H.R. 5335

Nurses for Impoverished Schools Act

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111th CONGRESS

2d Session

H. R. 5335

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

May 18, 2010

Mr. Marshall (for himself and Mr. Castle) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

A BILL

To amend the Public Health Service Act to authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to make grants to eligible local educational agencies for the purpose of reducing the student-to-nurse ratio in public elementary and secondary schools.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Nurses for Impoverished Schools Act.

2.

Reducing student-to-nurse ratios in public schools

Title VIII of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 296 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

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School nurses

861.

Reducing student-to-nurse ratios

(a)

Demonstration grants

The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, may make demonstration grants to eligible local educational agencies for the purpose of reducing the student-to-nurse ratio in public elementary and secondary schools.

(b)

Report

Not later than 24 months after the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress a report on the results of the demonstration grant program carried out under this section, including an evaluation of the effectiveness of the program in improving the student-to-nurse ratios described in subsection (a) and an evaluation of the impact of any resulting enhanced health of students on learning.

(c)

Definitions

For purposes of this section:

(1)

The terms elementary school and secondary school have the meanings given to those terms in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).

(2)

The term eligible local educational agency means a local educational agency in which—

(A)

not less than 20 percent of the students served by the agency are from families with incomes below the poverty line (as defined in section 9101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801)); and

(B)

the student-to-school nurse ratio in public elementary and secondary schools is 750 or more students to every school nurse.

(3)

The term nurse means a licensed nurse.

(d)

Authorization of appropriations

To carry out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2011 through 2015.

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