COVID–19 Bias and Anti-Racism Training Act of 2020

COVID-19 Bias and Anti-Racism Training Act of 2020

This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants to health care providers, public health departments, tribal organizations, schools for social workers and health professionals, and other nonprofit entities for bias and anti-racism training to reduce disparities in COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) response efforts.

In administering these grants, HHS must give priority to, among others, recipients in communities with racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations, and death rates. In addition, HHS must develop requirements for bias and anti-racism training that aligns with continuing education requirements of applicable state licensing bodies, such as medical boards.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4248 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4248

To establish a grant program to provide funds for health care entities 
 to establish or improve bias and anti-racism training to help reduce 
 racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 testing, treatment, health 
                     outcomes, and vaccine access.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 21, 2020

  Ms. Harris (for herself, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Wyden, Mr. Booker, Mr. 
Durbin, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Brown, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Markey, Mr. Bennet, Ms. 
Duckworth, Mr. Coons, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Sanders, and Mr. Van Hollen) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
          Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To establish a grant program to provide funds for health care entities 
 to establish or improve bias and anti-racism training to help reduce 
 racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 testing, treatment, health 
                     outcomes, and vaccine access.

    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 ``COVID-19 Bias and Anti-Racism 
Training Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. BIAS AND ANTI-RACISM TRAINING GRANT PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services 
(referred to in this section as the ``Secretary'') shall award grants 
to hospitals; community health centers; other health care providers; 
State, local, territorial, and Tribal public health departments; Tribal 
organizations (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination 
and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304)); urban Indian 
organizations (as defined in section 4 of the Indian Health Care 
Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1603)); medical, nursing, social work, and 
other health professional schools; and other appropriate public or 
private nonprofit entities (or consortia of entities), for the purpose 
of supporting bias and anti-racism training to reduce racial and ethnic 
disparities in COVID-19 testing, treatment, health outcomes, and 
vaccine access.
    (b) Use of Funds.--A recipient of a grant under subsection (a) may 
use such grant funds to establish a bias and anti-racism training 
program, or improve or expand an existing such program, in accordance 
with the requirements of subsection (c), for individuals who--
            (1) provide health care services to COVID-19 patients and 
        potential COVID-19 patients, as a physician or other health 
        care professional, or as a medical or other health care 
        professional student; or
            (2) participate in other COVID-19 response efforts, such as 
        contact tracing.
    (c) Training Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall develop requirements 
        for bias and anti-racism training programs for purposes of such 
        training carried out with grant funds awarded under this 
        section. Such training shall be--
                    (A) evidence-based, community-informed, patient-
                centered, and ongoing;
                    (B) designed to be culturally competent and 
                accessible, including with respect to race, ethnicity, 
                national origin, language, religion, sex (including 
                sexual orientation and gender identity), disability, 
                and age; and
                    (C) designed to allow applicable State licensing 
                bodies to provide continuing education credit for 
                completion of such training.
            (2) Collaboration.--In developing the requirements 
        described in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall collaborate 
        with relevant stakeholders that specialize in addressing health 
        equity, including--
                    (A) health care professionals, including mental 
                health professionals, and including professionals with 
                expertise in addressing racial and ethnic disparities;
                    (B) policy experts, including experts specializing 
                in addressing bias and racism within the health care 
                and public health systems; and
                    (C) community-based organizations, including 
                organizations specializing in providing culturally 
                competent care or services and addressing racial and 
                ethnic disparities.
    (d) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary 
shall give priority to eligible entities described in subsection (a) 
that serve--
            (1) communities in which racial and ethnic disparities in 
        COVID-19 infection, hospitalization, intensive care unit 
        admissions, and death rates are out of proportion to the 
        community's population, by a threshold determined by the 
        Secretary based on available public health data;
            (2) communities with disproportionately high COVID-19 
        infection, hospitalization, intensive care unit admissions, and 
        death rates; or
            (3) communities with high social vulnerabilities to COVID-
        19, which may include such vulnerabilities on account of 
        housing, nutrition, education, economic, or environmental 
        factors.
    (e) Report on Grant Impact and Dissemination of Best Practices.--
Not later than 1 year after the date on which the last of the grant 
periods awarded under this section ends, the Secretary shall--
            (1) submit a report to Congress that describes--
                    (A) the impact of the grants awarded under this 
                section on reducing racial and ethnic disparities in 
                COVID-19 outcomes;
                    (B) best practices used by recipients of grants 
                under this section; and
                    (C) obstacles faced by recipients of grants under 
                this section in reducing racial and ethnic disparities 
                in COVID-19 outcomes; and
            (2) disseminate information on best practices used by 
        recipients of grants under this section to interested parties, 
        including health care providers; medical and other health 
        professional schools; relevant State, local, territorial, and 
        Tribal agencies; and the general public.
    (f) Authorization of Appropriations.--For purposes of carrying out 
this section, there are authorized to be appropriated $100,000,000 for 
each of fiscal years 2020 and 2021.
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