United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2025
Telehealth Response for E-prescribing Addiction Therapy Services Act or the TREATS Act This bill permanently allows health care practitioners to prescribe certain controlled substances for treating substance use disorders via telehealth without evaluating the patient in person. Generally, a health care practitioner may not prescribe a controlled substance via telehealth unless they first conduct an in-person medical evaluation. Federal regulations currently provide a temporary exception to this requirement, allowing practitioners to prescribe schedule II-V controlled substances for legitimate medical purposes (such as treating substance use disorders) via telehealth without an in-person evaluation. However, this temporary regulatory flexibility expires on December 31, 2025. The bill permanently allows practitioners to prescribe schedule III-V controlled substances for the treatment of a substance use disorder via telehealth without conducting an in-person evaluation. In such instances, a practitioner may conduct a telehealth evaluation using audio-only or audio and video equipment.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2025
Protecting Mushroom Farmers Act This bill requires the federal crop insurance program (FCIP) to provide for the research and development of a policy to insure the production of mushrooms and mushroom-growing media. (The term policy means an insurance policy, plan of insurance, provision of a policy or plan of insurance, and related materials.) The Federal Crop Insurance Corporation, the agency that finances FCIP operations, must make any resulting policy available that meets specified FCIP requirements. As part of the research and development, the bill requires an evaluation of the effectiveness of insurance for the production of mushrooms, including policies that (1) are based on the risk of specific pests and pathogens, (2) consider appropriate best practices to minimize the risk of loss, and (3) consider whether to provide coverage for mushrooms under one policy or to provide coverage for various phases of production.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2025
Farmland Security Act of 2025 This bill authorizes increased civil penalties for violations of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978 (AFIDA) and increases Department of Agriculture (USDA) oversight of and research into foreign investment in agricultural land. As background, AFIDA and the regulations that implemented the act require foreign investors who acquire, transfer, or hold an interest in U.S. agricultural land to report such holdings and transactions to USDA. In general, the bill allows USDA to determine an appropriate civil penalty amount for an AFIDA violation by removing the cap that currently prohibits the civil penalty from exceeding 25% of the fair market value of the interest in the agricultural land associated with the violation. Under an exception in the bill, the civil penalty for a foreign-owned shell corporation is 100% of the fair market value of the interest in the agricultural land. The bill defines a shell corporation to include a company, association, firm, partnership, society, joint stock company, trust, or estate that has no or nominal operations. The penalty does not apply if the shell corporation remedies a defective filing or failure to file within 60 days of USDA providing notice. USDA must conduct annual compliance audits of at least 10% of the reports. Further, USDA must provide state and county-level personnel certain annual training. USDA must also annually conduct research and submit a report to Congress on foreign investment in agricultural land, including trends in the purchase of U.S. agricultural land by foreign-owned shell corporations.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2025
Promoting Access to Diabetic Shoes Act This bill allows a nurse practitioner or physician assistant to fulfill documentation requirements for coverage, under Medicare, of special shoes for diabetic individuals. Under current law, such requirements may be satisfied only by a physician.
United States · United States Congress · 26 February 2025
American Dream and Promise Act of 2025 This bill provides certain non-U.S. nationals ( aliens under federal law) with a path to receive permanent resident status and contains other immigration-related provisions. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) or the Department of Justice (DOJ) shall provide conditional permanent resident status for 10 years to a qualifying individual who entered the United States as a minor and (1) is deportable or inadmissible, (2) has deferred enforced departure (DED) status or temporary protected status (TPS), or (3) is the child of certain classes of nonimmigrants. The bill imposes various qualifying requirements, such as the individual being continuously physically present in the United States since January 1, 2021, passing a background check, and being enrolled in or having completed certain educational programs. DHS shall remove the conditions placed on permanent resident status granted under this bill if the individual applies and meets certain requirements, such as completing certain programs at an educational institution, serving in the military, or being employed. Furthermore, DHS or DOJ shall provide lawful permanent resident status to certain individuals who had TPS, were eligible for TPS, or were eligible for DED status on certain dates. Such individuals must meet certain requirements and apply for such status within three years of this bill's enactment. This bill also repeals a restriction that bars a state from providing higher education benefits to undocumented individuals unless those benefits are available to all U.S. nationals without regard to residency in the state.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2025
Voluntary Public Access Improvement Act of 2025 This bill reauthorizes through FY2029 and increases funding for the Voluntary Public Access and Habitat Incentive Program (VPA-HIP). This Natural Resources Conservation Service program provides state and tribal governments competitive grants to encourage owners and operators of privately-held land (i.e., farm, ranch, and forest land) to allow public access for hunting, fishing, and other wildlife-dependent recreation. The bill also reauthorizes through FY2029 VPA-HIP funding to encourage public access to land covered by wetland reserve easements through agreements with states and tribal governments.
