Sponsors (10)
The bill formalizes and supports community health workers—likely improving outreach, health outcomes, and workforce stability—at the cost of added public funding needs and risks of credentialing or state-by-state disparities that could exclude grassroots workers and produce uneven access.
Low-income individuals and racial/ethnic minority communities would gain more trusted outreach, education, and navigation services because CHWs are formally recognized as frontline public‑health workers, improving access to prevention and chronic-care supports.
Patients with chronic conditions, families, and CHWs would benefit from recognition of CHWs' documented return on investment and an emphasis on sustainable funding, increasing the likelihood of program expansion, fair wages, and improved job retention.
Healthcare workers and hospital/health system partners would gain clearer, legitimized CHW networks (organizations with ≥50% CHW leadership/membership), strengthening workforce development, mentoring, and advocacy capacity at local and state levels.
Informal or grassroots CHWs—often from marginalized communities—could be excluded by new administrative or credentialing requirements tied to formal definitions and networks, reducing inclusivity and community-rooted workforce participation.
Taxpayers and middle-class families could face increased public spending or reallocation of public-health budgets to support sustainable funding and certification recognition for CHW programs.
CHWs in states that do not adopt or recognize certification could experience lower support and pay, producing geographic disparities in CHW access and services, especially in rural communities.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Recognizes CHWs' roles and networks, highlights evidence of effectiveness, and urges sustainable funding and fair wages for workforce retention.
Official title: Supporting the designation of the week of August 25 through August 29, 2025, as the third annual "National Community Health Worker Awareness Week".
Introduced July 23, 2025 by Ronald Lee Wyden · Last progress July 23, 2025
Recognizes community health workers (CHWs) as trusted frontline public health workers, describes their roles and diversity, and defines community health worker networks. Emphasizes evidence of CHW effectiveness across many health areas and calls for sustainable funding to ensure fair wages, retention, and workforce development.