WELLS Act
Sponsored By: Representative Kelly, Robin L. [D-IL-2]
Introduced
Summary
Stronger discharge planning for pregnant patients would require hospitals that participate in Medicare to create and document a discharge plan when a pregnant person shows signs of labor and is expected to leave before delivery. The requirement would begin January 1, 2027.
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- Families: Pregnant people would receive a written, language‑appropriate plan that explains the clinical reason for discharge, assesses travel time, verifies reliable transportation, and names a backup hospital if labor occurs after discharge.
- Hospitals and clinicians: Acute care hospitals, critical access hospitals, and rural emergency hospitals that take Medicare would need to include the plan in the medical record and have it reviewed and approved by a qualified medical professional under rules set by the Secretary.
- Rural systems and policymakers: The bill would refocus rural maternal health training, fund a national implementation science initiative to evaluate training models, and create a public interagency dashboard to track maternal health outcomes and investments.
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Bill Overview
Analyzed Economic Effects
3 provisions identified: 3 benefits, 0 costs, 0 mixed.
Discharge plans for pregnant patients
If enacted, starting January 1, 2027, hospitals that take Medicare would need to make a discharge plan for any admitted person identified as pregnant who shows signs of labor and is expected to go home before delivery. The plan would be put in the medical record and discussed with the patient or their representative before discharge. It must explain the clinical reason for discharge, check travel distance and travel time to the hospital, verify reliable transportation, name a backup delivery hospital, show a qualified clinician approved it, and be given in the patient’s primary language with understanding confirmed. The rule would not replace other discharge planning rules.
Public maternal health dashboard for HHS
If enacted, HHS would build and publish a public maternal health dashboard on HHS websites. The dashboard would compile maternal health outcome data from HHS agencies and the implementation science initiative, including maternal deaths, severe maternal illness, numbers and outcomes of pre-delivery discharges, and federal maternal health research investments. The dashboard would be available to researchers, policymakers, providers, and the public.
Rural maternal training and evaluation
If enacted, HHS would create a multi-center implementation science initiative to test and compare maternal health training models, like in-person, virtual, simulation, and cohort-based training, and measure impacts on provider behavior, patient outcomes, and disparities. Starting with grants awarded for fiscal year 2027, rural maternal training grant winners would have to meet annual performance milestones to keep funding. Grants would have to fund racial bias training and the Secretary would publish annual public reports by January 1, 2027 listing recipients, grant amounts, delivery formats, geographic coverage, number trained, and patient-level outcome and disparity measures.
Sponsors & CoSponsors
Sponsor
Kelly, Robin L. [D-IL-2]
IL • D
Cosponsors
Rep. Watson Coleman, Bonnie [D-NJ-12]
NJ • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Clarke, Yvette D. [D-NY-9]
NY • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. McIver, LaMonica [D-NJ-10]
NJ • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Del. Norton, Eleanor Holmes [D-DC-At Large]
DC • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Sewell
AL • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Brown, Shontel M. [D-OH-11]
OH • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Moore, Gwen [D-WI-4]
WI • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Foushee, Valerie P. [D-NC-4]
NC • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Wilson (FL)
FL • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Tlaib, Rashida [D-MI-12]
MI • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Ansari, Yassamin [D-AZ-3]
AZ • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Tonko, Paul [D-NY-20]
NY • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Fields, Cleo [D-LA-6]
LA • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Cherfilus-McCormick
FL • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Davis (IL)
IL • D
Sponsored 3/5/2026
Rep. Hayes, Jahana [D-CT-5]
CT • D
Sponsored 3/19/2026
Simon
CA • D
Sponsored 4/14/2026
Mfume
MD • D
Sponsored 4/16/2026
Rep. Carter, Troy A. [D-LA-2]
LA • D
Sponsored 4/16/2026
Rep. Williams, Nikema [D-GA-5]
GA • D
Sponsored 4/16/2026
Rep. Menefee, Christian D. [D-TX-18]
TX • D
Sponsored 4/16/2026
Rep. Quigley, Mike [D-IL-5]
IL • D
Sponsored 4/16/2026
Ivey
MD • D
Sponsored 4/20/2026
Rep. Beatty, Joyce [D-OH-3]
OH • D
Sponsored 4/20/2026
Rep. Tokuda, Jill N. [D-HI-2]
HI • D
Sponsored 4/20/2026
Rep. Underwood, Lauren [D-IL-14]
IL • D
Sponsored 4/21/2026
Rep. Jayapal, Pramila [D-WA-7]
WA • D
Sponsored 4/28/2026
Rep. Leger Fernandez, Teresa [D-NM-3]
NM • D
Sponsored 4/29/2026
Khanna
CA • D
Sponsored 4/29/2026
Conaway
NJ • D
Sponsored 4/30/2026
McBath
GA • D
Sponsored 5/12/2026
Roll Call Votes
No roll call votes available for this bill.
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