Legislation Grid and Testimony/Advocacy Statement – Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023
Healthcare providers in the United States are adopting various technologies to improve the efficiency and safety of care delivery. Healthcare technologies are facing multiple security and privacy issues as they become a target of cyber criminals (Hathaliya & Tanwar, 2020). Besides these, healthcare providers are facing multiple physical threats. As such, various policies have been formulated to improve the safety of healthcare providers as well as the patients within healthcare settings. The H.R. 286 Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023 is among the current bills introduced to the Senate to support the safety of health providers.
Purpose Statement
This legislation grid reviews the bill and its provision and the reasons why I support it, its significance, and why the House should pass it into a law.
Part 1: Legislation Grid
| Health-related Bill Name |
Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023 (Congress.gov, n.d.) |
| Bill Number | H. R. 286 |
| Description | The H.R. 286 Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023 is an amendment bill that was introduced to Congress on January/11/2023. It was presented to the House by Rep. Escobar, Veronica [D-TX-16]. It is still in the introductory stage and is yet to pass in the House. |
| Federal or State? | Federal. The Bill was introduced to Congress. |
| Legislative Intent | The H. R. 286 seeks to amend the Public Health Service Act to add sections that provide the authorization of grants for healthcare providers to enhance the physical and cyber security of their facilities, personnel, and patients to guarantee safe access to services. The amendment has provisions that enable healthcare providers to utilize the grants to cover costs related to security services and enhancements, including structural improvements for security.
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| Proponents/ Opponents | Proponents (Congress.gov, n.d.):
Rep. Bonamici, Suzanne [D-OR-1] Rep. Castor, Kathy [D-FL-14] Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. [D-IL-9] Rep. Foster, Bill [D-IL-11]. Rep. Jacobs, Sara [D-CA-51]. Rep. Allred, Colin Z. [D-TX-32]. Rep. Moulton, Seth [D-MA-6]. Rep. Napolitano, Grace F. [D-CA-31]. Rep. Espaillat, Adriano [D-NY-13]. Rep. Evans, Dwight [D-PA-3]. Rep. Thompson, Mike [D-CA-4]. Rep. Velazquez, Nydia M. [D-NY-7]. Rep. Pressley, Ayanna [D-MA-7]. Rep. Raskin, Jamie [D-MD-8]. Rep. Garcia, Sylvia R. [D-TX-29]. Rep. Panetta, Jimmy [D-CA-19]. Rep. Doggett, Lloyd [D-TX-37]. Rep. Frankel, Lois [D-FL-22]. Rep. Kelly, Robin L. [D-IL-2]. Rep. Wasserman Schultz, Debbie [D-FL-25]. Rep. Himes, James A. [D-CT-4]. Rep. Brownley, Julia [D-CA-26]. Rep. Ross, Deborah K. [D-NC-2]. Rep. Barragan, Nanette Diaz [D-CA-44]. Rep. Auchincloss, Jake [D-MA-4]. Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7]. Rep. Nadler, Jerrold [D-NY-12]. Rep. Blumenauer, Earl [D-OR-3]. Rep. Wild, Susan [D-PA-7]. Rep. Blunt Rochester, Lisa [D-DE-At Large]. Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12]. Rep. Morelle, Joseph D. [D-NY-25]. Rep. Wilson, Frederica S. [D-FL-24]. Rep. Kilmer, Derek [D-WA-6]. Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large]. Rep. Garcia, Jesus G. “Chuy” [D-IL-4]. Rep. Moore, Gwen [D-WI-4]. Rep. Payne, Donald M., Jr. [D-NJ-10]. Rep. Chu, Judy [D-CA-28]. Rep. Williams, Nikema [D-GA-5]. Rep. