I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7574 

To amend the Public Health Service Act with respect to the Strategic 

National Stockpile, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 13, 2020 

Ms. SLOTKIN (for herself, Mrs. BROOKS of Indiana, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. CARTER

of Georgia, Mrs. DINGELL, Mrs. WALORSKI, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. MCKINLEY, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mr. VAN DREW, Mr. SOTO, Mr. UPTON, Mr. 

MALINOWSKI, Mr. HUDSON, Ms. SCHRIER, Mr. GIANFORTE, Mr. 

CISNEROS, Mr. NEGUSE, and Mr. BURGESS) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act with respect to 

the Strategic National Stockpile, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Strengthening America’s Strategic National Stockpile 

6 Act of 2020’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Reimbursable transfers. 

Sec. 3. Equipment maintenance. 

Sec. 4. Supply chain flexibility manufacturing pilot. 

Sec. 5. GAO study on the feasibility and benefits of a user fee agreement. 

Sec. 6. Grants for State strategic stockpiles. 

Sec. 7. Action reporting. 

Sec. 8. Improved, transparent processes. 

Sec. 9. Authorization of appropriations. 

1 SEC. 2. REIMBURSABLE TRANSFERS. 

2 Section 319F–2(a) of the Public Health Service Act 

3 (42 U.S.C. 247d–6b(a)) is amended by adding at the end 

4 the following: 

5 ‘‘(6) TRANSFERS AND REIMBURSEMENTS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Without regard to 

7 chapter 5 of title 40, United States Code, the 

8 Secretary may transfer to any Federal depart9 ment or agency, on a reimbursable basis, any 

10 drugs, vaccines and other biological products, 

11 medical devices, and other supplies in the stock12 pile if— 

13 ‘‘(i) the transferred supplies are less 

14 than six months from expiry; 

15 ‘‘(ii) the stockpile is able to replenish 

16 the supplies, as appropriate; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) the Secretary decides the trans18 fer is in the best interest of the United 

19 States Government. 

20 ‘‘(B) USE OF REIMBURSEMENT.—Reim21 bursement derived from the transfer of supplies 


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1 pursuant to subparagraph (A) may be used by 

2 the Secretary, without further appropriation 

3 and without fiscal year limitation, to carry out 

4 this section. 

5 ‘‘(C) REPORT.—Not later than September 

6 30, 2022, the Secretary shall submit to the 

7 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 

8 House of Representatives and the Committee 

9 on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of 

10 the Senate a report on each transfer made 

11 under this paragraph and the amount received 

12 by the Secretary in exchange for that transfer. 

13 ‘‘(D) SUNSET.—The authority to make 

14 transfers under this paragraph shall cease to be 

15 effective on September 30, 2023.’’. 

16 SEC. 3. EQUIPMENT MAINTENANCE. 

17 Section 319F–2 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

18 U.S.C. 247d–6b) is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (a)(3)— 

20 (A) in subparagraph (I), by striking ‘‘; 

21 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; and 

22 (B) by inserting the following new sub23 paragraph at the end: 

24 ‘‘(K) ensure contents of the stockpile re25 main in good working order and, as approVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:39 Jul 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7574.IH H7574

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1 priate, conduct maintenance services on con2 tents of the stockpile; and’’; and 

3 (2) in subsection (c)(7)(B), by adding at the 

4 end the following new clause: 

5 ‘‘(ix) EQUIPMENT MAINTENANCE

6 SERVICE.—In carrying out this section, the 

7 Secretary may enter into contracts for the 

8 procurement of equipment maintenance 

9 services.’’. 

10 SEC. 4. SUPPLY CHAIN FLEXIBILITY MANUFACTURING 

11 PILOT. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 319F–2(a)(3) of the Pub13 lic Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–6b(a)(3)), as 

14 amended by section 3, is further amended by adding at 

15 the end the following new subparagraph: 

16 ‘‘(L) enhance medical supply chain elas17 ticity and establish and maintain domestic re18 serves of critical medical supplies (including 

19 personal protective equipment, ancillary medical 

20 supplies, and other applicable supplies required 

21 for the administration of drugs, vaccines and 

22 other biological products, and other medical de23 vices (including diagnostic tests)) by— 

24 ‘‘(i) increasing emergency stock of 

25 critical medical supplies; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) geographically diversifying pro2 duction of such medical supplies; 

3 ‘‘(iii) purchasing, leasing, or entering 

4 into joint ventures with respect to facilities 

5 and equipment for the production of such 

6 medical supplies; and 

7 ‘‘(iv) working with distributors of 

8 such medical supplies to manage the do9 mestic reserves established under this sub10 paragraph by refreshing and replenishing 

11 stock of such medical supplies.’’. 

12 (b) REPORTING; SUNSET.—Section 319F–2(a) of the 

13 Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–6b(a)), as 

14 amended by section 2, is further amended by adding at 

15 the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(7) REPORTING.—Not later than September 

17 30, 2022, the Secretary shall submit to the Com18 mittee on Energy and Commerce of the House of 

19 Representatives and the Committee on Health, Edu20 cation, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate a report 

21 on the details of each purchase, lease, or joint ven22 ture entered into under paragraph (3)(L), including 

23 the amount expended by the Secretary on each such 

24 purchase, lease, or joint venture. 


