Month: October 2026

Wyden Issues RFI on Nation’s Long-Term Care System – Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) released a request for information last week on a range of policy proposals aimed at improving long-term care for Americans, including the creation of an affordable home care guarantee. The three general areas for feedback include: making home care affordable and accessible, especially for Americans with disabilities and seniors; improving the quality of care in nursing homes; and strengthening the long-term care workforce. The full RFI can be found here, with comments due by December 18. Sen. Wyden has issued several similar RFIs throughout this year on the subjects of drug pricing and health coverage. The requests are expected to help shape Democrats’ legislative agenda for the next Congress.

 

Democrats Probe Increase to VA-Oracle Contract – Several congressional Democrats are asking the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for an explanation of why the government contract for health records technology with Oracle has been raised from $10 billion to $27 billion. The letter from Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Ct.) and Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.), ranking members of their respective Veterans’ Affairs committees, questions why Oracle needs “$17 billion more to get the job done when this program has already dragged on for eight years…We need answers and not excuses.” The lawmakers demand that the VA produce the requested documents and written responses no later than October 30. The CEO of Oracle is expected to testify before the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee in November to discuss the project and its delays.

 

GAO Issues Report on NIH Management of Foreign Interference Risks – The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recommended that the National Institutes of Health (NIH) do more to strengthen foreign interference risk management. The new report highlights that efforts by foreign entities to misappropriate or gain unauthorized access to research at NIH could undermine U.S. national security and economic competitiveness. The NIH relies on disclosures from researchers and institutions to identify and manage foreign interference risks, but it does not generally verify such disclosures in the absence of an allegation of foreign interference. GAO recommends that NIH regularly conduct and document a fraud risk assessment tailored to NIH’s extramural research program that considers foreign interference risks.

 

FDA Announces Rare Disease Framework Initiative – The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the Rare Disease Framework Initiative this week, which reimagines the development of drugs and biologics for rare diseases. An accompanying white paper and press release describes how the FDA will develop an “optimized, fit-for-purpose framework that reflects the realities of rare disease drug development by considering the nuances of each disease, patient needs, product type and the evidence that can be realistically generated in small patient populations.” The FDA plans to solicit feedback from patients, industry, and other stakeholders at an October 28 meeting led by the Reagan-Udall Foundation for the FDA.

 

U.S. Measles Cases Top 4,400 – The number of measles cases across the country has reached 4,410, nearly double the total number of infections confirmed during the entirety of 2025. For kindergarteners in the 2025-2026 school year, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has reported an MMR coverage rate of 92.4%. The ideal vaccination rate considered necessary to stop widespread outbreaks is 95%.

 

New KFF Data on Individual Market Enrollment – Enrollment in the individual health insurance market fell 18% between June 2025 and June 2026, according to new data from the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF). This is an increase from the 12% drop in enrollment estimated in February. In total, KFF estimates that individual market enrollment has fallen by over 4.6 million people, from 25.2 million in June 2025 to 20.5 million in June 2026. The reduced enrollment coincides with the expiration of the enhanced premium tax credits. Kaiser highlights that enrollment declines may continue through this year and in upcoming plan years as enrollees fall behind on their premiums, with premiums projected to continue rising in 2027.

 

 

Recently Introduced Health Legislation

H.Res.1623 — Expressing support for the recognition of October 2026, as “National Dyslexia Awareness Month;” Sponsor: Westerman, Bruce [Rep.-R-AR-4]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce

 

H.R.10788 — Lower Premiums, Faster Payments Act – To amend title XXVII of the Public Health Service Act, the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to make certain adjustments to the surprise medical billing requirements for private health insurance; Sponsor: Pallone, Frank [Rep.-D-NJ-6]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Education and Workforce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10787 —Access to Medical Supplies Act – To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to exclude urological and ostomy supplies from competitive acquisition programs under the Medicare program for 5 years, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Murphy, Gregory F. [Rep.-R-NC-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10778 — Low Emission Anesthetics Act – To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to establish a credit to incentivize the use of certain low-emission anesthetic gases by health care facilities, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Foushee, Valerie P. [Rep.-D-NC-4]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.10770 — 340B Rebate Model Delay Act – To amend title III of the Public Health Service Act to temporarily limit the use of rebates under the 340B Program; Sponsor: Bresnahan, Robert P. [Rep.-R-PA-8]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10797 — Aerial Transport and High Consequence Infectious Diseases Act – To direct the Secretary of the Air Force to carry out a program to provide for the safe, long-range aerial transport of individuals known to be infected, or suspected of infection, by high-consequence infectious diseases; Sponsor: Bacon, Don [Rep.-R-NE-2]; Committees: House – Armed Services

