State Offices of Women’s Health Support and Expansion Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9842 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9842

To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants to establish
 and maintain State offices of women's health, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             July 22, 2026

   Mr. Carter of Louisiana introduced the following bill; which was
            referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize grants to establish
 and maintain State offices of women's health, and for other purposes.

    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 ``State Offices of Women's Health
Support and Expansion Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANT PROGRAM FOR ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF STATE
              OFFICES OF WOMEN'S HEALTH.

    The Public Health Service Act is amended by inserting after section
229 (42 U.S.C. 237a) the following:

``SEC. 229A. GRANT PROGRAM FOR ESTABLISHMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF STATE
              OFFICES OF WOMEN'S HEALTH.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary, acting through the Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Women's Health, shall award a grant to each
eligible State for the establishment and maintenance of a State office
of women's health.
    ``(b) Eligibility.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this
section, the State shall submit to the Secretary an application in such
form, in such manner, and containing such information and assurances as
the Secretary considers appropriate.
    ``(c) Allowable Uses of Funds.--A State receiving a grant under
this section shall use the grant to carry out 1 or more of the
following activities:
            ``(1) To establish a State office of women's heath under
        the department of health of such State, or to maintain an
        existing State office of women's health.
            ``(2) To educate the public about women's health by taking
        the following actions:
                    ``(A) Establishing appropriate forums, programs, or
                public education initiatives regarding women's health,
                with an emphasis on preventive health, early detection,
                chronic disease management, reproductive health,
                maternal health, and health promotion across the
                lifespan.
                    ``(B) Identifying, coordinating, and establishing
                priorities for programs, services, and resources for
                women's health issues and concerns with an emphasis on
                preventive health, early detection, chronic disease
                management, reproductive health, maternal health, and
                health promotion across the lifespan.
                    ``(C) Serving as a publicly accessible, centralized
                clearinghouse and a resource for women's health data,
                evidence-based best practices, available services, and
                strategies to address disparities and address women's
                health issues.
                    ``(D) Collecting, analyzing, and disseminating
                relevant research and public health data conducted or
                compiled by State health departments, public
                institutions of higher education, federally qualified
                health centers, rural health clinics, nonprofit health
                organizations, and other public health entities, and
                providing such information to policymakers, providers,
                community-based organizations, and the public.
                    ``(E) Developing and recommending funding and
                program activities to the head of the department of
                health of the State to educate the public on women's
                health initiatives on topics including--
                            ``(i) health needs throughout a woman's
                        life;
                            ``(ii) chronic conditions that
                        significantly affect women, including heart
                        disease, cancer, and osteoporosis;
                            ``(iii) access to health care for women;
                            ``(iv) poverty and women's health;
                            ``(v) the leading causes of morbidity and
                        mortality for women;
                            ``(vi) health disparities of women;
                            ``(vii) reproductive health; and
                            ``(viii) maternal health, including
                        maternal mortality and morbidity, the leading
                        causes of maternal mortality and severe
                        maternal morbidity in the State, such as racial
                        and ethnic disparities in maternal health, and
                        increasing awareness of evidence-based
                        interventions available to reduce maternal
                        mortality and morbidity.
                    ``(F) Preparing materials for publication and
                dissemination to the public on women's health.
                    ``(G) Conducting public educational forums or
                education initiatives in the State to--
                            ``(i) raise public awareness about women's
                        health issues; and
                            ``(ii) educate the public about women's
                        health programs, issues, and services.
                    ``(H) Coordinating with other entities that focus
                on women's health or women's issues on the activities
                and programs of the office on women's health and
                prioritizing outreach and coordination in rural and
                medically underserved areas.
            ``(3) Addressing social determinants of health by
        supporting initiatives that address housing instability,
        transportation barriers, food insecurity, workforce
        participation, access to childcare, and other non-clinical
        factors impacting health outcomes.
            ``(4) Establishing and convening, not less than annually, a
        community stakeholder advisory panel that will help in
        developing all strategic priorities, funding recommendations,
        and public awareness activities under this section.
        Stakeholders shall be sought through a fair and statewide call
        that is aligned with the goals and objectives of the State
        office of women's health and reflective of residents of the
        State. The panel shall consist of--
