Congress honors pioneering Black paramedics who revolutionized emergency care
H.R. 7623 — Freedom House Ambulance Service Congressional Gold Medal Act · Filed by Summer Lee (D-PA) · 28 cosponsors · Introduced Feb 20, 2026 · Referred to committee
Your members of Congress
Enter a ZIP to see where your representative and both senators stood on this bill.
Looked up on this device — your ZIP is never stored on our servers.
What it does
This bill authorizes Congress to award a single gold medal to the Freedom House Ambulance Service, a pioneering 1960s Pittsburgh emergency medical service that trained the first professional paramedics in the United States and served a predominantly Black neighborhood. The medal will be housed at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture, and the U.S. Mint may produce and sell bronze duplicates to recover costs.
Why we flagged it
This is a straightforward Congressional Gold Medal bill honoring a defunct but historically significant emergency medical service. It combines civil rights recognition with medical history commemoration, with no hidden policy mechanisms or regulatory changes.
What the text implies
- Medal placement at NMAAHC elevates Freedom House's civil rights significance alongside its medical innovation legacy, potentially increasing scholarly and public attention to the intersection of racial equity and healthcare access in 1960s America.
- Authorization for bronze duplicate sales creates a revenue stream for the U.S. Mint Public Enterprise Fund, though likely modest given typical commemorative medal sales volumes.
Who stands to gain
U.S. Mint (modest revenue from duplicate medal sales)