Congress·In Committee·H.R. 7496

Health Investment Zones Act of 2026

Rep. Harder Proposes 'Health Investment Zones' to Tackle Medical Shortages in Poor Communities

Feb 11·View on Congress.gov·Read full text

Part of: Bipartisan Health Investment Zones Act Introduced to Combat Medical Shortages

Next up: A house committee

This bill is currently sitting in three different House committees and has not moved since February 2026. Nothing has happened with this proposal for four months, and its companion bill in the Senate is also not moving forward. The bill must receive a vote or review from these committees before it can proceed further.

Companion bill: Senate Committee Reviews Health Investment Zones Act to Boost Care in Underserved Areas →

Legislative Progress

House

Senate

President

Law

Key Points

This bill would create "Health Investment Zones" in communities that struggle with poverty, short life expectancies, or a shortage of doctors. These areas would get special federal help for 10 years to help residents get healthier and close the gap in medical care.
To bring more medical staff to these areas, the bill offers healthcare workers a 30% tax credit on their wages. It also provides up to $10,000 a year to help doctors, nurses, and dentists pay off their student loans if they commit to working in these zones for at least one year.
Local groups and governments could get grants to fund projects like mobile clinics, free rides to medical appointments, and better access to healthy food and housing. These grants can also be used to fix up local clinics or buy new medical equipment like X-ray machines.
Medicare would pay doctors more for treating patients in these zones. This includes a 10% bonus for most services and an extra 10% bonus for wellness checkups and cancer screenings to encourage people to get preventative care before they get sick.

HealthcareTaxesEducationLabor Employment

Impact Analysis

Personal Impact

Scores run from -100 (strongly harmful) to +100 (strongly beneficial) for each group, combining impact, certainty, scope, and duration ratings of 1-5. How impact scoring works

Life & Work

Grants can fund internships and volunteer opportunities for students who live in Health Investment Zones, giving them exposure to healthcare careers. This is a relatively small provision but could help build a pipeline of future healthcare workers from underserved communities.

ImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Programs

Disabilities

State Impacts

StateScoreImpactCertaintyScopeDurationSentiment

Scores: 1 = low, 5 = highSentiment: -5 to +5 (net benefit)

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions

Feb 11, 2026House

Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.

Feb 11, 2026

Introduced in House

The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.

No votes or news coverage recorded for this bill yet.

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

Health Investment Zones Act of 2026

Bill NumberHR 7496

Congress119th Congress

ChamberHouse of Representatives

Latest ActionReferred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Ways and Means, and Education and Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Data Sources

Congress.gov

Official legislative information

Read Full Bill Text

Sponsor

Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.