Overview
Title
To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act and Public Health Service Act to improve the reporting of abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and for other purposes.
ELI5 AI
H.R. 627 wants to make sure doctors tell all about how and when women have abortions to help with better health plans, but some people are worried it might not keep their personal secrets safe.
Summary AI
H.R. 627 seeks to enhance the reporting of abortion data in the United States by amending the Social Security Act and the Public Health Service Act. It mandates that states must submit detailed abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to continue receiving Medicaid payments for certain family planning services. Key data points include the mother's age, race, and marital status, gestational age, the method of abortion, and previous pregnancies. The bill aims to ensure accurate and comprehensive data collection to improve public health and policy analysis.
Published
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AnalysisAI
General Summary of the Bill
H.R. 627, titled the "Ensuring Accurate and Complete Abortion Data Reporting Act of 2025," aims to improve the reporting of abortion data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The bill proposes amendments to the Social Security Act and the Public Health Service Act, making Medicaid payments for certain family planning services contingent upon states submitting certified abortion data to the CDC. It also mandates the CDC to maintain a surveillance system to collect and publish standardized data on abortions across the United States.
Significant Issues
One of the primary concerns with the bill is the potential privacy implications of collecting mandatory data, including sensitive personal information like maternal age, race, and marital status. The bill does not explicitly outline measures to ensure privacy and data protection, which raises ethical questions about the handling of this sensitive information.
Additionally, there's a significant gap between the timing of data collection and the publication of reports by the CDC. The provision for publishing reports by the end of the third year following the data's collection might result in outdated information, which could reduce the relevance and actionability of the data for public health and policy analysis.
The bill also raises concerns about the administrative burden on states. It requires states to certify and submit data to receive Medicaid payments, which could potentially strain resources. There's an absence of specified funding or resources for technical assistance to aid states in this task, potentially leading to inconsistent data quality across different regions.
Impact on the Public
Broadly, the bill aims to create a more complete and standardized understanding of abortion statistics in the United States. By improving abortion data reporting, policymakers and public health officials could develop more informed public health strategies and policies. However, the bill's implementation might lead to privacy invasions and administrative challenges for states, potentially impacting the quality and consistency of care.
Impact on Specific Stakeholders
For states, especially those lacking robust data collection systems, the bill could impose a significant administrative burden. States may struggle to comply with the data submission requirements without additional resources, and the penalty for falsely reporting data could lead to legal challenges and financial penalties.
For individuals and privacy advocates, the bill's requirements for states to report detailed personal information might be concerning due to the lack of clear privacy protections. There is a need for robust safeguards to prevent potential misuse of sensitive data.
Healthcare providers might be affected indirectly, as states navigate the demands of implementing comprehensive data collection processes. This might detract from resources available for patient care and could shift focus from service delivery to data management.
In conclusion, while the bill aims to improve the understanding of abortion data for better public health policy, its execution must carefully balance the need for comprehensive data with privacy rights and resource allocations to avoid unintended negative consequences.
Issues
The mandatory nature of certain data collection questions in Section 4 could raise significant privacy concerns, as sensitive personal information is being gathered without specific mention of how privacy and data protection for individuals will be ensured.
In Section 3, the provision that states may continue to receive payment for family planning services if they submit data late by the end of the year without clear repercussions could enable misuse of funds.
The findings in Section 2 make significant claims about the importance of accurate statistical data for public health and policy analysis but lack clarity on what constitutes 'accurate statistical data' and how this data will be standardized and evaluated.
Section 4 requires the CDC to publish data reports by the end of the third year following the data's collection, which may result in outdated information. This lengthy timeline could reduce the data's actionability.
In Section 317W, funding and resources for technical assistance to states are not specified, potentially leading to inconsistent data quality across different states.
The penalty for knowingly providing false information in Section 3 is significant, yet the process for determining falsity and the opportunity for appeals are unspecified, which might lead to legal disputes.
The decisions of the Secretary regarding additional voluntary questions in Section 4 could lead to biased or inconsistent data collection without clear guidelines or oversight, raising ethical concerns.
In Section 317W, there is an emphasis on collecting data on 'whether the child survived the abortion,' which could lead to legal and ethical issues depending on its interpretation and use.
Sections
Sections are presented as they are annotated in the original legislative text. Any missing headers, numbers, or non-consecutive order is due to the original text.
1. Short title Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The first section of this bill provides its short title, which is the “Ensuring Accurate and Complete Abortion Data Reporting Act of 2025.”
2. Findings Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
Congress highlights the lack of consistent and comprehensive abortion data across the United States, noting the voluntary nature of reporting and the variation in data collection by states. It points out that some states, making up a significant portion of the population, do not report any abortion data, which is important for public health and policy analysis.
3. Medicaid payments for certain family planning services and supplies contingent on submission of abortion data to CDC Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The section amends the Social Security Act to condition Medicaid payments for certain family planning services on the submission of abortion data to the CDC. States must submit certified abortion data annually by a specified deadline to continue receiving these payments, and they risk losing funding if they provide false information.
4. Collection of abortion data by CDC Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The section requires the CDC to collect and publish data on abortions in the United States, ensuring a standardized format that includes various factors like maternal age, race, marital status, and abortion method. It mandates the inclusion of specific data points, offers technical assistance to states, and stipulates an annual report be published within three years of data collection.
317W. Abortion data Read Opens in new tab
Summary AI
The Secretary, through the CDC, will maintain a system to collect standardized data on abortions in the U.S. This system will ask mandatory and voluntary questions about factors like maternal age, race, gestational age, and abortion methods, and will allow for cross-tabulation of these variables. States will receive help to improve reporting, and an annual report on abortion data will be published.