 

H.R.10798 — Silicosis Prevention and Treatment Act – To establish a grant program for funding silicosis treatment and education, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Correa, J. Luis [Rep.-D-CA-46]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10799 — Protecting American Workers Through H-1B Modernization Act – To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to modernize the wage required for exempt H-1B workers, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Grothman, Glenn [Rep.-R-WI-6]; Committees: House – Judiciary

 

H.R.10806 — Medicare Home Health Payment Integrity and Protection Act – To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to decrease fraud related to home health agencies in Medicare, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Tenney, Claudia [Rep.-R-NY-24]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce; Judiciary

 

H.R.10808 — Savings for Tomorrow’s Opportunities, Raising Kids (STORK) Act – To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to allow additional contributions to a health savings account in the case of the birth or adoption of a child, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Van Epps, Matt [Rep.-R-TN-7]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.10810 — National Patient Safety Board Act of 2026 –To establish the National Patient Safety Board, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Barragán, Nanette Diaz [Rep.-D-CA-44]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.10824 — Stroke Education and EMS Care Improvement Act of 2026 – To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a standardized stroke education program for emergency medical services clinicians, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Latimer, George [Rep.-D-NY-16]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

GAO Decision on Withholding of AHRQ Funds – The Government Accountability Office (GAO), an independent, non-partisan agency that works for Congress, released a report on Wednesday asserting that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) fiscal year (FY) 2025 withholding of funding for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality was illegal. HHS did not spend $78 million of the $369 million appropriated by Congress for AHRQ in the last fiscal year, and the GAO found the decision in violation of the Impoundment Control Act. The report comes a year after several congressional Democrats requested a legal opinion from GAO on AHRQ funding.  “Collectively, the substantial unobligated balance of funds near the close of the fiscal year, the cancellation of grant peer review sessions, the reduction in force separating key grant personnel from the agency, and admissions by agency management of funding uncertainty suggest a lack of intent to prudently obligate funds,” GAO wrote in its report. The White House recently informed Congress of its intent to claw back $28 million of the $345 million that Congress appropriated to fund AHRQ for FY 2026.

 

Pallone Introduces NSA Reform Legislation –House Energy and Commerce Committee Ranking Member Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) has introduced legislation to overhaul the No Surprises Act (NSA), the bipartisan 2020 law aimed at protecting patients from surprise medical bills. The Lower Premiums, Faster Payments Act (H.R. 10788) would replace the NSA’s arbitration process with a benchmarking system under which insurers would pay providers based on the median in-network rate for a particular service in a given geographic area. Payments would be required to be issued within 30 days of the claim being filed. Pallone argues that the bill would address issues related to NSA implementation, stating that “a series of court decisions… have weakened (the guidelines for determining a fair payment amount under arbitration), resulting in increasingly large awards that overwhelmingly delay payments and drive up insurance premiums for millions of patients.”

 

House Lawmakers Send Bipartisan Letter on Remote Patient Monitoring– A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House of Representatives have sent a letter to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to share their concerns about a policy that would cut provider reimbursement for remote patient monitoring (RPM). The anti-fraud proposal would require doctors and hospitals to use their own staff to monitor patients via RPM, eliminating reimbursement for providers who use the RPM vendors’ clinical staff for such monitoring. The legislators specifically express concern about the impact of the proposal on rural communities. The letter was led by Reps. David Kustoff (R-Tenn.) and Troy Balderson (R-Ohio), and signed by eight Democrats and 24 Republicans. Last month, Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) sent a letter to CMS expressing similar concerns. Kustoff and Blackburn are the sponsors of the Remote Patient Monitoring Access Act (S. 1535/H.R. 3108) to improve Medicare coverage for RPM in rural areas. The bill was unanimously advanced by the House Ways and Means Committee in July.

