Green New Deal for Health Act
Latest action. Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Green New Deal for Health Act
This bill establishes programs and requirements to mitigate the health effects of climate change and environmental effects of the health care sector, particularly on vulnerable populations.
The Department of Health and Human Services must, for example, lead a research initiative to mitigate the health effects of climate change and develop a plan for preparing the health care system to respond to those effects.
The bill establishes programs and requirements for medical facilities. It funds through FY2028 the Community Health Center Program (which supports outpatient facilities for medically underserved populations) and establishes grants for sustainability and resiliency planning for medical facilities. Further, the bill revives the Hill-Burton program (which historically supported construction and modernization of medical facilities) and makes climate resiliency a program focus. It also restricts certain hospitals from terminating essential services without engaging in planning and other efforts to preserve access.
The bill also provides support for workforce and community programs. This includes (1) grants for incorporating climate change into medical training and community-based mental wellness and resiliency programs; and (2) funding through FY2028 for the National Health Services Corps, which awards educational incentives to providers in underserved areas.
Additionally, the bill addresses efforts to reduce (1) the health sector's contributions to climate change, (2) climate-related risks to pharmaceutical manufacturing and medical supply chains, and (3) health impacts of extreme heat. It also expands Medicare coverage to include items and services (e.g., solar batteries) for individuals who are medically at-risk at home from climate or man-made disasters.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in Senate" stage on April 20, 2023. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on April 20, 2023: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 118th Congress (2023-24), 274 of the 16,565 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 1.7 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
Edward Markey (D-MA) introduced it on April 20, 2023, and 3 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They are 2 Democrats, 1 independent.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on April 20, 2023, 1286 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 1286 days ago, on April 20, 2023.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 118th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2025 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers