HR 3733 United States House · 117th Congress

Essential Caregivers Act of 2021

Summary

Essential Caregivers Act of 2021 This bill requires skilled nursing facilities, nursing facilities, intermediate care facilities for the intellectually disabled, and nearby inpatient rehabilitation facilities to establish an essential caregivers program during a public health emergency. Under the program, facilities must allow each resident to select up to two essential caregivers to provide daily living assistance, emotional support, or companionship during the emergency. Facilities must afford such caregivers 12 hours of access to residents each day (or unlimited access for end-of-life care), and caregivers must agree to follow facility protocols for staff safety. Facilities may deny access to caregivers who violate protocols, subject to certain notification requirements; the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must establish an appeals process relating to such decisions and may take specified enforcement actions against facilities that violate the bill's requirements.

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Jun 2021

Committee Review

Floor Vote

President

Introduced Jun 4, 2021 Last action Jun 29, 2021

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Jun 7, 2021

Committee

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

lower

Jun 4, 2021

Committee

Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

lower

Jun 4, 2021

Committee

Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

lower

Jun 4, 2021

Introduced

Introduced in House

lower

1 primary · 81 co-sponsors