 

Republicans Urge Scheduling of Kratom and Its Derivatives – Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Susan Collins (R-Maine) have sent a letter urging officials from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Food and Drug Administration to pursue permanent controls on the sale of kratom and its derivatives. The lawmakers ask the DEA to finalize its July proposed emergency scheduling order for 7-hydroxymitragynine, a chemical compound found in the kratom plant, and to permanently schedule MGM-15, MGM-16, and mitragynine pseudoindoxyl, semisynthetic derivatives related to compounds found in kratom that have been found in certain wellness products. “Permanently placing all levels of these synthetic compounds into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act is an essential and necessary action to ensure the safety of kratom consumers and to keep products with compounds even more dangerous than 7-OH from widespread availability,” the lawmakers write. The letter cites increasing poison-center reports of suspected nonfatal overdoses involving kratom or related compounds. A response is requested from the administration by October 15.

 

Recently Introduced Health Legislation

H.Res.1610 — Expressing support for the recognition of October 2026, as “World Menopause Awareness Month” and for global awareness and access to care during menopausal transition and post-menopause; Sponsor: Clarke, Yvette D. [Rep.-D-NY-9]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Armed Services; Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.Res.1613 — Expressing support for the recognition of October 5th as “National Peroxisomal Disorder Awareness Day”; Sponsor: Kim, Young [Rep.-R-CA-40]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10722 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to expand behavioral health workforce training programs, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Carter, Troy A. [Rep.-D-LA-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10725 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide for certain reforms with respect to medicare supplemental health insurance policies; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10726 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to allow individuals with Alzheimer’s disease to buy in to the Medicare program; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10727 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to give priority to expanding service applications from certain entities, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10728 — To provide that certain limits on State-directed payments under the Medicaid program not apply to certain maternity, labor, and delivery services; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10729 — To amend Public Law 119-21 to adjust limitations on State directed payments under the Medicaid program, and to repeal certain provisions related to provider taxes; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10730 — To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to modify the premium tax credit, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10731 — To adjust the cost pass-through for certified registered nurse anesthetists under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.10739 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to encourage qualified individuals to enter the forensic pathology workforce, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Guest, Michael [Rep.-R-MS-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10747 — To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to ensure appropriate geographic adjustments to Medicare Advantage benchmarks in Puerto Rico; Sponsor: Ruiz, Raul [Rep.-D-CA-25]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.1617 — Recognizes October as “American Pharmacy Month” in honor of the contributions of pharmacists and pharmacy teams in providing safe, accessible, affordable, and effective patient care services and products to all residents and protecting public health in communities across the United States; Sponsor: Carter, Earl L. “Buddy” [Rep.-R-GA-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10751 — To amend the Indian Health Care Improvement Act to remove restrictions on the provision of dental therapist services under the Community Health Aide Program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Bergman, Jack [Rep.-R-MI-1]; Committees: House – Natural Resources; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10760 — To establish a multiagency Middle School Mental Health Task Force at the Department of Education and the Department of Health and Human Services; Sponsor: Kean, Thomas H. [Rep.-R-NJ-7]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce; Energy and Commerce

HELP, Finance Advance HHS Nominees – The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee favorably reported the following nominations en bloc to the full Senate by a party line vote of 12-11 last week: Nicole Saphier, MD to be Surgeon General/Medical Director in the Regular Corps of the Public Health Service; Timothy Westlake, MD to be Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use; and Mary Lazare to be Assistant Secretary for Aging. The Senate Finance Committee favorably reported out the nomination of Chris Klomp to be Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services in a 15-12 vote, and Ge Bai to be an Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services in a 14-13 vote. The full Senate will not hold confirmation votes on the nominees until after the chamber returns from recess following the November midterm elections.

 

In related news, more than 2,500 physicians across the nation are urging the Senate to reject the Trump administration’s nomination of Heidi Overton, MD to lead the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The letter, organized by the Committee to Protect Health Care, argues that “Dr. Overton’s dangerous record on vaccines and extremist anti-abortion advocacy are deeply troubling, and render her unfit to lead such a critical public health institution.” The Senate HELP Committee will not meet to consider the FDA nominee until after the Senate returns to session after the midterm elections. During her confirmation hearing, Chair Bill Cassidy, MD (R-La.) questioned Overton on her role in a recent executive order focused on the childhood vaccine schedule and called on her to rebut some of the President’s remarks regarding the MMR vaccine. It would take the opposition of just one Republican on the panel to sink her nomination.