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ-3]. Rep. Connolly, Gerald E. [D-VA-11]. Del. Plaskett, Stacey E. [D-VI-At Large]. Rep. Torres, Norma J. [D-CA-35]. Rep. Davis, Danny K. [D-IL-7]. Rep. Swalwell, Eric [D-CA-14]. Rep. Ruppersberger, C. A. Dutch [D-MD-2]. Rep. Casten, Sean [D-IL-6]. Rep. Soto, Darren [D-FL-9]. Rep. Larson, John B. [D-CT-1]. Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick, Sheila [D-FL-20]. Rep. Lynch, Stephen F. [D-MA-8]. Rep. Meng, Grace [D-NY-6]. Rep. Smith, Adam [D-WA-9]. Rep. Trahan, Lori [D-MA-3]. Rep. Balint, Becca [D-VT-At Large]. Rep. Schneider, Bradley Scott [D-IL-10]. Rep. Cicilline, David N. [D-RI-1]. Rep. Clarke, Yvette D. [D-NY-9]. Rep. Lieu, Ted [D-CA-36]. Rep. Khanna, Ro [D-CA-17]. Rep. Johnson, Henry C. “Hank,” Jr. [D-GA-4]. Rep. Grijalva, Raúl M. [D-AZ-7]. Rep. Bush, Cori [D-MO-1]. Rep. Hayes, Jahana [D-CT-5]. Rep. Horsford, Steven [D-NV-4]. Rep. Takano, Mark [D-CA-39]. Rep. Tlaib, Rashida [D-MI-12]. Rep. Bowman, Jamaal [D-NY-16]. Rep. Stevens, Haley M. [D-MI-11]. Rep. Wexton, Jennifer [D-VA-10]. Rep. Keating, William R. [D-MA-9]. Rep. Carbajal, Salud O. [D-CA-24]. Rep. Dean, Madeleine [D-PA-4]. Rep. McGovern, James P. [D-MA-2]. Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3]. Rep. Stansbury, Melanie Ann [D-NM-1]. Rep. Tokuda, Jill N. [D-HI-2]. Rep. Gomez, Jimmy [D-CA-34]. Rep. Sherrill, Mikie [D-NJ-11]. Rep. Adams, Alma S. [D-NC-12]. Rep. McCollum, Betty [D-MN-4]. Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, Alexandria [D-NY-14]. Rep. Fletcher, Lizzie [D-TX-7]. Rep. Boyle, Brendan F. [D-PA-2]. Rep. Garcia, Robert [D-CA-42]. Rep. Nickel, Wiley [D-NC-13]. Rep. Tonko, Paul [D-NY-20]. Rep. Jackson Lee, Sheila [D-TX-18]. Rep. Scanlon, Mary Gay [D-PA-5]. Rep. Lee, Barbara [D-CA-12]. Rep. Vargas, Juan [D-CA-52]. Rep. Cohen, Steve [D-TN-9]. Rep. Sewell, Terri A. [D-AL-7]. Rep. Beatty, Joyce [D-OH-3]. Rep. Bishop, Sanford D., Jr. [D-GA-2]. Rep. Green, Al [D-TX-9]. Rep. Cleaver, Emanuel [D-MO-5]. Rep. Beyer, Donald S., Jr. [D-VA-8]. Rep. Peters, Scott H. [D-CA-50]. Rep. Gottheimer, Josh [D-NJ-5]. Rep. Trone, David J. [D-MD-6]. Rep. DeGette, Diana [D-CO-1]. Rep. Sykes, Emilia Strong [D-OH-13]. Rep. Sánchez, Linda T. [D-CA-38]. Rep. Sarbanes, John P. [D-MD-3]. Rep. Carson, Andre [D-IN-7]. Rep. Moskowitz, Jared [D-FL-23]. Rep. Levin, Mike [D-CA-49]. Rep. Manning, Kathy E. [D-NC-6]. Rep. Crow, Jason [D-CO-6]. Rep. Norcross, Donald [D-NJ-1]. Rep. Pingree, Chellie [D-ME-1]. Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5]. Rep. Kildee, Daniel T. [D-MI-8]. Rep. Kuster, Ann M. [D-NH-2]. Rep. Thompson, Bennie G. [D-MS-2]. Rep. Mfume, Kweisi [D-MD-7]. |
| Opponents:
The Bill currently has no opposers. |
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| Target Population | The Bill targets healthcare providers, from individuals to facilities and organizations. |
| Status of the Bill (Is it in hearings or committees?) | The Bill was introduced to the House and referred to the Subcommittee on Health. |
| General Notes/Comments
|
The Bill promises to improve funding to help healthcare providers install better cyber security systems and physical security systems such as surveillance and other physical security systems to improve safe access to care services. |
Part 2: Legislation Testimony/Advocacy Statement
I support the Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023 bill. There are various reasons why the Bill needs to be enacted into law. Healthcare providers in the United States have become targets for physical and cybersecurity threats. Both physical and cyber security is essential in healthcare to protect patient information and the normal functioning of healthcare organizations (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society, n.d.).
