Bill Summary
This legislation, known as the "Youth Access to Sexual Health Services Act of 2019," authorizes the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to organizations that support marginalized youth in accessing sexual health services. The funds can be used for providing accurate and age-appropriate information, promoting healthy communication, providing support for young parents, and training individuals who work with marginalized youth. The Secretary will prioritize organizations with a history of supporting access to sexual health services and those that plan to serve marginalized youth who are not currently being served by other programs. Eligible organizations must form partnerships with community organizations and agree to employ scientifically effective strategies and provide comprehensive and culturally appropriate information to youth. The Secretary will also evaluate the effectiveness of the grants and make the evaluations and reports available to the public. The legislation also includes limitations on the use of funds, such as not promoting gender stereotypes and being sensitive to the needs of all youth. Any unobligated funds from a previous law will be transferred to carry out this act. The legislation defines key terms such as "community organization," "eligible entity," "marginalized youth," and "medically accurate and complete." It also includes a list of services that fall under the definition of "sexual health services."
Possible Impacts
1. The Youth Access to Sexual Health Services Act of 2019 could potentially provide marginalized youth with important sexual health information and resources that they may have lacked access to before. This could positively affect their overall health and well-being by empowering them to make informed decisions about their sexual health.
2. The Act's requirement for eligible entities to provide information in the language and cultural context most appropriate for the individuals served could help address barriers that marginalized youth may face in accessing sexual health services. This could promote inclusivity and reduce health disparities.
3. The Act's emphasis on promoting healthy relationships and training individuals who work with marginalized youth to prevent unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections could help reduce the prevalence of these issues among this population. This could lead to a decrease in negative health outcomes and improve overall quality of life for marginalized youth.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1530 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1530
To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants
to support the access of marginalized youth to sexual health services,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 16, 2019
Ms. Hirono (for herself, Mr. Booker, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Markey, Mr.
Brown, Ms. Warren, Mrs. Gillibrand, and Mr. Murphy) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants
to support the access of marginalized youth to sexual health services,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Youth Access to Sexual Health
Services Act of 2019''.
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF GRANTS TO SUPPORT THE ACCESS OF MARGINALIZED
YOUTH TO SEXUAL HEALTH SERVICES.
(a) Grants.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services may award
grants on a competitive basis to eligible entities to support the
access of marginalized youth to sexual health services.
(b) Use of Funds.--An eligible entity that is awarded a grant under
subsection (a) may use the funds to--
(1) provide medically accurate and complete age,
developmentally, and culturally appropriate sexual health
information to marginalized youth, including information on how
to access sexual health services;
(2) promote effective communication regarding sexual health
among marginalized youth;
(3) promote and support better health, education, and
economic opportunities for school-age parents; and
(4) train individuals who work with marginalized youth to
promote--
(A) the prevention of unintended pregnancy;
(B) the prevention of sexually transmitted
infections, including the human immunodeficiency virus
(HIV);
(C) healthy relationships; and
(D) the development of safe and supportive
environments.
(c) Application.--To be awarded a grant under subsection (a), an
eligible entity shall submit an application to the Secretary at such
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary
may require.
(d) Priority.--In awarding grants under subsection (a), the
Secretary shall give priority to eligible entities--
(1) with a history of supporting the access of marginalized
youth to sexuality education or sexual health services; and
(2) that plan to serve marginalized youth that are not
served by other programs in existence on the day before the
date of enactment of this Act, for adolescents regarding HIV,
other sexually transmitted infections, or pregnancy prevention.
(e) Requirements.--The Secretary may not award a grant under
subsection (a) to an eligible entity unless--
(1) such eligible entity has formed a partnership with a
community organization; and
(2) such eligible entity agrees--
(A) to employ a scientifically effective strategy;
(B) that all information provided to marginalized
youth will be--
(i) age and developmentally appropriate;
(ii) medically accurate and complete;
(iii) scientifically based; and
(iv) provided in the language and cultural
context that is most appropriate for the
individuals served by the eligible entity; and
(C) that for each year the eligible entity receives
grant funds under subsection (a), the eligible entity
will submit to the Secretary an annual report that
includes--
(i) the use of grant funds by the eligible
entity;
(ii) how the use of grant funds has
increased the access of marginalized youth to
sexual health services; and
(iii) such other information as the
Secretary may require.
(f) Publication and Evaluations.--
(1) Evaluations.--Not less than once every 2 years after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall
evaluate the effectiveness of whichever of the following is
greater:
(A) Eight grants awarded under subsection (a).
(B) Ten percent of the grants awarded under
subsection (a).
(2) Publication.--The Secretary shall make available to the
public--
(A) the evaluations required under paragraph (1);
and
(B) the reports required under subsection
(e)(2)(C).
(g) Limitations.--No funds made available to an eligible entity
under this section may be used by such entity to provide access to
sexual health services that--
(1) withhold sexual health-promoting or life-saving
information;
(2) are medically inaccurate or have been scientifically
shown to be ineffective;
(3) promote gender stereotypes;
(4) are insensitive or unresponsive to the needs of young
people, including--
(A) youth with varying gender identities, gender
expressions, and sexual orientations;
(B) sexually active youth;
(C) pregnant or parenting youth;
(D) survivors of sexual abuse or assault; and
(E) youth of all physical, developmental, and
mental abilities; or
(5) are inconsistent with the ethical imperatives of
medicine and public health.
(h) Transfer of Funds.--Any unobligated balance of funds made
available under section 510(d) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
710(d)) (as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of
this Act) are hereby transferred and made available to the Secretary to
carry out this Act. The amounts transferred and made available to carry
out this Act shall remain available until expended.
(i) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Community organization.--The term ``community
organization'' includes a State or local health or education
agency, public school, youth-focused organization that is
faith-based and community-based, juvenile justice entity, or
other organization that provides confidential and appropriate
sexuality education or sexual health services to marginalized
youth.
(2) Eligible entity.--The term ``eligible entity'' includes
a State or local health or education agency, public school,
nonprofit organization, hospital, or an Indian tribe or tribal
organization (as such terms are defined in section 4 of the
Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25
U.S.C. 5304)).
(3) Marginalized youth.--The term ``marginalized youth''
means a person under the age of 26 that is disadvantaged by
underlying structural barriers and social inequity.
(4) Medically accurate and complete.--The term ``medically
accurate and complete'', when used with respect to information,
means information that--
(A) is supported by research and recognized as
accurate, objective, and complete by leading medical,
psychological, psychiatric, or public health
organizations and agencies; and
(B) does not withhold any information relating to
the effectiveness and benefits of correct and
consistent use of condoms or other contraceptives and
pregnancy prevention methods.
(5) Scientifically effective strategy.--The term
``scientifically effective strategy'' means a strategy that--
(A) is widely recognized by leading medical and
public health agencies as effective in promoting sexual
health awareness and healthy behavior; and
(B) either--
(i) has been demonstrated to be effective
on the basis of rigorous scientific research;
or
(ii) incorporates characteristics of
effective programs.
(6) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Health and Human Services.
(7) Sexual health services.--The term ``sexual health
services'' includes--
(A) sexual health information, education, and
counseling;
(B) contraception;
(C) emergency contraception;
(D) condoms and other barrier methods to prevent
pregnancy or sexually transmitted infections;
(E) routine gynecological care, including human
papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines and cancer screenings;
(F) pre-exposure prophylaxis or post-exposure
prophylaxis;
(G) mental health services;
(H) sexual assault survivor services; and
(I) other prevention, care, or treatment services.
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