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

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

Sec. 7005. National prostate cancer council

(a) National prostate cancer council

(1) Establishment. There is established in the Office of the Secretary of Health and Human Services (referred to in this section as the Secretary) the National Prostate Cancer Council on Screening, Early Detection, Assessment, and Monitoring of Prostate Cancer (referred to in this section as the Council).

(2) Purpose of the council. The Council shall—

(A) develop and implement a national strategic plan for the accelerated creation, advancement, and testing of diagnostic tools to improve screening, early detection, assessment, and monitoring of prostate cancer, including—

(i) early detection of aggressive prostate cancer to save lives;

(ii) monitoring of tumor response to treatment, including recurrence and progression; and

(iii) accurate assessment and surveillance of indolent disease to reduce unnecessary biopsies and treatment;

(B) provide information and coordination of prostate cancer research and services across all Federal agencies;

(C) review diagnostic tools and their overall effectiveness at screening, detecting, assessing, and monitoring of prostate cancer;

(D) evaluate all programs in prostate cancer that are in existence on the date of enactment of this Act, including Federal budget requests and approvals and public-private partnerships;

(E) submit an annual report to the Secretary and Congress on the creation and implementation of the national strategic plan under subparagraph (A); and

(F) ensure the inclusion of men at high risk for prostate cancer, including men from minority ethnic and racial populations and men who are least likely to receive care, in clinical, research, and service efforts, with the purpose of decreasing health disparities.

(3) Membership

(A) Federal members. The Council shall be led by the Secretary or the Secretary’s designee and composed of the following experts:

(i) Two representatives of the National Institutes of Health, including 1 representative of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering and 1 representative of the National Cancer Institute.

(ii) A representative of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

(iii) A representative of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

(iv) A designee of the Director of the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs.

(v) A designee of the Director of the Office of Minority Health.

(vi) A representative of the Food and Drug Administration.

(vii) A representative of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

(B) Non-federal members. In addition to the members described in subparagraph (A), the Council shall include 14 expert members from outside the Federal Government, which shall include—

(i) 6 prostate cancer patient advocates, including—

(I) 2 patient-survivors;

(II) 2 caregivers of prostate cancer patients; and

(III) 2 representatives from national prostate cancer disease organizations that fund research or have demonstrated experience in providing assistance to patients, families, and medical professionals, including information on health care options, education, and referral; and

(ii) 8 health care stakeholders with specific expertise in prostate cancer research in the critical areas of clinical expertise, including medical oncology, radiology, radiation oncology, urology, and pathology.

(4) Meetings. The Council shall meet quarterly and meetings shall be open to the public.

(5) Advice. The Council shall advise the Secretary, or the Secretary’s designee.

(6) Annual report. The Council shall submit annual reports, beginning not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, to the Secretary or the Secretary’s designee and to Congress. The annual report shall include—

(A) in the first year—

(i) an evaluation of all Federally funded efforts in prostate cancer research and gaps relating to the development and validation of diagnostic tools for prostate cancer; and

(ii) recommendations for priority actions to expand, eliminate, coordinate, or condense programs based on the performance, mission, and purpose of the programs; and

(B) annually thereafter for 5 years—

(i) an outline for the development and implementation of a national research plan for creation and validation of accurate diagnostic tools to improve prostate cancer care in accordance with paragraph (1);

(ii) roles for the National Cancer Institute, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, and the Office of Minority Health of the Department of Health and Human Services;

(iii) an analysis of the disparities in the incidence and mortality rates of prostate cancer in men at high risk of the disease, including individuals with family history, increasing age, or African-American heritage; and

(iv) a review of the progress towards the realization of the proposed strategic plan.

(7) Termination. The Council shall terminate on December 31, 2027.

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