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Congress·In Committee·H.R. 7623

Congressional Gold Medal for Freedom House Ambulance Service

Freedom House Ambulance Service Congressional Gold Medal Act

22 days ago·View on Congress.gov

Legislative Progress

House
Senate
President
Law

Key Points

  • This bill would award the Congressional Gold Medal to the Freedom House Ambulance Service. This group from Pittsburgh was the first in the country to use paramedics who were trained to give medical care on the way to the hospital, rather than just providing a ride.
  • In the 1960s, ambulances were usually run by police or funeral homes and offered very little medical help. Freedom House changed this by training Black residents from Pittsburgh's Hill District to perform life-saving procedures like CPR and intubation in the streets.
  • The program was created to provide jobs and medical care to a neighborhood struggling with poverty. While the service was shut down in 1975 due to political and racial tensions, their training methods became the blueprint for every modern ambulance service used in America today.
  • If the bill passes, the gold medal will be displayed at the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. The U.S. Mint would also be allowed to sell bronze copies of the medal to the public to help pay for the program.

Milestones

2 milestones2 actions
Feb 20, 2026House

Referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on House Administration, 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.

Feb 20, 2026

Introduced in House

Source Information

Document Type

Congressional Bill

Official Title

Freedom House Ambulance Service Congressional Gold Medal Act

Bill NumberHR 7623
Congress119th Congress
ChamberHouse of Representatives
Latest ActionReferred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to the Committee on House Administration, 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.

Sponsor

Cosponsors

(21)
D: 18R: 3

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