PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, 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.
Congressional Research Service
No official summary is available in the imported record yet.
People & committees
Rep. Guest, Michael [R-MS-3] · R–MS
Legislative record
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Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, 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.
Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, 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.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Oct 14, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2026-10-05 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
The bill would create federal grants to train professionals who investigate deaths and analyze drugs and other substances involved in deaths. Eligible medical training programs, public medical examiner or coroner offices, and public laboratories could receive support for fellowships, training, certification, and certain accreditation costs. Payments and benefits to individuals under the program would be exempt from tax. The bill would authorize $13 million annually for fiscal years 2028–2032; that authorization would not itself provide the money.
(c) Grants The Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities described in subsection (d) to assist such entities in addressing their shortages by offering the training and fellowships described in subsection (e)(1).
(d) Eligibility To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, an entity shall be— (1) a graduate medical education program— (A) accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education that offers a forensic pathology fellowship that is so accredited; or (B) that is seeking such accreditation for a forensic pathology fellowship; (2) a publicly funded medical examiner or coroner office that is accredited or seeking accreditation; or (3) a publicly funded forensic toxicology laboratory that supports medical examiner and coroner offices and that is accredited or seeking accreditation.
(g) Tax waiver The payment amounts to an individual under this section or any other benefit received by the individual from the grant recipient shall not be taxable to the individual.
(i) Authorization of appropriations (1) In general There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this section $13,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2028 through 2032.
Section 1 would name the legislation the “Strengthening the Medical Examiner and Coroner System Act of 2026.”
1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Strengthening the Medical Examiner and Coroner System Act of 2026.
Section 2 would add a workforce grant program to the Public Health Service Act. The Secretary would administer it through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Collaborating Office of Medical Examiners and Coroners and would be required to award grants to eligible entities.
2. Forensic medical needs Part E of title VII of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 294n et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 4 Forensic pathology workforce 779. Grants to address the forensic medicine service provider shortage
(3) Secretary The term Secretary means the Secretary, acting through the Collaborating Office of Medical Examiners and Coroners of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
(c) Grants The Secretary shall award grants to eligible entities described in subsection (d) to assist such entities in addressing their shortages by offering the training and fellowships described in subsection (e)(1).
The program’s stated aims are to encourage entry into forensic pathology and death investigation and to build laboratory workers’ skills in interpreting toxicology findings. These are legislative goals, not demonstrated results. The bill defines a medicolegal death investigator as someone who formally investigates a death’s circumstances to help determine its cause and manner.
(b) Purposes The purposes of this section are— (1) to encourage and incentivize qualified medical school graduates to enter the practice of forensic pathology by supporting forensic pathology fellowships; (2) to encourage and incentivize qualified individuals to enter the field of medicolegal death investigation to conduct death investigations in support of forensic medicine service providers; and (3) to support qualified individuals who enter the field of forensic toxicology through employment in forensic toxicology laboratories in the acquisition of skills in pharmacology, advanced and emerging toxicological methods, and instrumentation needed to assist with the interpretation of toxicological findings.
(2) Medicolegal death investigator The term medicolegal death investigator means an individual who performs formal inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death of a human being to assist in the determination of the cause and manner of death.
Eligible grant recipients would include medical education programs with accredited forensic pathology fellowships or seeking that accreditation. Publicly funded medical examiner or coroner offices and forensic toxicology laboratories supporting those offices would also qualify if accredited or seeking accreditation.
(d) Eligibility To be eligible to receive a grant under this section, an entity shall be— (1) a graduate medical education program— (A) accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education that offers a forensic pathology fellowship that is so accredited; or (B) that is seeking such accreditation for a forensic pathology fellowship; (2) a publicly funded medical examiner or coroner office that is accredited or seeking accreditation; or (3) a publicly funded forensic toxicology laboratory that supports medical examiner and coroner offices and that is accredited or seeking accreditation.
Grant funds could pay selected forensic pathology fellows’ salaries, employment benefits, related supplies, and other educational expenses.
(e) Use of grant funds (1) In general An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall use the grant funds— (A) to provide payment to individuals selected by such entity for a forensic pathology fellowship for salary, fringe benefits, related supply expenses, and other educational expenses of such individuals;
Grant funds could train death investigators, including paying continuing education costs to obtain or maintain certification from the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigation or another accredited certifying organization.
(B) to provide training for medicolegal death investigators, including paying for the costs of continuing education for medicolegal death investigators for purposes of such individuals— (i) becoming certified by the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigation (or another accredited certifying organization); and (ii) maintaining such certification;
Grants could support employees’ education in how drugs act and in methods and equipment used to interpret toxicology findings. They could also support initial certification, continued certification, or recertification through the listed organizations or another accredited certifying organization, and help eligible entities obtain accreditation for forensic pathology fellowships.
(C) to assist eligible entities— (i) in providing the education and training to individuals employed by such entities necessary— (I) to gain initial competency, additional training, and continuing education in pharmacology and advanced and emerging toxicological methods and instrumentation needed to assist with the interpretation of toxicological findings; (II) to become certified by the American Board of Forensic Toxicology, the American Association of Clinical Chemistry, or another accredited certifying organization; or (III) to maintain such certification or to obtain recertification by such a certifying organization; or (ii) in obtaining accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education for forensic pathology fellowships.
Recipients could use up to 15 percent of each grant for administrative expenses, including grant management services.
(2) Administrative costs An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section may use not more than 15 percent of the total amount of the grant for administrative expenses, including grant management services.
The first numbered set of fellowship eligibility requirements calls for enrollment in or completion of an accredited anatomical pathology or combined anatomical and clinical pathology residency. It also requires that the individual never have defaulted on any public or private student loan.