United States · United States Congress · 25 February 2025
Veterans Claims Education Act of 2025 This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to, upon receipt of an initial claim for benefits from a claimant that is not represented by an accredited person (i.e., a veterans service organization, attorney, or agent recognized by the VA), provide (1) notice that an accredited person may assist the claimant, (2) notice that a veterans service organization may represent the claimant for free, (3) information regarding a search tool to find an accredited person to assist in the filing of claims, and (4) information on how and where to report a person who is not accredited and charged a fee to assist with a claim. In its web portal, the VA must provide a warning regarding fees an agent or attorney may charge for assistance in filing benefits claims. (Under current law, fees are generally prohibited for filing an initial claim.)
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
Falun Gong Protection Act This bill requires the President to impose visa- and property-blocking sanctions on foreign persons that have knowingly and directly engaged in or facilitated the involuntary harvesting of organs in China. Sanctions may not be imposed on the importation of goods or with respect to specified transactions related to humanitarian assistance. The authority to impose sanctions under this bill expires five years after enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
Delivering for Rural Seniors Act of 2025 This bill directs the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to award competitive grants to state agencies under a home delivery pilot program for participants in the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP). As background, the CSFP works to improve the health of low-income persons at least 60 years of age by supplementing their diets with nutritious Department of Agriculture foods. Under the pilot program, a state agency must distribute grant funds to an eligible entity (i.e., a local agency or subdistributing agency) to operate projects that facilitate home delivery of commodities to CSFP participants. Grant funds may be used for costs associated with transportation and distribution of commodities to CSFP participants, staffing required to operate home delivery services, and home delivery outreach to CSFP participants or potential participants. A state agency must prioritize eligible entities that serve CSFP participants who reside in rural areas. A state agency must also submit an annual report to FNS about the project, including best practices regarding the use of home delivery to improve the effectiveness of the CSFP.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
New Era of Preventing End-Stage Kidney Disease Act This bill establishes regional centers of excellence, postgraduate fellowships, and training for health professionals relating to the diagnosis and treatment of rare kidney disease. It also requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to conduct various studies on rare kidney disease. Specifically, it authorizes the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to award funding to public and private nonprofit entities for establishing regional centers of excellence that will increase public awareness, conduct research, and develop resources for diagnosing and treating rare kidney diseases. A center may receive such funding for up to five years, unless extended by the institute. The bill also requires health professions schools receiving a grant from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Centers of Excellence program to award fellowships for training on preventing, diagnosing, and treating rare kidney disease in disproportionately impacted populations. Also, the bill expands the priorities of HRSA’s Primary Care Training and Enhancement program to include training for health care workers to care for individuals with kidney disease. Additionally, HHS must conduct several studies and report to Congress on topics such as treating rare kidney disease in disproportionately affected populations, eliminating the need for dialysis or kidney transplants, and increasing public awareness of rare kidney disease.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
Prevent Interruptions in Physical Therapy Act of 2025 This bill allows a physical therapist to receive payment under Medicare for services provided to the physical therapist's patients by another physical therapist through a qualifying temporary arrangement, regardless of the geographic area or population served. Currently, physical therapists may only receive payment with respect to such arrangements for services provided in medically underserved, rural, or health professional shortage areas.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
Charlotte Woodward Organ Transplant Discrimination Prevention Act This bill expressly prohibits health care providers and other entities involved in matching donated organs with recipients from denying or restricting an individual's access to organ transplants solely on the basis of the individual's disability, except in limited circumstances. Specifically, these entities may consider an individual's disability when making decisions about transplants only if a physician finds, based on an individualized evaluation, that the individual's physical or mental disability is medically significant to the provision of the transplant. A disability shall not be considered medically significant if the individual has an adequate support system in place to comply with transplant-related medical requirements. These entities must also make reasonable changes to their policies to make transplants and related care more available to individuals with disabilities. Aggrieved individuals may bring claims of discrimination to the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human Services. The bill provides for expedited resolutions of these claims. In addition, the board of directors of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network may not issue policies that prohibit or hinder access to an organ transplant based solely on the individual's disability. This network is a public-private partnership linking professionals involved in the U.S. organ donation and transplantation system.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