Despite efforts to protect physical and cyber systems in healthcare organizations and health providers, they remain vulnerable to physical and cyber threats. Healthcare providers still struggle to meet the physical and cyber security needs of their systems and patients due to underfunding and allocation of resources for security purposes. Additionally, factors such as the age and level of education of a majority of the users increase the vulnerability of these health information systems. Age and level of education determine the levels of technology literacy. Technology literacy is essential to understanding and utilizing the tools necessary to protect individuals and their health information from malicious individuals and unauthorized users. It is possible to overcome these funding challenges and improve systems security with a favorable political and policy system. Nurses must apply their nursing knowledge and skills to connect with government actors and alert them of the issues in health care to develop health policy solutions (Milstead & Short, 2019). Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023 will be enacted, enabling healthcare providers to access more funding for security purposes, including installing advanced security systems for their health information management systems and improving physical security systems.
Conclusion
Funding is essential for ensuring cyber and physical security and the safety of health providers. Bills such as H.R. 286 can help overcome funding challenges and ensure cyber and physical security. Nurses have a role to play in bringing up issues in nursing and healthcare to policymakers as well as lobbying legislators to enact policies that improve the accessibility of care.
References
Congress.gov. (n.d.). H.R.286 – 118th Congress (2023-2024): Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023. Library of Congress. Retrieved June 10, 2023, from https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/286/text?s=1&r=12&q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22Healthcare%22%5D%7D
Hathaliya, J. J., & Tanwar, S. (2020). An exhaustive survey on security and privacy issues in Healthcare 4.0. Computer Communications, 153, 311–335. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.COMCOM.2020.02.018
Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society. (n.d.). Cybersecurity in Healthcare. HIMSS. Retrieved June 10, 2023, from https://www.himss.org/resources/cybersecurity-healthcare
Milstead, J. A., & Short, N. M. (2019). Health Policy and Politics: A Nurse’s Guide (6th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Publishers.
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Question 
As a nurse, how often have you thought to yourself, If I had anything to do about it, things would work a little differently? Increasingly, nurses are beginning to realize that they do, in fact, have a role and a voice.
Health Care Providers Safety Act of 2023
Many nurses encounter daily experiences that motivate them to take on an advocacy role in hopes of impacting policies, laws, or regulations that impact healthcare issues of interest. Of course, doing so means entering the less familiar world of policy and politics. While many nurses do not initially feel prepared to operate in this space effectively, the reward is the opportunity to shape and influence future health policy.
RESOURCES
Be sure to review the Learning Resources before completing this activity.
Click the weekly resources link to access the resources.
WEEKLY RESOURCES
To Prepare:
Select a bill that has been proposed (not one that has been enacted) using the congressional websites provided in the Learning Resources.
The Assignment: (1- to 2-page Legislation Grid; 1-page Legislation Testimony/Advocacy Statement)
Be sure to add a title page, an introduction, a purpose statement, and a conclusion. This is an APA paper.
Part 1: Legislation Grid
Based on the health-related bill (proposed, not enacted) you selected, complete the Legislation Grid Template. Be sure to address the following:
Determine the legislative intent of the bill you have reviewed.
Identify the proponents/opponents of the bill.
Identify the target populations addressed by the bill.
Where is the bill currently being processed? Is it in hearings or committees?
Part 2: Legislation Testimony/Advocacy Statement
Based on the health-related bill you selected, develop a 1-page Legislation Testimony/Advocacy Statement that addresses the following:
Advocate a position for the bill you selected and write testimony in support of your position.
Explain how the social determinants of income, age, education, or gender affect this legislation.
Describe how you would address the opponent to your position. Be specific and provide examples.
At least 2 outside resources and 2-3 course-specific resources are used.