                    ``(A) representatives from community-based
                organizations that represent the most impacted
                communities, including those serving rural women, low-
                income women, and women of color;
                    ``(B) women's health care providers, including
                obstetricians and gynecologists;
                    ``(C) representatives from federally qualified
                health centers, health centers funded under title X,
                and rural health facilities;
                    ``(D) representatives from nonprofit organizations
                with expertise related to the health of women;
                    ``(E) individuals with expertise in public health
                research and education;
                    ``(F) representatives from patient and consumer
                health advocacy organizations;
                    ``(G) State Medicaid officials;
                    ``(H) individuals from communities most impacted by
                reproductive health disparities, as determined
                appropriate by the State department of health; and
                    ``(I) representatives from relevant State-based
                medical societies with expertise in the health of
                women.
    ``(d) Prohibited Uses of Funds.--A grant under this section may not
be used, directly or indirectly (including through a subgrant), to--
            ``(1) intentionally discourage or dissuade individuals from
        seeking or obtaining reproductive health services, including--
                    ``(A) abortion, including medication abortion;
                    ``(B) contraceptive care;
                    ``(C) assisted reproductive care;
                    ``(D) hormone therapy;
                    ``(E) sex education; and
                    ``(F) testing for sexually transmitted infections;
            ``(2) withhold or misrepresent scientifically and medically
        accurate, evidence-based information regarding contraceptive
        methods, including over-the-counter contraceptives and
        prescription contraceptives (such as intrauterine devices and
        emergency contraception);
            ``(3) withhold, suppress, or misrepresent evidence-based
        clinical information regarding medication abortion, including
        the use of mifepristone and misoprostol;
            ``(4) withhold, suppress, or misrepresent medically
        accurate, evidence-based sex education information;
            ``(5) withhold, suppress, or misrepresent medically
        accurate, evidence-based public health information or
        information on women's health across the lifespan, including
        information on vaccines; or
            ``(6) restrict the ability of any person to seek or access
        any lawful health service.
    ``(e) Allocation of Funding.--Each fiscal year, the Secretary shall
allocate funding under this section by distributing--
            ``(1) 50 percent of such funding equally among all eligible
        States; and
            ``(2) 50 percent of such funding based on a formula
        accounting for female population, maternal mortality rates,
        poverty rates among women, and rural population proportion in
        each eligible State.
    ``(f) Privacy Protection.--Data collected by a State office of
women's health established pursuant to this section may not--
            ``(1) be used by, or in collaboration with, any digital
        website, application, or other platform that stores or
        processes personal data and information on servers external to
        those owned or controlled by the individuals serviced;
            ``(2) be used for any civil action, criminal prosecution,
        investigation, or other proceeding; or
            ``(3) be disclosed, sold, or shared with any digital
        website, application, or other platform in any way that
        identifies an individual or their health care provider.
    ``(g) Medicaid Data Sharing.--
            ``(1) In general.--A State department of health may, in
        coordination with the State Medicaid agency, establish a data
        sharing agreement to facilitate the exchange of high-level,
        aggregate, de-identified data for the purpose of--
                    ``(A) identifying gaps in women's health services
                covered under the State Medicaid program; and
                    ``(B) developing evidence-based proposals for
                Medicaid section 1115 demonstration waivers or State
                plan amendments that would improve women's health
                outcomes across the spectrum of care and throughout the
                lifespan.
            ``(2) Privacy protections.--Any data shared under this
        subsection shall be--
                    ``(A) de-identified in accordance with the
                standards described in section 164.514 of title 45,
                Code of Federal Regulations;
                    ``(B) aggregated at a level that prevents the
                identification of any individual; and
                    ``(C) used solely for the public health purposes
                described in this subsection.
    ``(h) Reporting.--A State receiving a grant under this section
shall require the head of each State office of women's health being
funded through the grant to annually submit to the Secretary a report--
            ``(1) describing the priorities and services needed for
        women's health in the State;
            ``(2) identifying areas in need of improvement in women's
        health in the State;
            ``(3) summarizing the public education activities,
        community forums, and outreach efforts conducted during the
        preceding fiscal year;
            ``(4) describing the activities and findings of the
        community stakeholder advisory panel established under
        subsection (c)(4), if applicable;
            ``(5) that includes aggregate, anonymized data sufficient
        to support evidence-based policymaking and agency regulatory
        actions, but does not include any personally identifiable
        information, protected health information, or data that can be
        used to identify individual patients or providers or to subject
        individuals to criminal liability; and
            ``(6) identifying measurable improvements achieved and
        remaining gaps in access and outcomes, including disaggregated
        data by race, ethnicity, income level, and geography.
    ``(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section,
there are authorized to be appropriated $55,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2027 through 2031.''.
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