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1 ‘‘(8) SUNSET.—The authority to make pur2 chases, leases, or joint ventures pursuant to para3 graph (3)(L) shall cease to be effective on Sep4 tember 30, 2023.’’. 

5 (c) FUNDING.—Section 319F–2(f) of the Public 

6 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–6b(f)) is amended by 

7 adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(3) SUPPLY CHAIN ELASTICITY.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of 

10 carrying out subsection (a)(3)(L), there is au11 thorized to be appropriated $500,000,000 for 

12 each of fiscal years 2020 through 2023, to re13 main available until expended. 

14 ‘‘(B) RELATION TO OTHER AMOUNTS.— 

15 The amount authorized to be appropriated by 

16 subparagraph (A) for the purpose of carrying 

17 out subsection (a)(3)(L) is in addition to any 

18 other amounts available for such purpose.’’. 

19 SEC. 5. GAO STUDY ON THE FEASIBILITY AND BENEFITS OF 

20 A USER FEE AGREEMENT. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of the 

22 United States shall conduct a study to investigate the fea23 sibility of establishing user fees to offset certain Federal 

24 costs attributable to the procurement of single-source ma25 terials for the Strategic National Stockpile under section 


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1 319F–2 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

2 247d–6b) and distributions of such materials from the 

3 Stockpile. In conducting this study, the Comptroller Gen4 eral shall consider, to the extent information is available— 

5 (1) whether entities receiving such distributions 

6 generate profits from those distributions; 

7 (2) any Federal costs attributable to such dis8 tributions; 

9 (3) whether such user fees would provide the 

10 Secretary with funding to potentially offset procure11 ment costs of such materials for the Strategic Na12 tional Stockpile; and 

13 (4) any other issues the Comptroller General 

14 identifies as relevant. 

15 (b) REPORT.—Not later than February 1, 2023, the 

16 Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 

17 the Congress a report on the findings and conclusions of 

18 the study under subsection (a). 

19 SEC. 6. GRANTS FOR STATE STRATEGIC STOCKPILES. 

20 Title III of the Public Health Service Act is amended 

21 by inserting after section 319F–4 of such Act (42 U.S.C. 

22 247d–6e) the following new section: 

23 ‘‘SEC. 319F–5. GRANTS FOR STATE STRATEGIC STOCKPILES. 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may establish a 

25 pilot program consisting of awarding grants to States to 


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1 expand or maintain a strategic stockpile of commercially 

2 available drugs, medical equipment, personal protective 

3 equipment, and other products deemed by the State to be 

4 essential in the event of a public health emergency. 

5 ‘‘(b) ALLOWABLE USE OF FUNDS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) USES.—A State receiving a grant under 

7 this section may use the grant funds to— 

8 ‘‘(A) acquire commercially available prod9 ucts listed pursuant to paragraph (2) for inclu10 sion in the State’s strategic stockpile; 

11 ‘‘(B) store, maintain, and distribute prod12 ucts in such stockpile; and 

13 ‘‘(C) conduct planning in connection with 

14 such activities. 

15 ‘‘(2) LIST.—The Secretary shall develop and 

16 publish a list of the products that are eligible, as de17 scribed in subsection (a), for inclusion in a State’s 

18 strategic stockpile using funds received under this 

19 section. 

20 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION.—In developing the list 

21 under paragraph (2) and otherwise determining the 

22 allowable uses of grant funds under this section, the 

23 Secretary shall consult with States and relevant 

24 stakeholders, including public health organizations. 


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1 ‘‘(c) FUNDING REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary may 

2 not obligate or expend any funds to award grants or fund 

3 any previously awarded grants under this section for a fis4 cal year unless the total amount made available to carry 

5 out section 319F–2 for such fiscal year is equal to or 

6 greater than the total amount of funds made available to 

7 carry out section 319F–2 for fiscal year 2020. 

8 ‘‘(d) MATCHING FUNDS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to the costs of 

10 expanding and maintaining a strategic stockpile 

11 through a grant under this section, as a condition on 

12 receipt of the grant, a State shall make available (di13 rectly) non-Federal contributions in cash toward 

14 such costs in an amount that is equal to not less 

15 than the amount of Federal funds provided through 

16 the grant. 

17 ‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The Secretary may waive the 

18 requirement of paragraph (1) with respect to a State 

19 for the first two years of the State receiving a grant 

20 under this section if the Secretary determines that 

21 such waiver is needed for the State to establish a 

22 strategic stockpile described in subsection (a). 

23 ‘‘(e) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary shall 

24 provide technical assistance to States in establishing, exVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:39 Jul 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7574.IH H7574

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1 panding, and maintaining a stockpile described in sub2 section (a). 

3 ‘‘(f) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘drug’ 

4 has the meaning given to that term in section 201 of the 

5 Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. 

6 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To 

7 carry out this section, there is authorized to be appro8 priated $3,500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 

9 through 2023, to remain available until expended. 

