21st Century Hospitals Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 3558 To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a study on the state of hospital infrastructure in the United States, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 27, 2019 Mr. ENGEL (for himself and Mr. KING of New York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct a study on the state of hospital infrastructure in the United States, 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 ‘‘21st Century Hospitals 4 Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. HHS STUDY ON HOSPITAL INFRASTRUCTURE. 6 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Health and Human 7 Services, in consultation with State departments of health 8 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:08 Jul 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3558.IH H3558 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 3558 IH and other public health entities, shall conduct a study on 1 the state of hospital infrastructure in the United States. 2 (b) TOPICS.—The study under subsection (a) shall 3 include the following: 4 (1) An assessment of barriers to accessing cap- 5 ital for infrastructure at hospitals serving vulnerable 6 populations, such as hospitals described in section 7 1886(d)(5)(F)(i) of the Social Security Act (42 8 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(5)(F)(i), relating to dispropor- 9 tionate share payments), sole community hospitals 10 (as defined in section 1886(d)(5)(D)(iii) of such Act 11 (42 U.S.C. 1395ww(d)(5)(F)(i)), critical access hos- 12 pitals (as defined in section 1861(mm)(1) of such 13 Act (42 U.S.C. 1395x(mm)(1)), and public hospitals, 14 including— 15 (A) recommendations for addressing such 16 barriers, which may include recommendations 17 for grants or low-cost borrowing vehicles; 18 (B) analysis of the impact of such barriers 19 on managing infrastructure at such hospitals, 20 including with respect to life-safety issues and 21 emergency preparedness; and 22 (C) identification of public funds that are 23 available for— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:30 Jul 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3558.IH H3558 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 3558 IH (i) bringing such hospitals into com- 1 pliance with applicable laws; and 2 (ii) ensuring that such hospitals and 3 the communities they serve are appro- 4 priately prepared for responding to emer- 5 gencies including public health emer- 6 gencies. 7 (2) An assessment of the state of health infor- 8 mation technology at hospitals in the United States, 9 including— 10 (A) the state of electronic medical records 11 and the dependence of hospitals and health sys- 12 tems on technology that is outdated or de- 13 bunked; and 14 (B) barriers associated with updating 15 health information technology, including with 16 respect to hardware, software, administrative 17 burden, staff training, and associated costs. 18 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 19 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and 20 Human Services shall complete the study under this sec- 21 tion and submit a report on the results of such study to 22 the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:30 Jul 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3558.IH H3558 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 3558 IH of Representatives and the Committee on Health, Edu- 1 cation, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:30 Jul 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H3558.IH H3558 dlhill on DSKBBY8HB2PROD with BILLS