 

President Signs Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act into Law – President Donald Trump signed the Kay Hagan Tick Reauthorization Act (S. 2398) into law last week. The bill will require the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to continue implementing and updating, as appropriate, its National Public Health Strategy to Prevent and Control Vector-Borne Diseases in People. It will also reauthorize Regional Centers of Excellence in Vector-Borne Disease and grants to state health departments to improve data collection and analysis, support early detection and diagnosis, improve treatment, and raise awareness of Lyme and other vector-borne diseases.

 

GAO General Counsel Weighs in on Pocket Recissions – Government Accountability Office (GAO) General Counsel Edda Emmanuelli Perez sent a letter to congressional leaders last week characterizing the White House’s recent cancelation of $810 million in federal funding as unlawful and unconstitutional. “Any withholding of appropriated funds beyond their date of expiration, regardless of size, subverts both the constitutional process for enacting federal law and Congress’s constitutional power of the purse,” Emmanuelli Perez wrote in the letter. Both Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill are discussing ways to prevent the administration from making such pocket recissions in the future, with Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-Maine) telling reporters that appropriators are “already looking at whether there’s language we can put in the next set of appropriations bills that would prohibit this from happening.”

 

Murray, Baldwin Call for Legislative Response to NIH Politicization Proposals – Senate Democrats have sent a letter to the White House urging Office of Management and Budget Director (OMB) Russell Vought to abandon any plans to exert political control over grant-making decisions at the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The letter, led by Senate Appropriations Committee Vice Chair Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Labor-Health and Human Services Subcommittee Ranking Member Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), specifically criticizes recent reports of a possible executive order to establish a commission empowered to veto NIH research awards, which followed a similar OMB proposal to revise the rules governing the administration of federal grants government-wide. The lawmakers call on congressional Republicans to “work with us on legislation to do much more to protect NIH from the Trump administration, which has proven over and over again to be dead set on picking political fights at the expense of advancing lifesaving treatments and cures for millions of Americans.”

 

House Caucus Releases Bipartisan Report on Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy – A bipartisan group of lawmakers in the House of Representatives have released a report on how psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) could be safely and ethically integrated into U.S. healthcare and community settings. The report follows a 2024 request for information issued by the Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy to Heal (PATH) Caucus. Responses to the RFI envisioned wide-ranging, multidisciplinary service models that include clinical settings, community-based environments, faith and ceremonial practices, group sessions, and federally qualified health centers. Responses highlighted integration services, PAT delivery options and care teams, and long-term follow-up. The report suggests that policies “should be put in place to support coordinated national data systems to monitor benefits as well as potential unintended consequences of PAT and provide an evidence-base to ensure the best possible patient care that evolves in approach with the diverse emerging pipeline of new medicines and potential medical applications over time.”

 

E&C Republicans Remain Focused on Healthcare Fraud – House Energy and Commerce Committee Republicans have released a staff report detailing the findings of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee’s investigation into the incidence of fraud in the Medicare and Medicaid programs. The report also highlights related disparities in oversight and enforcement within state Medicaid programs. Key findings include that some states do not consider fraud trends when setting required Medicaid provider risk levels, and do not regularly update the risk levels that are set. The report also asserts that states are not using their audit and investigative authorities to their fullest potential to prevent fraud from occurring, and that states, which vary in auditing capacity, are generally not focusing on high-risk providers. In related news, E&C Republicans introduced a 14-bill package on Tuesday focused on healthcare fraud, including nine new bills and five reintroductions.

 

Cassidy, Warner Reintroduce PBM Data Bill – Sens. Bill Cassidy, MD (R-La.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.) have reintroduced bipartisan legislation aimed at improving pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) reimbursement data and lowering the cost of prescription drugs. The Ensuring Accurate Payments to Specialty Pharmacies Act (S. 5586) would expand required participation in federal drug acquisition cost surveys to include specialty and mail-order pharmacies. This change is intended to provide more thorough data on drug acquisition costs and help ensure PBM reimbursement rates cover the complete cost of prescription drugs.

