United States 119th Congress Status: In Committee 19 D cosponsors

HR 7478 — Patient Debt Relief Act

Last action — Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed House
  4. 4
    Passed Senate
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced February 10, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the House.

Prognosis

Stalled 26% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 19 sponsors

    1 primary, 18 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Single-party support

    Sponsorship is currently within one party (19 D).

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Bill Text

How this bill changes current law

4 changes Share ↗

Compared against current U.S. Code AI-generated reading aid — verify against the official bill.

The bill establishes new standards and requirements for hospitals participating in Medicare regarding financial assistance and medical debt collection, and creates a grant program for medical debt relief.

  • 42 U.S.C. 1395cc

    to comply with the financial assistance and debt collection requirements described in subsection (l).

    This adds a new requirement for hospitals to comply with specified financial assistance and debt collection standards starting January 1, 2028.

  • 42 U.S.C. 1395cc

    A hospital that fails to comply with the requirements of subsection (a)(1)(Z) (relating to financial assistance and debt collection) is subject to a civil monetary penalty under this paragraph.

    This introduces civil monetary penalties for hospitals that do not meet the new financial assistance and debt collection requirements.

  • 42 U.S.C. 1395cc

    For purposes of subsection (a)(1)(Z), the financial assistance and debt collection requirements are, with respect to a hospital--

    This begins a detailed specification of the new financial assistance and debt collection requirements that hospitals must follow.

  • 42 U.S.C. 280g

    the Secretary shall establish a program under which the Secretary may make grants to not more than 1 eligible nonprofit organization to acquire and discharge the medical debt (as defined by the Secretary) of eligible individuals in accordance with this section.

    This creates a grant program for medical debt relief, allowing a nonprofit to acquire and discharge medical debt for eligible individuals.

Action History

  1. Introduced in House

  2. Introduced in House

  3. Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

  4. Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 18 co-sponsors · 528 not signed on

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (18)

Not signed on (528)

528 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 528 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Subjects

civil-rights healthcare education health-insurance
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

Who sponsors HR 7478?
HR 7478 is sponsored by Stansbury, Melanie A. (Democratic), Ruiz, Raul (Democratic), Castor, Kathy (Democratic), Thanedar, Shri (Democratic), Clarke, Yvette D. (Democratic), Schrier, Kim (Democratic), Garcia, Robert (Democratic), Barragán, Nanette Diaz (Democratic), Landsman, Greg (Democratic), Frost, Maxwell (Democratic), Norton, Eleanor Holmes (Democratic), Craig, Angie (Democratic), García, Jesús G. "Chuy" (Democratic), Simon, Lateefah (Democratic), Goldman, Daniel S. (Democratic), Horsford, Steven (Democratic), DelBene, Suzan K. (Democratic), Cohen, Steve (Democratic), and Vasquez, Gabe (Democratic).
What is the current status of HR 7478?
This bill is in committee in the House. Introduced February 10, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track HR 7478?
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Last checked for changes 4 months ago · updated continuously

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