Review of a bill: H.R.647: Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act

H.R.647: Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act
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H.R.647: Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act
On October 28, 2019, the U.S. House of Representatives unanimously voted to approve HR 647, the Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act (PCHETA). The Senate received the bill on October 29, 2019, where it was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pension. PCHETA requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to implement several amendments regarding training in palliative care. The bill was initially introduced by Representative Eliot L. Engel (D-NY-16) on January 17, 2019. It was passed with 296 bipartisan cosponsors and endorsements from 54 national organizations. Its current cosponsors are 295 (Democratic-194, Republic-101) and involve two committees: The House Energy and Commerce, and The Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. It is related to S.2080 (Palliative Care and Hospice Education and Training Act) as identified by the Congressional Research Services.
In this case, the bill prompts HHS to support the Palliative Care and Hospice Education Centers. The legislation seeks to amend the Public Health Service Act to increase the number of permanent faculty in palliative care at accredited medical, nursing, and social work schools and other programs (Engel, 2019). Also, the amendment aims to promote education and research in palliative care and hospice and support the development of faculty careers in academic palliative medicine.
Rep Eliot L. Engel, the PCHETA author, suggested that the bill will expand the opportunities for training in palliative and hospice care as well as improve patient, family, and professional education about palliative care. Engel emphasized that the bill encourages NIH to expand research on palliative care and hospice. Rep Will Hurd (R-TX-23) pointed out that the Palliative Care and Hospice Training Act is a recommendable move towards improving the care for the elderly in society (Hurd on the Hill. 2020). The President of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine, Joanne Wolfe, applauded the bill claiming that it will not only help in improving the quality of health care provided to patients with serious illness but also serve as a relief to their caregivers and families (Engel, 2019). Similar sentiments were issued by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and the American Cancer Society Action Network (ACS CAN) through their representatives. The bill has been around for several years, and its strong bipartisan sponsorship in the Senate and many are hopeful that it will become law upon further legislation.
According to the Center for Advance Palliative Care, the main aim of palliative care is to improve the quality of life for patients with serious illness and re...