Pay Our Coast Guard Parity Act of 2025 This bill provides continuing appropriations to the Coast Guard for pay and benefits when there is a Coast Guard-specific funding lapse. Under the bill, a Coast Guard-specific funding lapse occurs when (1) a bill providing appropriations for the Coast Guard for a fiscal year has not been enacted before the beginning of that fiscal year, and no joint resolution providing continuing appropriations for the Coast Guard is in effect; and (2) a bill providing appropriations for the Department of Defense (DOD) for the fiscal year has been enacted before the beginning of the fiscal year, or a joint resolution providing continuing appropriation for DOD is in effect. If a Coast Guard-specific funding lapse occurs, the bill provides appropriations to the Coast Guard for pay and allowances for military members of the Coast Guard who perform active service or inactive-duty training; pay and benefits for certain civilian employees and contract employees; the payment of a death gratuity; payments for travel related to funerals, the dignified transfer of remains, and unit memorial services; and the temporary continuation of the basic allowance for housing for dependents of members of the Coast Guard dying on active duty. The bill generally provides the appropriations to the Coast Guard until the earlier of the enactment of specified Coast Guard appropriations legislation, the termination of the availability of appropriations for DOD, or two weeks after the beginning of the Coast Guard-specific funding lapse.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
Scientific External Process for Educated Review of Therapeutics Act of 2025 or the Scientific EXPERT Act of 2025 This bill requires the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to facilitate and participate in externally led, science-focused drug development meetings to discuss the development of treatments for rare diseases and conditions. The FDA must enter into an arrangement with the Reagan-Udall Foundation for the FDA under which the foundation agrees to convene such meetings. Meetings must be held at least four times a year, and each meeting must focus on a different rare disease or condition. The foundation must establish a permanent steering committee to review and recommend topics for each meeting. In evaluating potential topics, the committee must consider unmet therapeutic needs, patient population sizes for different diseases and conditions, and whether a disease or condition would benefit from clarity and alignment on drug development questions, among other factors. In planning each meeting, the foundation must develop a list of medical experts, drug sponsors, scientific organizations, patient organizations, and other entities to be invited to participate. Representatives of the FDA’s review divisions must attend each meeting. After each meeting, the foundation must make available a summary of the meeting noting areas of consensus, areas where additional clarification or information is needed, and next steps agreed upon with the FDA. The bill also requires the FDA to indicate whether it incorporated any input from these meetings when approving a new drug or biologic.
United States · United States Congress · 24 February 2025
Alyssa's Legacy Youth in Schools Safety Alert Act or the ALYSSA Act This bill requires each local educational agency (LEA), as a condition of receiving federal elementary and secondary education funds, to ensure that each elementary and secondary school served by the LEA is equipped with at least one silent panic alarm for use in a school security emergency.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2025
More Options to Develop and Enhance Remote Nutrition in WIC Act of 2025 or the MODERN WIC Act of 2025 This bill permanently allows individuals to remotely certify their eligibility for, and receive benefits through, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Specifically, the bill requires that a state agency allow an individual seeking a WIC certification, recertification, or a nutritional risk evaluation to do so by phone or through video teleconference, in addition to the in-person option. A state agency has 90 days to collect data for a nutritional risk evaluation for a remotely certified individual. Further, a state agency may consider an applicant who meets the income eligibility standards to be temporarily eligible on an interim basis to participate in the program and may certify the individual for immediate participation without waiting for a nutritional risk evaluation. The bill also allows states to provide benefits on WIC electronic benefit transfer cards through mail or remote issuance instead of requiring participants to pick up or reload benefits in person at a WIC office. Further, the Department of Agriculture must report to Congress about the use of remote technologies and other digital tools in the WIC program. Currently, individuals are generally required to be physically present to certify their WIC eligibility and receive benefits, with exceptions. The Food and Nutrition Service has temporarily waived these requirements and allowed remote certification and benefits using authorities that were provided by laws that were enacted to address COVID-19.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2025
Animal Cruelty Enforcement Act of 2025 This bill establishes a new section in the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice to enforce federal laws concerning animal cruelty.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2025
This bill lengthens the amount of time for which drug products must have market approval in order for the products to qualify for negotiation under the Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program. The Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Program requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to negotiate the prices of certain prescription drugs under Medicare beginning in 2026. Among other requirements, drugs must have had market approval for at least 7 years (for drug products) or 11 years (for biologics) to qualify for negotiation. The bill modifies these provisions so as to require drug products to also have had at least 11 years of market approval in order to qualify for negotiation. The bill's changes apply retroactively.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2025
This bill designates the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 521 Thorn Street in Sewickley, Pennsylvania, as the "Mary Elizabeth 'Bettie' Cole Post Office Building".
