CRAMER-SUPPORTED BILLS ON PALLIATIVE CARE, SUICIDE PREVENTION AND PRECISION AG ADVANCE THROUGH COMMITTEE
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Kevin Cramer is a co-sponsor of three bills considered by the House Energy and Commerce Committee today related to palliative care and hospice programs, suicide prevention and precision agriculture.
Cramer is a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and participated in today’s markup of the bills, which considered several health, environment, energy, consumer protection and communications and technology legislation. Following the markup and passage of these bills out of the committee, they will move to the House floor for consideration by the entire House of Representatives.
H.R. 1676, the Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act, establishes education centers to train health professionals and provide fellowships for students. It creates special preferences in existing nurse education law for hospices and palliative nursing and directs the National Institutes of Health to expand national research to improve the delivery of palliative care to patients with serious illnesses. It also establishes a national campaign to inform patients, families and health professionals about the services available to support patients with serious or life-threatening illnesses.
“Every family whose loved ones have receive palliative and hospice care can attest to the comfort these services provide. It is only right for this rapidly expanding field to be given increased support for education, workforce development, nurse training, enhanced research and greater awareness,” said Cramer. “I am pleased to co-sponsor H.R. 1676 to help bring these services to more people living with serious, complex and chronic illnesses, as well as their families.”
A companion bill, S. 693, has been introduced in the Senate.
H.R. 2345, the National Suicide Hotline Improvement Act of 2017, directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), in consultation with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), to study and report on the feasibility of designating an N11 dialing code to be used for a national suicide prevention and mental health crisis hotline system.
The bill requires the FCC to coordinate with SAMHSA and consult with the Department of Veterans Affairs to examine how well the national suicide prevention lifeline (1-800-273-TALK), addresses the needs of veterans.
It also requires the FCC to submit to Congress a recommended dialing code, a cost-benefit analysis comparing the three-digit code to the current lifeline number, and cost estimates for service providers, states, and localities. The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention North Dakota supports this legislation.
“Research suggests promoting access to crisis hotlines can save lives,” said Cramer. “A separate three-digit number for mental health and suicidal crises would promote public safety by reducing burdens on law enforcement and emergency services across the country.”
H.R. 4881, the Precision Agriculture Connectivity Act of 2018, requires the FCC and the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to form a task force to evaluate the best ways to meet the broadband needs of precision agriculture.
The legislation was requested by the John Deere Company, a national tractor manufacturer, seeking to better identify gaps in high-speed internet connectivity for the nation’s cropland and ranchland. Within a year, the task force would bring together public and private stakeholders to evaluate current programs affecting broadband internet access on cropland and ranchland, identify and measure existing gaps in coverage, and develop policy recommendations to address that gap. The task force is also charged with developing specific steps the FCC, USDA and other federal agencies can take to address gaps in coverage.
Cramer, a co-chair of the House Rural Broadband Caucus, said this legislation offers another opportunity to increase broadband access for rural America. “This bill will assemble a comprehensive guide of all federal programs and resources dedicated to expanding broadband access on cropland and ranchland,” he said. “It will also encourage policy recommendations to help bring fixed and mobile high-speed broadband service to 95 percent of croplands and ranchlands in the United States by 2025.”
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