Congress funds cord blood banks for transplants through 2031.

What it does

This bill gives money to the C.W. Bill Young Cell Transplantation Program. The program keeps cord blood stored for people who need transplants. It pays $31 million in 2026. It pays $33 million each year from 2027 to 2031. It updates rules for how cord blood is stored. It lets the Secretary move cord blood between banks if one closes.

Who it affects

People who need cord blood transplants benefit from the stored supply. Cord blood banks that store the blood get funding. Scientists and doctors who use cord blood for research are affected.

One thing to notice

The Secretary gets new power to move cord blood between banks. The Secretary can manage the supply based on science.

From the analysis of the bill text, linked under Primary records below.

Where it stands

21 cosponsors: 11 Democrats, 10 Republicans.

• Sep 4, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Sep 4, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Energy and Commerce · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce”
• May 13, 2026 — Markup held in committee · Congress.gov: “Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held”
• May 21, 2026 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 48 - 0”
• Jul 20, 2026 — Passed the House · Congress.gov: “On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H4642)”
• Jul 20, 2026 — Floor vote scheduled · Congress.gov: “Mr. Guthrie moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

5 groups reported lobbying about this bill. They filed 8 reports from Dec 2025 to Jun 2026.

Those reports show $1,050,000 in lobbying spending. Each report lists about 4 bills. So that money was not all for this bill.

More groups named this bill than 78% of bills with any report.

Chris Smith, who sponsored the bill, received $224,256 from PACs for the 2026 election.

• National Marrow Donor Program — $580,000 in 2 reports
• Nmdp — $230,000 in 2 reports
• Astct — $140,000 in 2 reports
• New York Blood Center Enterprises — $90,000 in 1 report
• Duke University Medical Center — $10,000 in 1 report

Lobbying is legal. These reports show who lobbied about this bill, not what changed.

Words to know

• cord blood — Blood from a baby's umbilical cord, saved and frozen for medical use.
• transplant — Moving healthy cells or tissue from one person to another to treat disease.
• Secretary — The top official in charge of health programs for the government.
• lobbying — Trying to influence lawmakers about a bill. Companies and groups pay people to do this.
• PACs — Groups that collect money and give it to candidates for office.
• sponsored — To sponsor a bill is to introduce it in Congress and put your name on it.