[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5487 Referred in Senate (RFS)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5487
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 9, 2021
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To improve research and data collection on stillbirths, 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 ``Stillbirth Health Improvement and
Education for Autumn Act of 2021'' or the ``SHINE for Autumn Act of
2021''.
SEC. 2. STILLBIRTH RESEARCH AND DATA COLLECTION IMPROVEMENTS.
Title III of the Public Health Service Act is amended by inserting
after section 317L-1 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 247b-13a) the following:
``SEC. 317L-2. STILLBIRTH RESEARCH AND DATA COLLECTION IMPROVEMENTS.
``(a) Stillbirth Surveillance and Risk Factor Studies.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary may award grants to States
for purposes of--
``(A) conducting surveillance and collecting data
with respect to stillbirths;
``(B) building State and local public health
capacity to assess stillbirth data; and
``(C) collecting and reporting data on stillbirth
risk factors, including any quantifiable outcomes with
respect to such risk factors.
``(2) Authorization of appropriations.--To carry out this
subsection, there is authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000
for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.
``(b) Guidelines and Educational Awareness Materials.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall--
``(A) issue guidelines to State departments of
health and State and local vital statistics units on--
``(i) collecting data on stillbirth from
health care providers, and with the consent of
the family involved, including any such data
with respect to the clinical history,
postmortem examination, and placental
pathology;
``(ii) sharing such data with Federal
agencies determined appropriate by the Director
of the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention; and
``(iii) improving processes and training
related to stillbirth data collection and
reporting to ensure standardization and
completeness of data; and
``(B) develop, and make publicly available,
educational awareness materials on stillbirths.
``(2) Consultation.--In carrying out paragraph (1), the
Secretary may consult with--
``(A) national health care professional
associations;
``(B) national associations representing State and
local public health officials;
``(C) organizations that assist families with
burial support and bereavement services;
``(D) nurses and nurse practitioners;
``(E) obstetricians and gynecologists;
``(F) pediatricians;
``(G) maternal-fetal medicine specialists;
``(H) midwives;
``(I) mental health professionals;
``(J) statisticians;
``(K) individuals who have experienced a
stillbirth; and
``(L) advocacy organizations representing such
individuals.
``(3) Authorization of appropriations.--To carry out this
subsection, there is authorized to be appropriated $1,000,000
for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.
``(c) Vital Statistics Unit Defined.--In this section, the term
`vital statistics unit' means the entity that is responsible for
maintaining vital records for a State, or a political subdivision of
such State, including official records of live births, deaths, fetal
deaths, marriages, divorces, and annulments.''.
SEC. 3. PERINATAL PATHOLOGY FELLOWSHIPS.
The Public Health Service Act is amended by inserting after section
1122 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 300c-12) the following:
``SEC. 1123. IMPROVING PERINATAL PATHOLOGY.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish and implement, or
incorporate into an existing training program, a Perinatal Pathology
Fellowship Program or a Postdoctoral Research Fellowship on Factors
Associated with Stillbirth Program to--
``(1) provide training in perinatal autopsy pathology;
``(2) conduct research on, and improve data collection
through fetal autopsies with respect to, stillbirth; and
``(3) address challenges in stillbirth education, research,
and data collection.
``(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $3,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2022 through 2026.''.
SEC. 4. REPORTS.
(a) Educational Guidelines Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than five years after the date
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall publish on a public website of the Department of
Health and Human Services a report with educational guidelines
on stillbirth and stillbirth risk factors.
(2) Contents.--Such report shall include, to the extent
practicable and appropriate, the guidelines issued and
educational awareness materials developed under section 317L-2
of the Public Health Service Act, as added by section 2 of this
Act.
(b) Progress Report.--Not later than five years after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall
submit to the Congress a comprehensive report on the progress and
effectiveness of the Perinatal Pathology Fellowship Program established
under section 1123 of the Public Health Service Act, as added by
section 3 of this Act.
Passed the House of Representatives December 8, 2021.
Attest:
CHERYL L. JOHNSON,
Clerk.