Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act This bill revises the evidentiary standard for age discrimination by establishing an unlawful employment practice when the complaining party demonstrates that age or participation in an investigation, proceeding, or litigation related to an age discrimination claim was a motivating factor for an adverse practice, even though other factors also motivated the practice (thereby allowing what are commonly known as mixed motive claims). The bill (1) permits the complaining party to rely on any type or form of admissible evidence, which need only be sufficient for a reasonable trier of fact to find that an unlawful practice occurred; and (2) declares that the complaining party shall not be required to demonstrate that age or retaliation was the sole cause of the employment practice (thereby rejecting the Supreme Court's decision in Gross v. FBL Financial Services, Inc. , which requires the complainant to prove that age was the but-for cause for the employer's decision). The bill applies this evidentiary standard to other employment discrimination and retaliation claims, including claims under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. In a claim in which age discrimination is shown, but where the employer demonstrates that it would have taken the same action absent the motivating factor of age, the bill authorizes courts to grant declaratory and injunctive relief, but prohibits the court from awarding damages or issuing an order requiring any admission, reinstatement, hiring, promotion, or payment. This limitation also applies to claims of discrimination based on disability.
Sponsored bills
Mental Health Access Improvement Act of 2021 This bill provides for coverage of marriage and family therapist services and mental health counselor services under Medicare. It also excludes such services from the skilled nursing facility prospective payment system, and authorizes marriage and family therapists and mental health counselors to develop discharge plans for post-hospital services.
School Reopening and Spending Transparency Act This bill requires the Department of Education to establish and update monthly a public website to track state expenditures of certain COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) education relief funds. States must report on the operating status of their public elementary and secondary schools during the 2020-2021 school year for inclusion on the website.
Advancing Emergency Preparedness Through One Health Act of 2021 This bill requires interagency coordination to respond to zoonotic diseases through a One Health Program. A One Health Program recognizes the interconnection between people, animals, plants, and their shared environment. Specifically, the Department of the Interior, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Agriculture must develop a framework to coordinate federal activities to reduce hazards to human and animal health under the One Health Program. These departments must work with other federal entities on the framework, including the Department of Commerce. This framework must establish goals, identify activities necessary to achieve those goals, and recommend legislation or other actions to advance One Health efforts. Additionally, the Government Accountability Office must evaluate this framework and its implementation.
College Transparency Act This bill requires the National Center for Education Statistics to establish a secure and privacy-protected data system that contains information about postsecondary students. Specifically, the data system must evaluate student enrollment patterns, progression, completion, and postcollegiate outcomes, and higher education costs and financial aid; provide complete and customizable information for students and families making decisions about postsecondary education; reduce the requirements for reporting by institutions of higher education; and periodically match with other federal systems of data. The bill also establishes a postsecondary student data system advisory committee.
EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2021 This bill reauthorizes the EB-5 Regional Center program through FY2026 and makes various changes to the program, such as imposing various oversight requirements. (EB-5 visas provide permanent resident status to qualified alien investors. A regional center allows EB-5 aliens to pool investments to meet various investment and job creation requirements.) Oversight-related provisions include requiring each center to (1) notify the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) of proposed changes to the center's structure, (2) maintain certain records and make such records available to DHS for audits, (3) obtain approval for each particular investment offering, and (4) annually report to DHS. The bill prohibits certain individuals and entities from involvement in a center, such as (1) a person who had committed a violation involving fraud in the previous 10 years, (2) a non-U.S. national not admitted for permanent residence, or (3) a foreign government official. DHS shall deny petitions, such as a petition to certify a regional center or to classify an alien as an alien investor, if approval would threaten U.S. national interest. The bill provides various enforcement authority to DHS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, including the ability to permanently bar an individual from participating in the regional center program. The bill establishes the EB-5 Integrity Fund to fund program enforcement activities. The bill contains various provisions related to EB-5 petitions, such as a provision authorizing DHS to extend an alien's conditional permanent residence status.
Litigation Funding Transparency Act of 2021 This bill requires lawyers for plaintiffs in certain lawsuits to provide the court and other parties in the lawsuit with any agreement that entitles an outside business (i.e., a business that is not a party, class member, or counsel in the lawsuit) to receive payment contingent on the lawsuit's outcome. The lawyers for the plaintiffs shall also provide the identity of the outside business. Specifically, these requirements shall apply to any class action or multi-district litigation (i.e. related civil cases pending in different districts that are consolidated for pretrial proceedings).
Promoting Access to Diabetic Shoes Act This bill allows a nurse practitioner or physician assistant to fulfill documentation requirements for coverage, under Medicare, of special shoes for diabetic individuals. Under current law, such requirements may be satisfied only by a physician.
Ensuring Lasting Smiles Act This bill requires private health insurance plans to cover diagnosis and treatment of congenital anomalies and birth defects, such as reconstructive services and items. Coverage must include services and items that functionally improve, repair, or restore any body part that is medically necessary for normal bodily functions or appearance, as determined by the treating physician. Coverage limits and cost-sharing requirements for such services and items may not be more restrictive than those applicable to all medical and surgical benefits under the plan.
This bill waives certain eligibility requirements for hospitals participating in the 340B drug discount program (i.e., a program that allows entities to receive covered outpatient drugs at reduced prices from manufacturers) during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) public health emergency. Specifically, the bill waives the required minimum proportion of low-income patients served for hospitals that began participating in the program during or prior to the COVID-19 emergency.