Bill Summary: H.R. 7059

The bill, known as the "Abortion Care Capacity Enhancement and Support Services Act of 2024" or the "ACCESS Act of 2024", aims to amend the Public Health Service Act in order to create a grant program that will increase the capacity for providing abortion services and other sexual and reproductive health care. This would help address the challenges faced by individuals seeking abortion services, especially in states where restrictions or bans on abortion have been implemented, following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Findings:

The bill starts with a section outlining the findings of Congress:

After the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, many states implemented restrictions or bans on abortion, leading to varying access to abortion services.
As a result of these restrictions, the number of abortions decreased in some states with bans in place, while other states saw significant increases in the number of abortions.
States without abortion bans experienced an increase in out-of-state patients seeking abortion services.
Abortion providers in states where abortion is legal have witnessed an influx of out-of-state patients, leading to increased demand for services and straining the reproductive health care systems.
The challenges to access abortion disproportionately affect marginalized individuals, such as people of color, low-income individuals, LGBTQ+ individuals, and youth.
Over 15 million reproductive-age women of color live in states that have banned or are likely to ban abortion, and women of color, low-income women, young women, and those living in rural communities face significant barriers in accessing abortion services.
Investments are needed to improve capacity and provide comprehensive and high-quality abortion services and other sexual and reproductive health care.

Grant Program to Increase Capacity:

The bill establishes a grant program to increase capacity for providing abortion services and other sexual and reproductive health care.

To be eligible for a grant under this program, an entity must be a hospital, clinic, health care facility, university, nonprofit organization, community-based organization, local governmental entity, or Tribal government that provides or refers for abortion services.
The grant program will prioritize eligible entities in states that have experienced high numbers of out-of-state patients seeking abortion services and other sexual and reproductive health care.
Grants can be used for various purposes including expanding facilities, purchasing medical supplies and equipment, administering telehealth services, hiring staff, training programs, creating educational materials, and providing interpretation and translation services.
An eligible entity must submit an application to the Secretary of Health and Human Services, including a plan for increasing capacity.
No entity can be excluded from participation in the program based on factors unrelated to their qualifications to carry out the program.
The bill authorizes a total of $200,000,000 in appropriations for each fiscal year from 2024 through 2028 to support this grant program.

Rep. Robert Garcia

Stats

Sponsored Legislation