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HR 7079 110th Congress House

Patient Advocate Act of 2008

Official title: To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a demonstration grants program to provide for certain patient coordination, outreach, and as… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a demonstration grants program to provide for certain patient coordination, outreach, and assistance services to reduce barriers to receiving health care and improve health care outcomes.

Introduced: September 25, 2008 Introduced by: Scott, Robert C. "Bobby" Democratic · Virginia See on congress.gov
Health Access to health careClinical trialsConflict of interestsContinuum of care
More subjectsShow fewer subjects
DebtFinance and Financial SectorGovernment Operations and PoliticsGrants-in-aidHealth insuranceLabor and EmploymentLawLegal feesMedical ethicsMedical testsMinoritiesMinority healthOmbudsmanPatient satisfactionPatients' rights
This bill died when the 110th Congress ended
It never became law before the 110th Congress (2007–2008) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 4 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Sep 27, 2008
Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E2044)
Sep 25, 2008
Referred to the Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.
Sep 25, 2008
Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
Sep 25, 2008
Introduced in House
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 Latest action September 27, 2008

Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E2044)

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Patient Advocate Act of 2008 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a demonstration program under which the Secretary may make grants for the development and operation of programs to provide services for patients to resolve health insurance, job retention, and debt crisis matters related to the patients' diagnosis and illness. Includes as services to be provided by grant recipients: (1) acting as contacts for individuals who are seeking prevention or early detection services or treatment for an adverse health condition; (2) facilitating the involvement of community organizations in assisting individuals to receive better access to high-quality health care services; (3) notifying individuals of clinical trials and facilitating enrollment of individuals in trials; (4) anticipating, identifying, and helping individuals to overcome barriers within the health care system to ensure prompt diagnosis and treatment; (5) coordinating with the relevant health insurance ombudsman programs to provide information to individuals about health coverage; and (6) conducting ongoing outreach to health disparity populations in addition to assisting other individuals to seek preventive care.

Directs the Secretary to: (1) require grantees to prohibit any patient health advocate providing services under the grant from accepting any referral fee, kickback, or other thing of value in return for referring an individual to a particular health care provider; and (2) prohibit the use of any grant funds to pay any fees or costs resulting from any proceeding to resolve a legal dispute.

Sets forth provisions prohibiting discrimination in any program or activities funded or otherwise financially assisted under this Act.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 2
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APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 7079: Patient Advocate Act of 2008. 110th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-7079/
MLA
"H.R. 7079: Patient Advocate Act of 2008." 110th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-7079/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 7079, 110th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-7079/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 7079: Patient Advocate Act of 2008](https://openamerica.io/bill/110-HR-7079/)
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