 

ASPR Personnel Changes – Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR) John Knox announced that he would be stepping down from his position at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on October 2. Sean Kaufman, the President’s nominee to lead ASPR, will serve in the deputy role until his is confirmed. Kaufman’s nomination was advanced by the Senate HELP Committee in July.

 

 

Recently Introduced Health Legislation

H.Res.1587 — Expressing support for the designation of September 2026 as “National Kinship Care Month”; Sponsor: Kamlager-Dove, Sydney [Rep.-D-CA-37]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.Res.1589 — Expressing support for the designation of October 1 as “National Latino and Latina Physician Day”; Sponsor: Ruiz, Raul [Rep.-D-CA-25]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10615 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require State Medicaid fraud control units to conduct annual audits; Sponsor: Balderson, Troy [Rep.-R-OH-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10616 — To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to create a repository of certain publicly available data sets; Sponsor: Bentz, Cliff [Rep.-R-OR-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means; Education and Workforce; Natural Resources

 

H.R.10618 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to promote electronic verification of non-emergency transportation services and applied behavior analysis services under the Medicaid program; Sponsor: Evans, Gabe [Rep.-R-CO-8]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10621 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to increase the State share of recovery under laws relating to false or fraudulent claims under the Medicaid program; Sponsor: Griffith, H. Morgan [Rep.-R-VA-9]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10625 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require State Medicaid fraud control units to conduct annual audits; Sponsor: Joyce, John [Rep.-R-PA-13]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10626 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to increase the State share of the recovery of certain overpayments under the Medicaid program; Sponsor: Kean, Thomas H. [Rep.-R-NJ-7]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10628 — To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to alter when biosimilar biological products are eligible for price negotiations under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Langworthy, Nicholas A. [Rep.-R-NY-23]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10632 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require certain protections for whistleblowers under the Medicaid program; Sponsor: Miller-Meeks, Mariannette [Rep.-R-IA-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10633 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require each State to designate a single agent responsible for certain fiscal duties under the Medicaid program; Sponsor: Pfluger, August [Rep.-R-TX-11]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10636 — Medicaid Fraud Prevention Act; Sponsor: Rulli, Michael A. [Rep.-R-OH-6]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

S.Res.912 — A resolution recognizing the 50th anniversary of the Hyde Amendment and its enduring legacy of saving the lives of more than 2,600,000 unborn children and respecting the conscience rights of the American people; Sponsor: Lankford, James [Sen.-R-OK]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.Res.914 — A resolution designating September 2026 as “National Cholesterol Education Month” and September 30, 2026, as “LDL-C Awareness Day”; Sponsor: Hyde-Smith, Cindy [Sen.-R-MS]; Latest Action: Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.5571 — A bill to amend title XI of the Social Security Act to alter when biosimilar biological products are eligible for price negotiations under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Blackburn, Marsha [Sen.-R-TN]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.Res.917 — A resolution expressing support for the designation of September as “Dystonia Awareness Month” to promote public awareness and understanding of dystonia; Sponsor: Banks, Jim [Sen.-R-IN]; Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.Res.918 — A resolution establishing the Select Committee on Artificial Intelligence; Sponsor: Gallego, Ruben [Sen.-D-AZ]; Committees: Senate – Rules and Administration

 

S.Res.925 — A resolution designating September 2026 as “National Spinal Cord Injury Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Moody, Ashley [Sen.-R-FL]; Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.5574 — A bill to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a program of distribution of newborn supply kits to mothers of newborn infants, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Kim, Andy [Sen.-D-NJ]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.5576 — A bill to establish the Artificial Intelligence Safety Board, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Warner, Mark R. [Sen.-D-VA]; Committees: Senate – Commerce, Science, and Transportation

 

S.5586 — A bill to amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to conduct surveys of non-retail pharmacy drug prices, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Warner, Mark R. [Sen.-D-VA]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.5591 — A bill to improve support for personnel of the Veterans Crisis Line and to clarify authorities relating to crisis response protocols, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Blumenthal, Richard [Sen.-D-CT]; Committees: Senate – Veterans’ Affairs

 

S.5593 —A bill to prevent the removal of children for sex-rejecting interventions; Sponsor: Schmitt, Eric [Sen.-R-MO]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.5600 — To reauthorize the Traumatic Brain Injury program; Sponsor: Armstrong, Alan [Sen.-R-OK]; Introduced in the Senate, read twice, considered, read the third time, and passed without amendment by Voice Vote.

