The Health Opportunities to Promote Equity Act (HOPE Act), H.R. 5379, would require the Health Profession Opportunity Grants (HPOG) program under section 2008 of the Social Security Act to distribute grants so that, for each grant cycle, at least two eligible entities in every state (excluding U.S. territories) receive a grant, provided there are enough eligible applications. The bill also adds an accountability mechanism: the Secretary must report to Congress on the number of applications, the number approved, and, in cases where a state has fewer than two eligible applicants, how grants were awarded. The amendments take effect October 1, 2025. The bill also includes the District of Columbia in the guaranteed-grantee requirement. In short, HOPE Act aims to expand geographic distribution of HPOG grants and increase transparency around grant awards and eligibility.
Key Points
- 1For each grant cycle, the Secretary must award at least two HPOG grants to eligible entities in every state that is not a territory, provided there are at least two eligible applications meeting program requirements.
- 2If a state has fewer than two eligible entities, the Secretary must report that fact in the required Congress report for the applicable fiscal year.
- 3The Secretary must annually report to the House Ways and Means Committee and Senate Finance Committee the number of applications submitted under each subsection, the number approved, and a description of how grants were awarded in states with fewer than two eligible entities.
- 4The bill makes changes to the Social Security Act’s HPOG program by adding a new subsection (c) and reorganizing existing subsections (with subsequent renumbering of subsections (c) and (d) to (d) and (e)).
- 5Effective date: the amendments take effect October 1, 2025, with DC included in the guaranteed-grantee requirement.