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2025
Due Process Continuity of Care Act This bill allows an otherwise eligible individual who is in custody pending disposition of charges (i.e., pretrial detainees) to receive Medicaid benefits at the option of the state. The bill also provides for state planning grants to support the provision of such benefits.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2025
Accelerating Kids’ Access to Care Act of 2025 This bill requires states to establish a process through which qualifying out-of-state providers may temporarily treat children under Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) without undergoing additional screening requirements. Specifically, states must establish a process through which qualifying out-of-state providers may enroll for five years as participating providers to treat individuals under the age of 21 without undergoing additional screening requirements. A qualifying out-of-state provider (1) must not have been excluded or terminated from participating in a federal health care program or state Medicaid program; and (2) must have been successfully enrolled in Medicare or a state Medicaid program based on a determination that the provider posed a limited risk of fraud, waste, or abuse. The bill’s changes take effect three years after enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 21 February 2025
Air Traffic Noise and Pollution Expert Consensus Act of 2025 This bill requires the Federal Aviation Administration to enter into an arrangement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to examine and report on the various health impacts of air traffic noise and pollution.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2025
Discriminatory Gaming Tax Repeal Act of 2025 This bill repeals the excise tax imposed on wagers (also known as the handle tax) and the occupational tax imposed on businesses receiving taxable wagers. As background, an excise tax on wagers is imposed on businesses that accept wagers, persons conducting a wagering pool or lottery, and certain persons accepting wagers on behalf of another person. Under current law, the amount of the excise tax is (1) 0.25% of the amount wagered (also known as the handle) for wagers authorized by the state, or (2) 2% of the amount wagered for wagers not authorized by the state. (Some exceptions apply.) Further, under current law, an annual occupational tax is imposed in the amount of (1) $50 for persons in the business of accepting taxable wagers (or persons accepting taxable wagers on such persons’ behalf) in a state where the wagers are authorized, or (2) $500 for such persons in states where the wagers are not authorized. (Some exceptions apply.)
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2025
Kids' Access to Primary Care Act of 2025 This bill modifies payments for Medicaid primary care services. Specifically, the bill applies a Medicare payment rate floor to Medicaid primary care services that are provided after the date of enactment of the bill and extends the payment rate to additional types of practitioners (e.g., obstetricians). The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must conduct a study on the number of children enrolled in Medicaid, the number of providers receiving payment for primary care services, and associated payment rates before and after the bill's implementation.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2025
Poverty Line Act of 2025 This bill revises the methodology used to calculate the federal poverty guidelines. The federal poverty guidelines are used to determine eligibility for many federal and state public assistance programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the National School Lunch Program. The poverty guidelines are currently calculated by adjusting the Census Bureau’s poverty thresholds to account for changes in the Consumer Price Index. The bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to calculate regional poverty guidelines based on a combination of factors including average household expenditures on food, clothing, utilities, and transportation; the average cost of rental housing; and the average cost of health insurance. These factors must be calculated using regional data as applicable. HHS must make available to the public a tool for determining the poverty guideline applicable to a given household. The new regional poverty guidelines established by HHS may not be lower than existing, corresponding poverty guidelines as of the date of enactment of the bill. HHS must review and evaluate the poverty guidelines at least every four years and propose changes to this methodology as appropriate. The bill takes effect three years after its enactment.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2025