 

S.Res.930 — A resolution expressing support for the recognition of October 2026, as “World Menopause Awareness Month” and for global awareness and access to care during menopausal transition and post-menopause; Sponsor: Blunt Rochester, Lisa [Sen.-D-DE]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.Res.933 — A resolution expressing support for the designation of October 2026 as “National Dyslexia Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Cassidy, Bill [Sen.-R-LA]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.Res.937 — A resolution recognizing the seriousness of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) and expressing support for the designation of September 2026 as “PCOS Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Warren, Elizabeth [Sen.-D-MA]; Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.Res.940 — A resolution expressing support for the designation of September 2026 as “Sickle Cell Disease Awareness Month” in order to educate communities across the United States about sickle cell disease and the need for research, early detection methods, effective treatments, and preventative care programs with respect to complications from sickle cell disease and conditions related to sickle cell disease; Sponsor: Scott, Tim [Sen.-R-SC]; Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.Res.946 — A resolution designating September 30, 2026, as “National Veterans Suicide Prevention Day”; Sponsor: Tillis, Thomas [Sen.-R-NC]; Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.Res.947 — A resolution designating September 2026 as “National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Scott, Tim [Sen.-R-SC]; Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Unanimous Consent.

 

S.5609 — A bill to amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require States to report on anti-fraud measures relating to home and community-based services furnished under the Medicaid program; Sponsor: Moody, Ashley [Sen.-R-FL]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.5612 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require hospitals receiving payment for direct graduate medical education costs under the Medicare program to report information with respect to the citizenship status of residents in an approved medical residency training program; Sponsor: Moody, Ashley [Sen.-R-FL]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.5622 — A bill to amend the Controlled Substances Act to provide for criminal liability where a controlled substance is a substantial factor in the death or bodily injury of another person; Sponsor: Moody, Ashley [Sen.-R-FL]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.5627 — A bill to amend title XI of the Social Security Act to improve access to care for all Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries through models tested under the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Booker, Cory A. [Sen.-D-NJ]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

S.5629 — A bill to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to permit veterans to seek a second opinion after the receipt of health care under the laws administered by the Secretary, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Rounds, Mike [Sen.-R-SD]; Committees: Senate – Veterans’ Affairs

 

S.5638 — A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to modernize the wage required for exempt H-1B workers, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Husted, Jon [Sen.-R-OH]; Committees: Senate – Judiciary

 

S.5663 — A bill to establish a program at the National Science Foundation to fund research awards to reproduce federally funded research; Sponsor: Lummis, Cynthia M. [Sen.-R-WY];  Committees: Senate – Commerce, Science, and Transportation

 

S.5671 — A bill to reauthorize and improve the pilot program to support State medical stockpiles, to ensure that State, local, Tribal, and territorial public health departments or officials are consulted by the Public Health Emergency Medical Countermeasures Enterprise, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Hassan, Margaret Wood [Sen.-D-NH]; Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

 

S.5672 — A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to modify certain physician payments under the Medicare program; Sponsor: Marshall, Roger [Sen.-R-KS]; Committees: Senate – Finance

 

H.Res.1591 — Expressing support for the designation of October 15, 2026, as “Liver Cancer Awareness Day”; Sponsor: Bacon, Don [Rep.-R-NE-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.1595 — Expressing support for the designation of September 2026 as “National Polycystic Kidney Disease Awareness Month”, and raising awareness and understanding of polycystic kidney disease; Sponsor: Cleaver, Emanuel [Rep.-D-MO-5]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.1599 — Expressing support for the recognition of September 2026 as “National Childhood Cancer Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Lawler, Michael [Rep.-R-NY-17]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.1601 — Recognizing September as “Childhood Cancer Awareness Month”; Sponsor: Miller, Max L. [Rep.-R-OH-7]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.Res.1602 — Recognizing the importance of access to pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention and supporting the designation of Saturday, October 10, 2026, as “National PrEP Day”; Sponsor: Pocan, Mark [Rep.-D-WI-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10640 — To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to establish an Urban Health Transformation Program; Sponsor: Waters, Maxine [Rep.-D-CA-43]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10643 —To increase penalties for certain violations of the H–1B nonimmigrant visa program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Van Duyne, Beth [Rep.-R-TX-24]; Committees: House – Judiciary

