US SB1600

Creates a new federal crime for knowingly assaulting hospital personnel on hospital grounds while they are performing their duties, punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment and fines

Establishes enhanced penalties of up to 20 years imprisonment for assaults involving firearms or dangerous weapons, those causing serious bodily injury, or those committed during presidentially-declared public emergencies

Covers employees of hospitals engaged in interstate commerce, including general hospitals, long-term care hospitals, rehabilitation facilities, children's hospitals, cancer hospitals, critical access hospitals, and rural emergency hospitals

Provides an affirmative defense for defendants with physical, mental, or intellectual disabilities whose conduct was a direct manifestation of the disability and who could not appreciate the wrongfulness of their actions

Requires the Government Accountability Office to study the Act's impact on workplace violence in healthcare settings and whether federal prosecution authority has increased or decreased prosecutions for such incidents