Enhanced Iran Sanctions Act of 2025 This bill imposes sanctions on certain foreign persons (individuals and entities) that are involved in Iran's petroleum sector as well as certain associated persons. The bill also requires or authorizes actions to facilitate the enforcement of sanctions on Iran. Specifically, the bill requires the President to impose visa- and property-blocking sanctions on any foreign person that, after the bill's enactment, knowingly engages in any transaction related to the processing, export, or sale of oil, condensates, gas, liquefied natural gas, or other petrochemical products in whole or in part from Iran. The President must also impose sanctions on certain foreign persons associated with a sanctioned individual or entity. For example, the President must sanction the subsidiaries and corporate officers of a sanctioned business. The bill provides certain exceptions to these sanctions, including specifying that sanctions do not apply to the importation of goods or to conducting or facilitating transactions for humanitarian assistance. The Department of State must establish an interagency working group that shall seek to establish a multilateral contact group to coordinate international efforts to enforce sanctions on Iran. The bill expands the State Department rewards program to authorize a reward payment to any individual who furnishes information leading to the identification of a person (1) subject to sanctions under this bill, or (2) that has attempted or is attempting to evade sanctions under this bill.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2025
Guard and Reserve GI Bill Parity Act of 2025 This bill expands eligibility for Post-9/11 educational assistance for members of the reserve components of the Armed Forces and members of the National Guard. Specifically, the bill expands the types of activities that count towards Post-9/11 GI Bill eligibility to include active duty, inactive-duty training, annual training duty, and full-time National Guard duty or active duty. (Generally, under current law, only federal active duty counts towards educational assistance eligibility.)
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2025
Cameron's Law This bill increases the orphan drug tax credit to 50% (from 25%) of qualified clinical testing expenses paid or incurred in the development of drugs to treat certain rare diseases or conditions. As background, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act reduced the orphan drug tax credit (for tax years after 2017) to 25% of qualified clinical testing expenses (e.g., wages, supplies, and certain contract expenses) paid or incurred in the development of drugs to treat certain rare diseases or conditions. For 2017 and prior tax years, the orphan tax credit was 50% of such expenses paid or incurred.
United States · United States Congress · 18 February 2025
9/11 Responder and Survivor Health Funding Correction Act of 2025 This bill modifies the World Trade Center Health Program (WTCHP), including by updating the formula for determining the program’s annual funding amounts and authorizing mental health providers to provide certain evaluations under the program. The WTCHP is a federal health care program (terminating in FY2090) providing responders and survivors with monitoring and treatment of certified medical conditions related to the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001. Under current law, the program’s annual federal funding is determined based on the amount specifically appropriated in the previous fiscal year, adjusted for inflation. The bill establishes a new federal funding formula for FY2026-FY2090 that is generally based on annual changes in the number of enrollees. The bill also increases the amounts the program may spend annually on medical research and activities relating to data collection. The bill requires the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), which administers the program, to submit a report to Congress on the program’s projected budgetary needs and expenditures. In addition, the bill authorizes licensed mental health providers to perform initial health evaluations with respect to mental health conditions for purposes of determining eligibility under the WTCHP. NIOSH must issue regulations specifying the categories of mental health providers that may perform these activities.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2025
Honor and Remember Flag Recognition Act This bill designates the Honor and Remember Flag, created by Honor and Remember, Inc., as a national symbol to honor service members who died in the line of duty and specifies federal locations and dates for its display.
United States · United States Congress · 14 February 2025
Healthy Poultry Assistance and Indemnification Act of 2025 This bill expands the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) producer indemnity and compensation program to include compensation for all poultry growers and layers located in an APHIS-determined control area, which may include non-infected poultry. Currently, APHIS provides indemnity and compensation to producers to remove animals classified as affected, suspect, or exposed to diseases of concern, including highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). An APHIS-determined control area consists of both an infected zone and a buffer zone. Under the bill, APHIS must compensate all owners of poultry growing or laying facilities for flocks of birds that the facility owner was prohibited from growing or laying due to the location of the facility within a control area. This may include facilities that are located in the buffer zones and have non-infected poultry. Further, the bill establishes a new compensation payment formula that requires payments to be based on the owner’s average income from the five most recent flocks. Under the bill, APHIS's compensation determination is final and not subject to judicial or administrative review (other than by the Secretary of Agriculture or a designee).
![Official portrait of Rep. Fitzpatrick, Brian K. [R-PA-1]](https://www.congress.gov/img/member/116_rp_pa_1_fitzpatrick_brian_200.jpg)