H.R. 9877

Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026

Sponsor: Raul Ruiz

26 cosponsors
Follow this bill

Official summary

No official summary yet.

Text of the bill

Expand all

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

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

Sec. 7901A. Kidney disease research in minority populations

(a) In general

(1) Research and training centers. Section 431(c)(3) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 285c–5(c)(3)) is amended—

(A) in subparagraph (B), by striking and at the end;

(B) in subparagraph (C), by striking and at the end; and

(C) by adding at the end the following:

Text this section adds to the law

(D) improving data science through improvement in bioinformatics, data integration, and data sharing;

(E) defining the chronic kidney disease mechanism and identifying new therapeutic targets for chronic kidney disease using specific tools, including mapping the genetic architecture of kidney function and disease and translating genetic maps to disease-causing genes and mechanisms, especially among minority populations;

(F) improving models of human disease including better humanized animal models, improved reproducibility, and functional characterization of kidney organoids, and accelerating the development of in vivo imaging technologies; and

(G) developing cell-specific drug delivery systems and gene editing, including targeted systems for the delivery of therapeutic compounds to specific kidney compartments or cell types and accelerating the implementation of gene editing and gene therapy for the treatment of kidney diseases in vivo; and

(2) Inclusion of minority participants. In conducting and supporting research described in the amendment made by paragraph (1), the Director of the National Institutes of Health shall work with the Director of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities to improve the number of minority participants as study subjects in clinical trials. Such work may include—

(A) developing and sustaining clinical trial consortia that can recruit patients with chronic kidney disease to ensure adequate capacity for assessment of kidney outcomes and increase the enrollment of underrepresented populations;

(B) encouraging the use of novel designs in clinical trials to enhance the recruitment and retention of underrepresented populations which will enhance the generalizability of study findings;

(C) supporting outreach initiatives that incorporate acknowledgment of both historical and current grounds for participation reluctance, and that prioritize demonstrating trustworthiness, in order to enhance the ability to promote and effectively convey the benefits of clinical research participation;

(D) completing clinical trials that test interventions to improve patient quality of life and address patient-reported outcomes; and

(E) encouraging inclusion of persons with chronic kidney disease in clinical trials of treatments for nonkidney diseases.

(b) Report; comprehensive plan. Section 429 of the Public Health Services Act (42 U.S.C. 285c–3) is amended by adding at the end the following:

Text this section adds to the law

(c) Report by kidney, urologic, and hematologic diseases coordinating committee

(1) In general. The Kidney, Urologic, and Hematologic Diseases Coordinating Committee, in coordination with the Chronic Kidney Disease Initiative at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall—

(A) prepare and submit to the Congress, not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this subsection, a report on Federal research and public health activities with respect to kidney disease in minority populations; and

(B) develop and submit to the Congress, the Secretary, the Director of the National Institutes of Health, and the Advisory Board established under section 430 for the diseases for which the Committee was established, not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection, an effective and comprehensive Federal plan (including all appropriate Federal health programs) to address kidney disease in minority populations.

(2) Contents. The report under paragraph (1)(A) shall at minimum address each of the following:

(A) Research on kidney disease in minority populations, including such research on—

(i) genetic, behavioral, and environmental factors;

(ii) prevention and complications among individuals within these populations who have already developed kidney disease;

(iii) the delivery of evidenced-based care for all chronic kidney disease stages, especially in underrepresented and underserved populations;

(iv) expanding support for a root-cause analysis approach to disparities, including causes, detection, and management of chronic kidney disease for underserved populations;

(v) developing research teams that engage with community organizations to develop and implement interventions which halt or delay development and progression of chronic kidney disease; and

(vi) continued support of observational studies of kidney disease measures and outcomes.

(B) Surveillance and data collection on kidney disease in minority populations, including with respect to—

(i) efforts to better determine the prevalence of kidney disease among Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander subgroups; and

(ii) efforts to coordinate data collection on the American Indian population.

(C) Community-based interventions to address kidney disease targeting minority populations, including—

(i) the evidence bases for such interventions;

(ii) the cultural appropriateness of such interventions; and

(iii) efforts to educate the public on the causes and consequences of kidney disease.

(D) Education and training programs for health professionals (including community health workers) on the prevention and management of kidney disease and its related complications that are supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration, including such programs supported by the Bureau of Health Workforce, the Bureau of Primary Health Care, and the Health Systems Bureau. This shall include—

(i) identification of effective strategies to increase implementation of proven therapies to slow chronic kidney disease incidence and progression, especially in high-risk underrepresented populations; and

(ii) identification of effective practice improvement strategies in large and small health systems to reduce chronic kidney disease incidence and progression.

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