WELLS Act

Lisa Blunt Rochester

Democrat · DE · Senator

Source: Congress.gov · FEC

No cosponsors on record. Bills can pass without cosponsors — this often means the sponsor introduced the bill alone, either because it's a messaging bill, a chairman's mark, or simply early in the legislative cycle.

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

2026-05-11

Source: Congress.gov

Hospitals that accept Medicare payments would be required to create written discharge plans for pregnant patients before they leave the hospital, ensuring they have clear instructions for follow-up care and support after delivery. This requirement would apply to all hospitals participating in the Medicare program and aims to improve outcomes for mothers and newborns by making sure patients understand their post-hospital care needs. The bill is currently under review by the Senate Finance Committee.

AI-assisted summary generated from the official bill metadata (title, subjects, actions) sourced from Congress.gov. Cached and reviewed. Always verify against the official text linked below.

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [S. 4482 Introduced in Senate (IS)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 4482 To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require hospitals to develop discharge plans for pregnant individuals as a condition of participation under Medicare, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES May 11, 2026 Ms. Blunt Rochester introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to require hospitals to develop discharge plans for pregnant individuals as a condition of participation under Medicare, 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 ``Women Expansion of Learning and Labor Safety Act'' or the ``WELLS Act''. SEC. 2. REQUIRING HOSPITALS PARTICIPATING IN MEDICARE TO DEVELOP DISCHARGE PLANS FOR PREGNANT INDIVIDUALS. Section 1866 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395cc) is amended-- (1) in subsection (a)(1)-- (A) in subparagraph (X), by striking ``and'' at the end; (B) in subparagraph (Y), by striking the period at the end and inserting ``, and''; and (C) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph: ``(Z) beginning January 1, 2027, in the case of a hospital, critical access hospital, or rural emergency hospital, to comply with the requirements described in subsection (l)(1).''; and (2) by adding at the end the following new subsection: ``(l) Discharge Plan Requirements for Pregnant Individuals.-- ``(1) In general.--For purposes of subsection (a)(1)(Z), the requirements described in this paragraph are, with respect to a hospital, critical access hospital, or rural emergency hospital, that the hospital-- ``(A) provides for the development and implementation of a discharge plan meeting the standards under paragraph (2) with respect to any individual (whether or not eligible for benefits under this title) admitted to the hospital who-- ``(i) is pregnant; ``(ii) is experiencing signs or symptoms consistent with labor, which may include contractions; and ``(iii) is expected to be discharged from the hospital, critical access hospital, or rural emergency hospital prior to delivery, as determined based on the documented clinical judgment of the treating physician or practitioner at the time that such discharge is contemplated; ``(B) includes such discharge plan in the individual's medical record; and ``(C) provides for such discharge plan to be discussed with the individual (or the individual's representative) prior to discharge. ``(2) Discharge plan standards.--A discharge plan for an individual described in paragraph (1)(A) meets the standards under this paragraph if such plan includes at least the following information: ``(A) A clinical justification for the discharge. ``(B) An assessment of travel distance and time between the primary residence of the individual and the hospital, critical access hospital, or rural emergency hospital. ``(C) Verification of reliable transportation between the primary residence of the individual and the hospital, critical access hospital, or rural emergency hospital. ``(D) Identification of a secondary hospital or facility at which such individual may obtain labor and delivery services. ``(E) Confirmation that the plan was reviewed and approved by a registered professional nurse, social worker, or other appropriately qualified personnel. ``(F) Confirmation that the individual (or the individual's representative) has received the information described in subparagraphs (A) through (D), that such information was provided in the primary language of such individual (or representative), and that such individual (or representative) confirmed their understanding of such information. ``(3) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as limiting or…

otherwise affecting the discharge planning requirements otherwise applicable to a hospital, critical access hospital, or rural emergency hospital under this title, or any obligation of a health care provider to furnish emergency services as required under State or Federal law, including section 1867 of this title (commonly known as the `Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act').''. SEC. 3. RURAL MATERNAL AND OBSTETRIC CARE TRAINING DEMONSTRATION GRANTS. Section 764 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 294s) is amended-- (1) by redesignating subsections (d) and (e) as subsections (e) and (f), respectively; (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following: ``(d) Minimum Performance Milestones.-- ``(1) Establishment.--Beginning with the grants awarded under this section for fiscal year 2027, the Secretary shall establish minimum performance milestones that grant recipients must meet during a fiscal year as a condition of remaining eligible for funding through such a grant for any subsequent fiscal year. ``(2) Milestones related to percent of staff trained.--The minimum performance milestones referred to in paragraph (1) shall include milestones related to the percent of all staff of the grant recipient that are trained, or that receive refresher training, with support from a grant under this section.''; and (3) in subsection (e), as so redesignated-- (A) in the subsection heading, by striking ``Report'' and inserting ``Reports''; (B) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ``the report described in paragraph (2)'' and inserting ``the reports described in paragraphs (2) and (3)''; and (C) by adding at the end the following: ``(3) Subsequent reports.--Not later than January 1, 2027, and annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to Congress, and make publicly available, a report that includes-- ``(A) updates to the information described in subparagraphs (A) through (C) of paragraph (2); and ``(B) additional information regarding the grants under this section, including-- ``(i) a list of the entities receiving such grants; ``(ii) the number and amount of such grants; ``(iii) whether training supported by such grants was delivered in-person, virtually, asynchronously, or through some other format; and ``(iv) descriptions of the geographical coverage of such grants, the number of providers trained under such grants, and patient-level metrics linked to such training (such as changes in clinical outcomes, patient experience, and racial disparities).''. SEC. 4. MULTI-CENTER IMPLEMENTATION SCIENCE INITIATIVE FOR MATERNAL HEALTH. (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality and the Director of the National Institutes of Health (in this section referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall establish a multi- center implementation science initiative for maternal health to rigorously evaluate different training models for health care professionals (including in-person, virtual, simulation, and cohort- based) and the impact of such models on provider behavior, patient outcomes, and maternal health disparities. (b) Interagency Maternal Health Dashboard.--As part of the initiative described in subsection (a), the Secretary shall develop, maintain, and make publicly available on the website of the Department of Health and Human Services an interagency maternal health dashboard, which shall include maternal health outcome metrics from agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services. <all>

• S4923Food Assurance and Security Act
  Referred to Committee · 2026-06-24
• S4886Medicare Cost Cap Act of 2026
  Referred to Committee · 2026-06-24
• SJRES133A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection relating to the withdrawal of the rule relating to "Fair Credit Reporting; Background Screening".
  Referred to Committee · 2026-05-13
• S4480Optimizing Postpartum Outcomes Act of 2026
  Referred to Committee · 2026-05-11