Kira Johnson Act

Senate Bill

S. 2239

119th Congress

Kira Johnson Act

In Committee

Introduced:Jul 10, 2025

Primary Sponsor

Tammy Duckworth

Senator

Democratic

IL

Cosponsors

5

Quick Stats

Policy Area

Health

Summary

This bill aims to improve maternal health outcomes and address racial disparities in maternal care. It provides grants to fund community-based programs, training for healthcare providers on reducing bias, and programs in hospitals to identify and address instances of racism or bias in maternity care.

Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

SponsorTammy Duckworth (D-IL)

Introduced7/10/2025

StatusRead twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

ChamberSenate

Data from Congress.gov

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Vote Prediction

Kira Johnson Act

This bill aims to improve maternal health outcomes and address racial disparities in maternal care. It provides grants to fund community-based programs, training for healthcare providers on reducing bias, and programs in hospitals to identify and address insta

Community Breakdown

Pass

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This bill aims to improve maternal health outcomes and address racial disparities in maternal care. It provides grants to fund community-based programs, training for healthcare providers on reducing bias, and programs in hospitals to identify and address instances of racism or bias in maternity care.

Bill Number: 2239
Sponsor: Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)
Introduced: 7/10/2025
Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Policy Area: Health

Data from Congress.gov

AI-generated summary

Fact Sheet

Title: Kira Johnson Act
Bill Number: 2239
Sponsor: Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)
Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Introduced: 7/10/2025
Summary: This bill aims to improve maternal health outcomes and address racial disparities in maternal care. It provides grants to fund community-based programs, training for healthcare providers on reducing bias, and programs in hospitals to identify and address instances of racism or bias in maternity care

Data from Congress.gov

AI Summary

Plain-English explanation of this bill

This bill aims to improve maternal health outcomes and address racial disparities in maternal care. It provides grants to fund community-based programs, training for healthcare providers on reducing bias, and programs in hospitals to identify and address instances of racism or bias in maternity care.

Last updated: 12/30/2025

Official Summary

Congressional Research Service summary

Kira Johnson Act This bill establishes various grants for establishing or expanding programs to advance maternal health equity. Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must award grants for <ul> <li>community-based programs to improve maternal health outcomes for demographic groups with elevated rates of maternal mortality and morbidity, maternal health disparities, and other adverse outcomes;</li> <li>training for health care providers and others who work in maternity care settings on reducing and preventing racism, bias, and discrimination; and</li> <li>programs in hospitals, health systems, and other maternity care settings to establish processes to identify and address instances of racism or evidence of bias in maternity care (i.e., respectful maternity care compliance programs).</li> </ul> HHS must contract with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to study issues related to the training programs, and the Government Accountability Office must study issues related to the respectful maternity care compliance programs.

Key Points

Main provisions of the bill

Establishes grants for community-based programs to improve maternal health outcomes for groups with high rates of maternal mortality and morbidity
Provides grants for training healthcare providers and others on reducing racism, bias, and discrimination in maternity care
Requires grants for hospitals and health systems to establish processes to identify and address instances of racism or bias in maternity care

How This Impacts Americans

Potential effects on citizens and communities

If passed, this bill would directly impact pregnant women, especially those from demographic groups with elevated maternal health risks. It aims to improve access to quality, equitable maternal care and reduce racial disparities in maternal health outcomes. Healthcare providers and hospitals that deliver maternity care would also be affected as they would need to implement new training and compliance programs.

Policy Areas

Primary Policy Area

Health

Scope & Jurisdiction

Jurisdiction Level

federal

Congressional Session

119th Congress

Citation Reference

2239, 119th Congress (2025). "Kira Johnson Act". Source: Voter's Right Platform. https://votersright.org/bills/118-s-2239

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