 

H.R.10645 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make uniformly available to States certain standardized data analytic technologies to identify and prevent fraud, waste, and abuse under Medicaid; Sponsor: Balderson, Troy [Rep.-R-OH-12]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10647 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to establish a Medicaid State plan amendment option to provide medical assistance to individuals with a serious mental illness who are patients in certain institutions for mental diseases; Sponsor: Bentz, Cliff [Rep.-R-OR-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10648 — To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to furnish inpatient treatment under the Veterans Community Care Program for a mental health condition, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Boebert, Lauren [Rep.-R-CO-4]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.10649 — To amend the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act of 2016 to authorize the Attorney General, in coordination with the Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the Director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, to award grants to covered entities to establish or maintain disposal sites for unwanted prescription medications, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Bonamici, Suzanne [Rep.-D-OR-1]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10654 — To ensure that a member separated from an Armed Force, solely on the basis that the member has pseudofolliculitis barbae, receives an honorable discharge and veterans benefits; Sponsor: Conaway, Herbert C. [Rep.-D-NJ-3]; Committees: House – Armed Services; Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.10655 — To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a study and clinical trials on the effects of cannabis on certain health outcomes of veterans with chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Correa, J. Luis [Rep.-D-CA-46]; Committees: House – Veterans’ Affairs

 

H.R.10658 — To direct the Secretary of Commerce to publish, on an annual basis, an assessment on United States dependency on imported, fermentation-based, biomanufacturing inputs, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Davids, Sharice [Rep.-D-KS-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10666 — To extend the Frontier Community Health Integration Project Demonstration; Sponsor: Fedorchak, Julie [Rep.-R-ND-At Large]; Committees: House – Ways and Means

 

H.R.10676 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to strengthen coverage under the Medicaid program for certain foster youth individuals; Sponsor: Kamlager-Dove, Sydney [Rep.-D-CA-37]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10677 — To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to ensure health insurance coverage continuity for former foster youth; Sponsor: Kamlager-Dove, Sydney [Rep.-D-CA-37]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10678 — To permit the Byrne JAG grant to be used for the purchase of fentanyl testing kits and opioid reversal agents; Sponsor: Kean, Thomas H. [Rep.-R-NJ-7]; Committees: House – Judiciary

 

H.R.10680 — To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a grant program to facilitate food access in community health centers, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Latimer, George [Rep.-D-NY-16]; Committees: House – Agriculture

 

H.R.10692 — To restore the allowance of the premium tax credit for lawfully present individuals, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Ocasio-Cortez, Alexandria [Rep.-D-NY-14]; Committees: House – Ways and Means; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10694 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide eligibility for nurses working in an elementary or secondary school within a health professional shortage area to participate in the National Health Service Corps Loan Repayment Program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Perez, Marie Gluesenkamp [Rep.-D-WA-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10704 —To direct the Secretary of Labor to award grants for the recruitment, retention, and advancement of direct care workers; Sponsor: Scott, Robert C. “Bobby” [Rep.-D-VA-3]; Committees: House – Education and Workforce; Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10706 — To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to clarify parameters for model testing and add accountability to model expansion under the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Smith, Adrian [Rep.-R-NE-3]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means; Rules

 

H.R.10707 — To address barriers immigrants and refugees face to entering the health care workforce, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Smith, Adam [Rep.-D-WA-9]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10708 — To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to reduce barriers to immigrants becoming nurses or allied health professionals in the United States, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Smith, Adam [Rep.-D-WA-9]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10712 — To amend the Public Health Service Act to include certain emergency response providers as eligible institutions under mental and behavioral health education and training grant program, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Subramanyam, Suhas [Rep.-D-VA-10]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce

 

H.R.10716 — To amend title XI of the Social Security Act to clarify the authority of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services to exclude certain entities from participation in Federal health care programs; Sponsor: Taylor, David J. [Rep.-R-OH-2]; Committees: House – Energy and Commerce; Ways and Means

 

H.R.10717 — To amend title 10, United States Code, to provide wigs to TRICARE beneficiaries with alopecia, including alopecia caused by chemotherapy, and for other purposes; Sponsor: Vindman, Eugene Simon [Rep.-D-VA-7]; Committees: House – Armed Services