I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3131 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for research and improvement of cardiovascular health among the South Asian population of 

the United States, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JUNE 5, 2019 

Ms. JAYAPAL (for herself, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. FITZPATRICK, 

Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. GABBARD, Mr. SMITH

of Washington, Ms. MENG, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mrs. WATSON

COLEMAN, Mr. FOSTER, Mr. BERA, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. JACKSON LEE, 

Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, and Ms. SCHAKOWSKY) introduced the following 

bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for 

research and improvement of cardiovascular health 

among the South Asian population of the United States, 

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. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘South Asian Heart 

5 Health Awareness and Research Act of 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) The South Asian diaspora population in the 

4 United States is primarily from India, Pakistan, 

5 Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Fiji, 

6 Maldives, East Africa, the West Indies, and the Car7 ibbean. 

8 (2) Heart disease refers to several types of 

9 heart conditions; the most common form is coronary 

10 artery disease, which affects blood flow to the heart. 

11 (3) Heart disease is the leading cause of death 

12 for both men and women—one in every 4 deaths 

13 each year, according to the Centers for Disease Con14 trol and Prevention. 

15 (4) Risk factors for heart disease include diabe16 tes, high blood pressure, smoking, and abnormal 

17 cholesterol levels. 

18 (5) Though the traditional South Asian diet 

19 consists of lentils, vegetables, grains, and spices, 

20 there is higher consumption of suboptimal nutri21 tional elements including refined carbohydrates, 

22 trans fats, and sugar that have been associated with 

23 higher risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular dis24 ease. 

25 (6) South Asians in the United States have four 

26 times the risk of heart disease than the general popVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:50 Jun 12, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3131.IH H3131

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1 ulation and have a much greater chance of having 

2 a heart attack before age 50, according to the Stan3 ford South Asian Translational Heart Initiative. 

4 (7) In addition, diabetes is one of the strongest 

5 risk factors for heart disease; South Asian Ameri6 cans have among the highest rates of type 2 diabetes 

7 in the Nation. 

8 (8) A Mediators of Atherosclerosis in South 

9 Asians Living in America (MASALA) showed a 26- 

10 percent prevalence of diabetes among South Asians, 

11 compared to 6 percent among Whites, 18 percent 

12 among African-Americans, 17 percent among 

13 Latinos, and 13 percent among Chinese-Americans 

14 in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis. 

15 (9) Early intervention and treatment through 

16 awareness campaigns, nutritional education, and in17 struction on physical activity can greatly reduce the 

18 burden of diabetes, risk of heart disease, decreased 

19 quality of life, and untimely death. 

20 (10) Successful efforts to prevent and combat 

21 heart disease in the South Asian population of the 

22 United States can serve as a model for the general 

23 population. 


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1 SEC. 3. SOUTH ASIAN HEART HEALTH PROMOTION GRANTS 

2 BY CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND 

3 PREVENTION. 

4 Title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 

5 241 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following 

6 new section: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 317U. SOUTH ASIAN HEART HEALTH PROMOTION 

8 GRANTS. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 

10 the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Pre11 vention, shall make grants to States for the purpose of 

12 promoting awareness of the increasing prevalence of heart 

13 disease, including its relationship to type 2 diabetes, in 

14 South Asian communities in the United States. 

15 ‘‘(b) USE OF FUNDS.—A State that receives a grant 

16 under paragraph (1) shall use such grant funds— 

17 ‘‘(1) to establish an Internet clearinghouse to 

18 catalog existing evidence-based heart health research 

19 and treatment options for South Asian communities 

20 to prevent, treat, or reverse heart disease and diabe21 tes; 

22 ‘‘(2) to develop culturally appropriate materials 

23 on topics such as nutrition education, optimal diet 

24 plans, and programs for regular exercise; 


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1 ‘‘(3) to support heart health promotion activi2 ties of community organizations that work with or 

3 serve South Asian communities; or 

4 ‘‘(4) to support conferences or workshops on re5 search practices, methodology, and design to include 

6 more members of South Asian communities in sci7 entific studies. 

8 ‘‘(c) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

9 than 180 days after the date of the enactment of the 

10 South Asian Heart Health Awareness and Research Act 

11 of 2019, and annually thereafter, the Director shall sub12 mit to Congress a report on outreach efforts and data re13 lating to heart disease in South Asian communities in the 

14 United States. 

15 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For 

16 purposes of carrying out this section, there is authorized 

17 to be appropriated $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

18 2020 through 2024.’’. 

19 SEC. 4. HEART HEALTH RESEARCH BY NATIONAL INSTI20 TUTES OF HEALTH AND NATIONAL HEART, 

21 LUNG, AND BLOOD INSTITUTE. 

22 Part B of title IV of the Public Health Service Act 

23 (42 U.S.C. 284 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

24 the following new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 409K. HEART HEALTH RESEARCH. 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For the purpose of conducting 

3 research and related activities with respect to cardio4 vascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and other heart health5 related ailments among South Asian communities in the 

6 United States, the Director of the National Institutes of 

7 Health, in coordination with the Director of the National 

8 Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute— 

9 ‘‘(1) may conduct or support, through funding 

10 opportunity announcements, grants, or cooperative 

11 agreements, basic, clinical, and translational re12 search; and 

13 ‘‘(2) may award grants and cooperative agree14 ments to public or nonprofit private entities (includ15 ing State health departments, political subdivisions 

16 of States, universities, and other medical or edu17 cation entities). 

18 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—For 

19 purposes of carrying out this section, there is authorized 

20 to be appropriated $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

21 2020 through 2024.’’. 

22 SEC. 5. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

23 It is the sense of Congress that medical schools in 

24 the United States that are accredited by the Liaison Com25 mittee on Medical Education should include as part of 

26 their nutrition curriculum a focus on cultural differences 


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1 in diets and ways to achieve optimal nutrition in commu2 nities that experience substantial heart disease. 

Æ 


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