S. 3517: ACCESS Act

116th Congress · introduced 2020-03-18 · Health · Latest: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2020-03-18 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

ACCESS Act

Plain summary

Advancing Connectivity during the Coronavirus to Ensure Support for Seniors Act or the ACCESS Act This bill (1) provides appropriations for the Telehealth Resource Center Program of the Office for the Advancement of Telehealth within the Federal Office of Rural Health Policy in the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) to develop telehealth capacity for certain nursing facilities, and (2) directs other activities to increase access to telehealth services in such facilities during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) public health emergency. HRSA shall award grants, in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), to skilled nursing facilities and other nursing facilities to support virtual visits to residents during the emergency. The FCC shall waive requirements that apply to certain funding for telecommunication and broadband services for health care providers if those requirements prevent facilities that receive grants from carrying them out. The Department of Health and Human Services must also provide recommendations related to immediately increasing access, during the emergency, to telehealth services for which Medicare and Medicaid payments are available in skilled and other nursing facilities.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

ACCESS Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] · 9 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Jacky Rosen (D-NV), Tina Smith (D-MN), Jack Reed (D-RI), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] reported raising $2.5 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (2)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-116s3517.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/116/s>

Record fed-us-cong116-s3517 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116