10 ‘‘(h) SUNSET.—The authority vested by this section 

11 terminates at the end of fiscal year 2023.’’. 

12 SEC. 7. ACTION REPORTING. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Assistant Secretary for Pre14 paredness and Response (in this section referred to as the 

15 ‘‘Assistant Secretary’’), in coordination with the Adminis16 trator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, 

17 shall— 

18 (1) not later than 30 days after the date of en19 actment of this Act, issue a report to the Committee 

20 on Energy and Commerce of the House of Rep21 resentatives and the Committee on Health, Edu22 cation, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate regarding 

23 all State, local, Tribal, and territorial requests for 

24 supplies from the Strategic National Stockpile re25 lated to COVID–19; and 


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1 (2) not less than every 30 days thereafter 

2 through the end of the emergency period (as such 

3 term is defined in section 1135(g)(1)(B) of the So4 cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320b–5(g)(1)(B))), 

5 submit to such committees an updated version of 

6 such report. 

7 (b) REPORTING PERIOD.— 

8 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—The initial report under 

9 subsection (a) shall address all requests described in 

10 such subsection made during the period— 

11 (A) beginning on January 31, 2020; and 

12 (B) ending on the date that is 30 days be13 fore the date of submission of the report. 

14 (2) UPDATES.—Each update to the report 

15 under subsection (a) shall address all requests de16 scribed in such subsection made during the period— 

17 (A) beginning at the end of the previous 

18 reporting period under this section; and 

19 (B) ending on the date that is 30 days be20 fore the date of submission of the updated re21 port. 

22 (c) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—The report under sub23 section (a) (and updates thereto) shall include— 

24 (1) the details of each request described in such 

25 subsection, including— 


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1 (A) the specific medical countermeasures, 

2 devices, personal protective equipment, and 

3 other materials requested; and 

4 (B) the amount of such materials re5 quested; and 

6 (2) the outcomes of each request described in 

7 subsection (a), including— 

8 (A) whether the request was wholly ful9 filled, partially fulfilled, or denied; 

10 (B) if the request was wholly or partially 

11 fulfilled, the fulfillment amount; and 

12 (C) if the request was partially fulfilled or 

13 denied, a rationale for such outcome. 

14 SEC. 8. IMPROVED, TRANSPARENT PROCESSES. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than January 1, 2021, 

16 the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in collabora17 tion with the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and 

18 Response and the Director of the Centers for Disease Con19 trol and Prevention, shall develop and implement im20 proved, transparent processes for the use and distribution 

21 of drugs, vaccines and other biological products, medical 

22 devices, and other supplies (including personal protective 

23 equipment, ancillary medical supplies, and other applicable 

24 supplies required for the administration of drugs, vaccines 

25 and other biological products, medical devices, and diagVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:39 Jul 13, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7574.IH H7574

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1 nostic tests) in the Strategic National Stockpile under sec2 tion 319F–2 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

3 247d–6b) (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Stockpile’’). 

4 (b) PROCESSES.—The processes developed under 

5 subsection (a) shall include— 

6 (1) the form and manner in which States, local7 ities, Tribes, and territories are required to submit 

8 requests for supplies from the Stockpile; 

9 (2) the criteria used by the Secretary of Health 

10 and Human Services in responding to such requests, 

11 including the reasons for fulfilling or denying such 

12 requests; 

13 (3) what circumstances result in prioritization 

14 of distribution of supplies from the Stockpile to 

15 States, localities, Tribes, or territories; 

16 (4) clear plans for future, urgent communica17 tion between the Secretary and States, localities, 

18 Tribes, and territories regarding the outcome of 

19 such requests; and 

20 (5) any differences in the processes developed 

21 under subsection (a) for geographically related emer22 gencies, such as weather events, and national emer23 gencies, such as pandemics. 

24 (c) CLASSIFICATION.—The processes developed under 

25 subsection (a) shall be unclassified to the greatest extent 


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1 possible consistent with national security. The Secretary 

2 of Health and Human Services may classify portions of 

3 such processes as necessary to protect national security. 

4 (d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than January 

5 1, 2021, the Secretary of Health and Human Services 

6 shall— 

7 (1) submit a report to the Committee on En8 ergy and Commerce of the House of Representatives 

9 and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 

10 and Pensions of the Senate regarding the improved, 

11 transparent processes developed under this section; 

12 (2) include in such report recommendations for 

13 opportunities for communication (by telebriefing, 

14 phone calls, or in-person meetings) between the Sec15 retary and States, localities, Tribes, and territories 

16 regarding such improved, transparent processes; and 

17 (3) submit such report in unclassified form to 

18 the greatest extent possible, except that the Sec19 retary may include a classified appendix if necessary 

20 to protect national security. 

21 SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

22 Section 319F–2(f)(1) of the Public Health Service 

23 Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–6b(f)(1)) is amended by striking 

24 ‘‘$610,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019 through 


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1 2023’’ and inserting ‘‘$705,000,000 for each of fiscal 

2 years 2020 through 2023’’. 

Æ 


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