transportation sup- 23 port services will be guaranteed and, if the applicant 24 will provide a cash stipend or wage supplement, how 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 8 •HR 3398 RH the stipend or supplement would be calculated and 1 distributed. 2 ‘‘(8) A certification by the applicant that the 3 project development included— 4 ‘‘(A) consultation with a local workforce de- 5 velopment board established under section 107 of 6 the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act; 7 ‘‘(B) consideration of apprenticeship and 8 pre-apprenticeship models registered under the 9 Act of August 16, 1937 (also known as the ‘Na- 10 tional Apprenticeship Act’); 11 ‘‘(C) consideration of career pathway pro- 12 grams in the State in which the project is to be 13 conducted; and 14 ‘‘(D) a review of the State plan under sec- 15 tion 102 or 103 of the Workforce Innovation and 16 Opportunity Act. 17 ‘‘(9) A description of the availability and rel- 18 evance of recent labor market information and other 19 pertinent evidence of in-demand jobs or worker short- 20 ages. 21 ‘‘(10) A certification that the applicant will di- 22 rectly provide or contract for the training services de- 23 scribed in the application. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 9 •HR 3398 RH ‘‘(11) A commitment by the applicant that, if the 1 grant is made to the applicant, the applicant will— 2 ‘‘(A) during the planning period for the 3 project, provide the Secretary with any informa- 4 tion needed by the Secretary to establish ade- 5 quate data reporting and administrative struc- 6 ture for the project; 7 ‘‘(B) hire a person to direct the project not 8 later than the end of the planning period appli- 9 cable to the project; 10 ‘‘(C) accept all technical assistance offered 11 by the Secretary with respect to the grant; 12 ‘‘(D) participate in such in-person grantee 13 conferences as are regularly scheduled by the Sec- 14 retary; 15 ‘‘(E) provide all data required by the Sec- 16 retary under subsection (g); and 17 ‘‘(F) notify the local disabled veterans’ out- 18 reach program specialists under section 4103A of 19 title 38, United States Code, and the local vet- 20 erans’ employment representatives under section 21 4104 of such title, of the grantee’s outreach plan 22 for advertising training opportunities to poten- 23 tial participants in the project. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 10 •HR 3398 RH ‘‘(b) PREFERENCES IN CONSIDERING APPLICATIONS.— 1 In considering applications for a grant under this section, 2 the Secretary shall give preference to— 3 ‘‘(1) applications submitted by applicants to 4 whom a grant was made under this section or any 5 predecessor to this section; 6 ‘‘(2) applications submitted by applicants who 7 have business and community partners in each of the 8 following categories: 9 ‘‘(A) State and local government agencies 10 and social service providers, including a State or 11 local entity that administers a State program 12 funded under part A of this title; 13 ‘‘(B) institutions of higher education, ap- 14 prenticeship programs, and local workforce devel- 15 opment boards established under section 107 of 16 the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act; 17 and 18 ‘‘(C) health care employers, health care in- 19 dustry or sector partnerships, labor unions, and 20 labor-management partnerships; 21 ‘‘(3) applications that include opportunities for 22 mentoring or peer support, and make career coaching 23 available, as part of the case management plan; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 11 •HR 3398 RH ‘‘(4) applications which describe a project that 1 will serve a rural area in which— 2 ‘‘(A) the community in which the individ- 3 uals to be enrolled in the project reside is located; 4 ‘‘(B) the project will be conducted; or 5 ‘‘(C) an employer partnership that has com- 6 mitted to hiring individuals who successfully 7 complete all activities under the project is lo- 8 cated; 9 ‘‘(5) applications that include a commitment to 10 providing project participants with a cash stipend or 11 wage supplement; and 12 ‘‘(6) applications which have an emergency cash 13 fund to assist project participants financially in 14 emergency situations. 15 ‘‘(c) GRANTS.— 16 ‘‘(1) COMPETITIVE GRANTS.— 17 ‘‘(A) GRANT AUTHORITY.— 18 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in 19 consultation with the Secretary of Labor 20 and the Secretary of Education, may make 21 a grant in accordance with this paragraph 22 to an eligible entity whose application for 23 the grant is approved by the Secretary, to 24 conduct a project designed to train low-in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 12 •HR 3398 RH come individuals for allied health profes- 1 sions, health information technology, physi- 2 cians assistants, nursing assistants, reg- 3 istered nurse, advanced practice nurse, and 4 other professions considered part of a health 5 care career pathway model. 6 ‘‘(ii) GUARANTEE OF GRANTEES IN 7 EACH STATE AND THE DISTRICT OF COLUM- 8 BIA.—For each grant cycle, the Secretary 9 shall award a grant under this paragraph 10 to at least 2 eligible entities in each State 11 that is not a territory, to the extent there 12 are a sufficient number of applications sub- 13 mitted by the entities that meet the require- 14 ments applicable with respect to such a 15 grant. If, for a grant cycle, there are fewer 16 than 2 such eligible entities in a State, the 17 Secretary shall include that information in 18 the report required by subsection (g)(2) that 19 covers the fiscal year. 20 ‘‘(B) GUARANTEE OF GRANTS FOR INDIAN 21 POPULATIONS.—From the amount reserved under 22 subsection (i)(2)(B) for each fiscal year, the Sec- 23 retary shall award a grant under this paragraph 24 to at least 10 eligible entities that are an Indian 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 20:43 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H3398.RH H3398 13 •HR 3398 RH tribe, a tribal organization, or a tribal college or 1 university, to the extent there are a sufficient 2 number of applications submitted by the entities 3 that meet the requirements applicable with re- 4 spect to such a grant. 5 ‘‘(C) GUARANTEE OF GRANTEES IN THE 6 TERRITORIES.—From the amount reserved under 7 subsection (i)(2)(C) for each fiscal year, the Sec- 8 retary shall award a grant under this paragraph 9 to at least 2 eligible entities that are located in 10 a territory, to the extent there are a sufficient 11 number of applications submi [Text truncated for display. 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