(f) Recipient requirements To be eligible to receive a fellowship funded by a grant under this section, an individual shall— (1) (A) be enrolled in, or have completed, an anatomical pathology or anatomical and clinical pathology residency program accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education; and (B) not be, and never have been, in default on any public or private student loan;
The second numbered set of fellowship requirements calls for a bachelor’s-level or postbaccalaureate degree or concentration in a listed medical or forensic field and work as a coroner or death investigator, full-time or under contract, with a publicly funded medical examiner or coroner office. It also includes certification-related conditions, but the wording is unclear about whether some conditions apply to the office or the individual.
(2) (A) be an individual who has completed a program of baccalaureate or postbaccalaureate education and earned a degree, or completed a concentration, in forensic science, natural science, anthropology, nursing, or other medical and forensic-related fields; and (B) be a coroner or medicolegal death investigator working full-time at, or in a contractual relationship with, a publicly funded medical examiner or coroner office that— (i) has not achieved, and is seeking, certification by an accredited certification organization described in subsection (e)(1)(B)(i); or (ii) who is seeking continuing education for purposes of maintaining such certification;
The third numbered set of fellowship requirements calls for a bachelor’s-level or postbaccalaureate degree or concentration in forensic, physical, or natural sciences with a chemistry, toxicology, or closely related component. It also requires employment by the eligible entity as a toxicologist or pharmacologist.
(3) (A) have completed a program of baccalaureate or postbaccalaureate education and earned a degree, or completed a concentration, in forensic science or physical or natural sciences, with a chemistry, toxicology, or other closely related scientific or forensic component; and (B) be employed by the eligible entity as a toxicologist or pharmacologist.
Payments to individuals under the program, and any other benefits they receive from a grant recipient, would not be taxable to those individuals.
(g) Tax waiver The payment amounts to an individual under this section or any other benefit received by the individual from the grant recipient shall not be taxable to the individual.
Grant decisions would have to consider distribution among states, the balance between rural and urban funding, and rural needs. Those needs expressly include communities with above-national-average incidence of opioid use disorder and communities short of forensic medicine service providers. The provision specifies considerations, not guaranteed amounts for particular communities.
(h) Geographic distribution In awarding grants under this section, the Secretary shall take into consideration— (1) the geographic distribution of grant funding among the States; (2) the relative proportion of grant funding between rural and urban areas; and (3) the unique needs of rural communities, including— (A) communities with an incidence of individuals with opioid use disorder that is above the national average; and (B) communities with a shortage of forensic medicine service providers.
The bill would authorize $13 million for each fiscal year from 2028 through 2032. This would authorize future funding rather than itself appropriate money for spending.
(i) Authorization of appropriations (1) In general There is authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary to carry out this section $13,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2028 through 2032.
From money made available each year, the Secretary would have to allocate at least $7 million for forensic pathology fellowship payments, at least $3 million for death investigator training, and at least $3 million for the toxicology education and fellowship-accreditation uses in subsection (e)(1)(C). The fellowship allocation would also have to fund at least 40 forensic pathology fellowships.
(2) Allocations Of the amounts made available each fiscal year under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall allocate— (A) subject to paragraph (3), not less than $7,000,000 for grants to eligible entities carrying out the purpose described in subsection (e)(1)(A); (B) not less than $3,000,000 for grants to eligible entities carrying out the purpose described in subsection (e)(1)(B); and (C) not less than $3,000,000 for grants to eligible entities carrying out the purpose described in subsection (e)(1)(C).
(3) Fellowship minimum In allocating amounts for grants to eligible entities carrying out the purpose described in subsection (e)(1)(A), the Secretary shall award sufficient grant funding to such entities to ensure that not fewer than 40 forensic pathology fellowships are funded.
(A) to provide payment to individuals selected by such entity for a forensic pathology fellowship for salary, fringe benefits, related supply expenses, and other educational expenses of such individuals;
(B) to provide training for medicolegal death investigators, including paying for the costs of continuing education for medicolegal death investigators
(C) to assist eligible entities— (i) in providing the education and training to individuals employed by such entities necessary— (I) to gain initial competency, additional training, and continuing education in pharmacology and advanced and emerging toxicological methods and instrumentation needed to assist with the interpretation of toxicological findings; (II) to become certified by the American Board of Forensic Toxicology, the American Association of Clinical Chemistry, or another accredited certifying organization; or (III) to maintain such certification or to obtain recertification by such a certifying organization; or (ii) in obtaining accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education for forensic pathology fellowships.
The supplied actions snapshot, updated October 14, 2026, records introduction in the House on October 5, 2026, and referral that day to the Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means committees for provisions within their respective jurisdictions.
Source snapshot updated 2026-10-14T20:31:05Z.
2026-10-05: Introduced in House
2026-10-05: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on Ways and Means, 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.
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2026-10-05. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or policy rider was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish the contents or attachment history of other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for a particular recipient or place was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. Program authorizations and allocations alone do not establish earmarks. This conclusion does not cover other versions or absent disclosure and committee materials.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
Findings to examine
The supplied introduced text includes a program-specific tax exemption. This is a narrow benefit related to the bill’s main workforce policy; its classification does not imply improper purpose.
Individuals receiving program payments or other benefits from grant recipients would receive a specific tax exemption for those amounts or benefits. This gives the program’s individual beneficiaries special tax treatment beyond the training and fellowship support itself.
(g) Tax waiver The payment amounts to an individual under this section or any other benefit received by the individual from the grant recipient shall not be taxable to the individual.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Oct 14, 2026. How PlainBill uses AI