September 29, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 169 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session
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SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH CENTERS REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2020; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 169
(House of Representatives - September 29, 2020)
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[Pages H5008-H5010] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH CENTERS REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2020 Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2075) to amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize school-based health centers, and for other purposes, as amended. The Clerk read the title of the bill. The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 2075 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 ``School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act of 2020''. SEC. 2. REAUTHORIZATION OF SCHOOL-BASED HEALTH CENTERS. (a) Elimination of Limitation on Eligibility of Health Centers.-- (1) Repeal.--Section 399Z-1(f)(3) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280h-5(f)(3)) is amended by striking subparagraph (B). (2) Conforming change.--Section 399Z-1(f)(3) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280h-5(f)(3)) is amended by striking [[Page H5009]] ``Limitations'' and all that follows through ``Any provider of services'' and inserting ``Limitation.--Any provider of services''. (b) Authorization of Appropriations.--Section 399Z-1(l) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 280h-5(l)) is amended by striking ``2010 through 2014'' and inserting ``2021 through 2025''. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) and the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. Walden) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey. General Leave Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2075. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from New Jersey? There was no objection. Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2075, the School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act, which reauthorizes school-based health centers. These centers serve as critical access points that provide comprehensive care to children and adolescents in their school, a location that is safe, convenient, and accessible. They provide this care through partnerships with community health providers, such as federally qualified health centers, public health departments, hospitals, schools, and other community institutions. School-based health centers serve primarily low-income and medically underserved populations of children and adolescents. These centers, Madam Speaker, are a powerful tool for achieving health equity among children and adolescents who unjustly experience disparities in health outcomes because of ethnicity, race, or family income. While many communities struggle with ways to keep students healthy, school-based health centers are more important than ever. H.R. 2075 would reauthorize school-based health centers through fiscal year 2024, ensuring continued access to these centers for the children and families who need them most. I want to thank Representatives Sarbanes, Tonko, Upton, and Stefanik for their bipartisan leadership on this legislation. I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 2075. This is the School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act of 2020. It was introduced by Representative Sarbanes, whom I know we are going to hear from in a moment; Congressman Upton, former chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee; and Representatives Stefanik and Tonko. This bill reauthorizes the School-Based Health Centers program, which supports the provision of primary care, behavioral healthcare, dental health, counseling, nutritional education, and so many other really critical health services in our schools. Madam Speaker, I remember back in my days in the State legislature supporting community-based, school-based healthcare because, oftentimes, this was the only place many of our children could get basic healthcare services. It is so essential. I know, during the pandemic, we are getting reports from our doctors and others that say this loss of access to these kinds of services is taking its toll, especially in mental health services. These health centers usually operate as a partnership between the school and a community health organization so that the services provided by the health center best meet the needs of the community and the local school district. As I said, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for basic healthcare has not gone away just because students are learning from home. School-based health centers will continue to help in keeping students healthy and ready to learn, and we should reauthorize them, as we do in this act. So I urge support of this measure, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Sarbanes). Mr. SARBANES. Madam Speaker, I want to thank Chairman Pallone for his leadership of our committee with respect to all of these bills, particularly the health bills we are talking about today, and, also, Ranking Member Walden. As you know, many of these are bipartisan. They reflect the input and work of Members over a period of years. I am very pleased that H.R. 2075, the School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act, is on the floor today. I introduced this bill with our colleagues, Representatives Stefanik, Tonko, and Upton. I want to thank them for their work and the bipartisan dimension of this effort. This would reauthorize, as was indicated, Federal support for school- based health centers through 2024. These are institutions that provide critical primary and mental health services to vulnerable children and youth. ``Institutions'' may not be the best word. Teams of professionals, I think, is how you describe these school-based health centers across the country. These health centers really marshal response to the needs of young people in schools in a way that you really can't replicate anywhere else in the community. That is why they are so vital. They offer comprehensive healthcare to youth, delivering it in a setting where they already spend, obviously, much of their time, a captive audience, in a sense. Let's take advantage of that and provide the services that they need. There are 80 school-based health centers in the State of Maryland--I am familiar with many of them, having visited a number--and over 2,500 of them nationwide that serve 6.3 million students. Many of these school-based health centers provide care to underserved communities. In fact, over a third of them are located in rural areas. What the research shows us is that, when a student has access to a school-based health center, we see a decrease in negative outcomes, such as asthma morbidity and the rate of hospital admissions, while educational outcomes, such as school performance and graduation rates, increase. Now, of course, the services that school-based health centers provide are needed more than ever, given the coronavirus pandemic. Young people are grappling with uncertainty and changes to their lives, and being able to receive care in a familiar and supportive setting is critically important. Again, I thank my colleagues for their support of this, and I urge all of the Members to support this bill. Mr. WALDEN. Madam Speaker, I call on my colleagues to support this important legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time. Mr. PALLONE. Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time. Ms. JACKSON LEE. Madam Speaker, as the Founding Chair of the Congressional Children's Caucus and a senior member of the Judiciary and Homeland Security Committees, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2075, the ``School-Based Health Centers Reauthorization Act,'' which reauthorizes school-based health centers through Fiscal Year 2024 as well as make technical changes that allow more health centers, that serve medically underserved children and adolescents, to quality for funding. First and foremost, I would like to thank Representatives Sarbanes, Tonko, Stefanik, and Upton for their leadership on this key piece of legislation. In 2014, the authorization for school-based health centers lapsed. By passing H.R. 2075, Congress would rectify this issue and help deliver primary care, including dental screenings and mental health services, to millions of American students. These health centers are a powerful tool for achieving health equity among children and adolescents who unjustly experience disparities in outcomes because of their race and family income. Improved access to school-based health centers is tied to reducing negative health outcomes, such as asthma morbidity and the rate of hospital admissions as well as increasing positive outcomes like educational outcomes, school performance, and graduation rates. Across the United States, there are over 2,500 school-based health centers and approximately one-third of them are in rural [[Page H5010]] areas, which traditionally suffer from limited access to care. The coronavirus pandemic has shed a light on the current disparities riddled throughout our health care system. As an increasing number of students go back to school, schools are on the front line in terms of managing the pandemic, and school-based health centers will be at the center of that response, making this reauthorization more essential than ever. We must utilize this opportunity to strengthen these programs with additional federal funding. I ask my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to come together and pass this important legislation. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2075, as amended. The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed. A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. ____________________
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