119-hr1417

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1417 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 1417

To expand and codify the Rural Hospital Technical Assistance Program of 
 the Department of Agriculture and rename it as the Rural Health Care 
 Facility Technical Assistance Program.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 February 18, 2025

 Mr. Jackson of Texas (for himself and Ms. Tokuda) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

To expand and codify the Rural Hospital Technical Assistance Program of 
 the Department of Agriculture and rename it as the Rural Health Care 
 Facility Technical Assistance Program.

 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

 This Act may be cited as the ``Rural Health Care Facility Technical 
Assistance Program Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPANSION AND CODIFICATION OF THE RURAL HEALTH CARE FACILITY 
 TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM OF THE DEPARTMENT OF 
 AGRICULTURE.

    (a) In General.--In lieu of any other authority under which the 
Secretary of Agriculture (in this section referred to as the 
``Secretary'') may provide technical assistance to any eligible health 
care facility, the Secretary shall establish, and maintain, directly or 
by grant, contract, or cooperative agreement, a Rural Health Care 
Facility Technical Assistance Program (in this section referred to as 
the ``Program'') to provide technical assistance and training, tailored 
to the capacity and needs of each eligible health care facility, to 
help eligible health care facilities in rural areas--

    (1) identify development needs for maintaining essential 
 health care services, and support action plans for operational 
 and quality improvement projects to meet the development needs;

    (2) better manage their financial and business strategies, 
 including providing financial planning assistance and preparing 
 long-term financial plans; and

    (3) identify, and apply for assistance from, loan and grant 
 programs of the Department of Agriculture for which the 
 facilities are eligible.

    (b) Goals.--The goals of the Program shall be to--

    (1) improve the long-term financial position and 
 operational efficiency of the eligible health care facilities;

    (2) prevent the closure of eligible health care facilities;

    (3) strengthen the delivery of health care in rural areas;

    (4) help eligible rural health care facilities better 
 access and compete for loans and grants from programs 
 administered by the Department of Agriculture; and

    (5) continue the activities of the Rural Hospital Technical 
 Assistance Program in effect as of the date of the enactment of 
 this subsection.
            (c) Program Participation.--

    (1) In general.--The Secretary shall engage in outreach and 
 engagement strategies to encourage eligible health care 
 facilities to participate in the Program.

    (2) Eligible health care facility selection.--In selecting 
 eligible health care facilities to participate in the Program, 
 the Secretary shall give priority to borrowers and grantees of 
 the Rural Housing Service, Rural Business-Cooperative Service, 
 and Rural Utilities Service. The Secretary may also consider--
        (A) the age and physical state of the health care 
 facility involved;
        (B) the financial vulnerability of the eligible 
 health care facility, and the ability of the eligible 
 health care facility to meet debt obligations;
            (C) the electronic health record implementation 
 needs of the health care facility;
            (D) whether the eligible health care facility is 
 located in a health professional shortage area or a 
 medically underserved area;
        (E) whether the eligible health care facility 
 serves a medically underserved population; and
        (F) such other criteria and priorities as are 
 determined by the Secretary.
            (d) Reporting Requirements.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
of the enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the 
Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and 
Forestry of the Senate a written report describing the progress and 
results of the program conducted under this section, which should 
include--

    (1) a brief description of each project to provide 
 technical assistance to an eligible health care facility under 
 this section, including--
        (A) the name and location of the facility;
        (B) a description of the assistance provided;
            (C) a description of the outcomes for completed 
 projects;
            (D) the cost of the technical assistance; and
        (E) any other information the Secretary deems 
 appropriate;

    (2) a summary of the technical assistance projects 
 completed;

    (3) a summary of the outcomes of the technical assistance 
 projects;

    (4) an assessment of the effectiveness of the Program; and

    (5) recommendations for improving the Program.

    (e) Limitations on Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out 
this section, there are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary 
not more than $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2030.

    (f) 

=== Definitions. ===
-In this section:

    (1) Rural area.--The term ``rural area'' has the meaning 
 given the term in 

section 343

    (a)

    (13)
        (A) of the Consolidated 
 Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 1991

    (a)

    (13)
        (A) ).

    (2) Development needs.--The term ``development needs'' 
 includes--
        (A) constructing, expanding, renovating, or 
 otherwise modernizing health care facilities;
        (B) increasing telehealth capabilities;
            (C) acquiring or upgrading health care information 
 systems such as electronic health records;
            (D) providing financial planning assistance and 
 preparing long-term financial plan; and
        (E) such other needs as the Secretary deems 
 critical to maintaining health care services in the 
 community in which an eligible health care facility is 
 located.

    (3) Eligible health care facility.--The term ``eligible 
 health care facility'' means a facility that is located in a 
 rural area and is--
        (A) a hospital (as defined in 

section 1861

    (e) of 
 the Social Security Act);
        (B) a psychiatric hospital (as defined in 

section 1861

    (f) of such Act);
            (C) a long-term care hospital (as defined in 
 

section 1861
            (ccc) of such Act);
            (D) a critical access hospital (as defined in 
 

section 1861
            (mm) (1) of such Act);
        (E) a rural health clinic (as defined in 

section 1861

    (aa)

    (2) of such Act);
        (F) a religious nonmedical health care institution 
 (as defined in 

section 1861

    (ss)

    (1) of such Act);
        (G) a sole community hospital (as defined in 
 

section 1886
            (d) (5)
            (C) 
            (iii) of such Act);
        (H) a rural emergency hospital (as defined in 
 

section 1861

    (kkk)

    (2) of such Act);
            (I) a home health agency (as defined in 

section 1861

    (o) of such Act); or
        (J) a community health center (as defined in 
 

section 330 of the Public Health Service Act).

    (4) Health professional shortage area.--The term ``health 
 professional shortage area'' has the meaning given the term in 
 

section 332

    (a)

    (1)
        (A) of the Public Health Service Act.

    (5) Medically underserved area.--The term ``medically 
 underserved area'' has the meaning given the term in 

section 330I

    (a)

    (5) of the Public Health Service Act.

    (6) Medically underserved population.--The term ``medically 
 underserved population'' has the meaning given the term in 
 

section 330

    (b)

    (3) of the Public Health Service Act.
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