Prescribe A Book Act - Creates a Pediatric Early Literacy program under which the Secretary of Education awards matching grants to nonprofit organizations for the implementation of three-part models through which: (1) health care providers encourage parents to read aloud to their children and offer them recommendations and strategies for doing so; (2) health care providers give each visiting child between the ages of six months and five-years a new, developmentally appropriate children's book to take home and keep; and (3) volunteers reading to children in health care facility waiting areas show parents the techniques and pleasures of reading aloud to children.
Requires that the books provided to children under the program be obtained at a discount.
[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[H.R. 1526 Introduced in House (IH)]
111th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1526
To aid and support pediatric involvement in reading and education.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 16, 2009
Mr. Payne introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Education and Labor
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To aid and support pediatric involvement in reading and education.
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 ``Prescribe A Book Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' means a
nonprofit organization that has, as determined by the
Secretary, demonstrated effectiveness in the following areas:
(A) Providing peer-to-peer training to healthcare
providers in research-based methods of literacy
promotion as part of routine pediatric health
supervision visits.
(B) Delivering a training curriculum through a
variety of medical education settings, including
residency training, continuing medical education, and
national pediatric conferences.
(C) Providing technical assistance to local
healthcare facilities to effectively implement a high-
quality Pediatric Early Literacy Program.
(D) Offering opportunities for local healthcare
facilities to obtain books at significant discounts, as
described in section 7.
(E) Integrating the latest developmental and
educational research into the training curriculum for
healthcare providers described in subparagraph (B).
(2) Pediatric early literacy program.--The term ``Pediatric
Early Literacy Program'' means a program that--
(A) creates and implements a 3-part model through
which--
(i) healthcare providers, doctors, and
nurses, trained in research-based methods of
early language and literacy promotion,
encourage parents to read aloud to their young
children, and offer developmentally appropriate
recommendations and strategies to parents for
the purpose of reading aloud to their children;
(ii) healthcare providers, at health
supervision visits, provide each child between
the ages of 6 months and 5 years a new,
developmentally appropriate children's book to
take home and keep; and
(iii) volunteers in waiting areas of
healthcare facilities read aloud to children,
modeling for parents the techniques and
pleasures of sharing books together;
(B) demonstrates, through research published in
peer-reviewed journals, effectiveness in positively
altering parent behavior regarding reading aloud to
children, and improving expressive and receptive
language in young children; and
(C) receives the endorsement of nationally
recognized medical associations and academies.
(3) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Education.
SEC. 3. PROGRAM AUTHORIZED.
The Secretary is authorized to award grants to eligible entities
under this Act to enable the eligible entities to implement Pediatric
Early Literacy Programs.
SEC. 4. APPLICATION.
An eligible entity that desires to receive a grant under this Act
shall submit an application to the Secretary at such time, in such
manner, and including such information as the Secretary may reasonably
require.
SEC. 5. MATCHING REQUIREMENT.
An eligible entity receiving a grant under this Act shall provide
either directly or through private contributions, in cash or in-kind,
non-Federal matching funds equal to not less than 50 percent of the
grant received by the eligible entity under this Act.
SEC. 6. USE OF GRANT FUNDS.
(a) In General.--An eligible entity receiving a grant under this
Act shall--
(1) enter into contracts with private nonprofit
organizations, or with public agencies, selected based on the
criteria described in subsection (b), under which each
contractor will agree to establish and operate a Pediatric
Early Literacy Program;
(2) provide such training and technical assistance to each
contractor of the eligible entity as may be necessary to carry
out this Act; and
(3) include such other terms and conditions in an agreement
with a contractor as the Secretary determines to be appropriate
to ensure the effectiveness of such programs.
(b) Contractor Criteria.--Contractors shall be selected under
subsection (a)(1) on the basis of the extent to which the contractors
give priority to serving a substantial number or percentage of at-risk
children, including--
(1) low-income children (defined in this section as
children from families with incomes below 200 percent of the
poverty line), particularly low-income children in high-poverty
areas;
(2) children without adequate medical insurance;
(3) children enrolled in a State Medicaid program,
established under title XIX of the Social Security Act (42
U.S.C. 1396 et seq.) or in the State Children's Health
Insurance Program established under title XXI of such Act (42
U.S.C. 1397aa et seq.);
(4) children living in rural areas;
(5) migrant children; and
(6) children with limited access to libraries.
SEC. 7. RESTRICTION ON PAYMENTS.
The Secretary shall make no payment to eligible entities under this
Act unless the Secretary determines that the eligible entity or a
contractor of the eligible entity, as the case may be, has made
arrangements with book publishers or distributors to obtain books at
discounts that are at least as favorable as discounts that are
customarily given by such publisher or distributor for book purchases
made under similar circumstances in the absence of Federal assistance.
SEC. 8. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.
An eligible entity receiving a grant under this Act shall report
annually to the Secretary on the effectiveness of the program
implemented by the eligible entity and the programs instituted by each
contractor of the eligible entity, and shall include in the report a
description of each program.
SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act--
(1) $15,000,000 for fiscal year 2010;
(2) $16,000,000 for fiscal year 2011;
(3) $17,000,000 for fiscal year 2012;
(4) $18,000,000 for fiscal year 2013; and
(5) $19,000,000 for fiscal year 2014.
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Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Education and Labor.
Referred to the Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education.
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