Sponsors (17)
The bill invests federal funds to expand paid training, supports, and targeted pathways to strengthen and diversify the allied and maternal health workforce—especially for low‑income, rural/tribal, and justice‑involved people—while increasing federal spending and adding programmatic constraints, administrative burdens, and limits on funding flexibility.
Low-income individuals gain paid training, credentialing, childcare, transportation, stipends, and emergency supports to enter higher‑paying allied and behavioral health careers.
Pregnant and postpartum people and related maternal health roles benefit from funded pathways (doulas, midwives, community health workers), strengthening the maternal‑health workforce in participating States.
People with arrest or conviction records receive targeted career pathways, legal assistance, and employer engagement to improve hiring prospects in allied and behavioral health.
Federal taxpayers fund roughly $435 million per year through 2030 for these demonstrations, increasing federal spending and creating potential budget tradeoffs.
The requirement that at least 25% of funds go to each demonstration type reduces program flexibility to reallocate money to other urgent workforce needs or more effective approaches.
Extensive administrative, reporting, and meeting requirements increase grantee burden and can divert limited staff time and funds away from direct service delivery.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Tightens and adds detailed application requirements for health-care career pathway grants and specified demonstration projects, effective Oct 1, 2025.
Official title: To provide low-income individuals with opportunities to enter and follow a career pathway in the health professions, and for other purposes.
Introduced September 16, 2025 by Danny K. Davis · Last progress September 16, 2025
Establishes updated application requirements for Career Pathways through the Health Profession Opportunity Grants and related demonstration projects, effective October 1, 2025. The changes require grant applicants to describe a comprehensive career-pathways model (basic education, work readiness, training, case management, coaching, staffing, and partner arrangements) and to include post-employment supports and ongoing training. Adds targeted demonstration-project application rules for preparing people for specific health occupations: applicants must address state credentialing policies for people with certain arrest/conviction records, demonstrate partnerships and state recognition for pregnancy/birth/postpartum roles (for example, doulas and midwives), and show experience working with low-income populations or partner with experienced organizations.