H.R. 9877

Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026

Sponsor: Raul Ruiz

26 cosponsors
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I Data collection and reporting

II Culturally and linguistically appropriate health and health care

III Health workforce diversity

A Diversifying the health care workplace

B Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Behavioral and Mental Health Workforce

C ACCESS in Mental Health Act

D Developing the Community Health Workforce Act

IV Improving Health Care Access and Quality

A Reducing Barriers to Accessing Care

B Improvement of Coverage

C Expansion of Access

1 General Provisions

2 Rural

3 Indian Communities

4 Providers

5 Dental

D Advancing Health Equity Through Payment and Delivery Reform

Sec. 4302. Development and testing of disparity reducing delivery and payment models

(a) In general. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation established under section 1115A of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1315a) (in this section referred to as the CMI) shall establish a dedicated fund to identify, test, evaluate, and scale delivery and payment models under the applicable titles (as defined in subsection (a)(4)(B) of such section) that target health disparities among racial and ethnic minorities, including models that support high-value nonmedical services that address socially determined barriers to health in all stages of the life cycle through end-of-life, including English proficiency status, low health and health care literacy, lack of access to health care planning, including end-of-life care planning, case management, transportation, enrollment assistance needs, stable and affordable housing, utility assistance, employment and career development, and nutrition and food security which will help to reduce disparities and impact the overall cost of care.

(b) Amendment to Social Security Act. The second sentence of section 1115A(a)(1) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1315a(a)(1)) is amended by inserting and improve health equity after expenditures.

(c) Pilot programs. The CMI shall prioritize the testing of models under such section 1115A that include partnerships with entities, including community-based organizations or other nonprofit entities, to help address socially determined barriers to health and health care.

(d) Alternatives. Any model tested by the CMI under such 1115A shall include measures to assess and track the impact of the model on health disparities, using existing measures such as the Healthcare Disparities and Cultural Competency Measures endorsed by the entity with a contract under section 1890(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395aaa(a)), and stratified by race, ethnicity, English proficiency, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability status.

E Health Empowerment Zones

F Equitable Health Care for All

G Investing in Equity

H Miscellaneous

I Territories Health Equity

1 Medicare

A Part A

B Part B

C Medicare Advantage (Part C)

D Part D

2 Miscellaneous

V Improving health outcomes for women, gender-diverse people, children, and families

A Underserved communities

B Pregnancy screening

C Pregnancy-Related care

D Federal agency coordination on maternal health

E Reproductive and Sexual Health

F Children’s Health

G Elder Care

H Miscellaneous provisions

VI Mental health and substance use disorders

A Access to care and funding streams

B Interprofessional care

C Workforce development

D Children’s mental health

E Community-Based care

F Reports

G Miscellaneous provisions

VII Addressing high-impact minority diseases

A Cancer

B Viral hepatitis and liver cancer control and prevention

C Acquired bone marrow failure diseases

D Cardiovascular disease, chronic disease, obesity, and other disease issues

E HIV/AIDS

F Diabetes

G Lung disease

H Tuberculosis

I Osteoarthritis and Musculoskeletal Diseases

J Sleep and circadian rhythm disorders

K Kidney disease research, surveillance, prevention, and treatment

L Diversity in clinical trials

M Additional provisions addressing high-impact minority diseases

N Health Equity and Rare Disease Act

O Asunción Valdivia Heat Illness, Injury, and Fatality Prevention

P New Era of Preventing End-Stage Kidney Disease

VIII Health Information Technology

A Reducing Health Disparities Through Health IT

B Modifications To Achieve Parity in Existing Programs

C Additional Research and Studies

D Closing Gaps in Funding To Adopt Certified EHRs

E Expanding Access to Telehealth Services

IX Accountability and Evaluation

X Addressing Social Determinants and Improving Environmental Justice

A In General

B Gun Violence

C Nutrition for women, children, families

1 Senior hunger prevention

2 Closing the meal gap

D Universal school meals

1 School breakfast program

2 School lunch program

3 Elementary and secondary education data

4 Amendments to other programs and laws

XI Protections to combat regulatory harm to health equity