II 

Calendar No. 138 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1199 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to revise and extend the poison 

center network program. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

APRIL 11, 2019 

Mrs. MURRAY (for herself and Mr. BURR) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, 

Labor, and Pensions 

JULY 9, 2019 

Reported by Mr. ALEXANDER, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to revise and extend 

the poison center network program. 

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 ‘‘Poison Center Network 

5 Enhancement Act of 2019’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. NATIONAL TOLL-FREE NUMBER. 

2 Section 1271 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 300d–71) is amended— 

4 (1) in the section heading, by inserting before 

5 the period the following: ‘‘AND OTHER COMMU6 NICATION CAPABILITIES’’; 

7 (2) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary— 

10 ‘‘(1) shall provide coordination and assistance 

11 to poison control centers for the establishment and 

12 maintenance of a nationwide toll-free phone number, 

13 to be used to access such centers; and 

14 ‘‘(2) may provide coordination and assistance to 

15 poison control centers and consult with professional 

16 organizations for the establishment, implementation, 

17 and maintenance of other communication tech18 nologies to be used to access such centers.’’; 

19 (3) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub20 section (c); 

21 (4) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(b) ROUTING CONTACTS WITH POISON CONTROL

24 CENTERS.—Not later than 18 months after the date of 

25 enactment of the Poison Center Network Enhancement 

26 Act of 2019, the Secretary shall coordinate with the ChairVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Jul 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1199.RS S1199

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1 man of the Federal Communications Commission, to the 

2 extent technically and economically feasible, to ensure that 

3 communications with the national toll-free number are 

4 routed to the appropriate poison control center based on 

5 the physical location of the contact rather than the area 

6 code of the contact device.’’; and 

7 (5) in subsection (c), as so redesignated— 

8 (A) by striking ‘‘2015 through 2019’’ and 

9 inserting ‘‘2020 through 2024’’; and 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘maintenance of the na11 tionwide toll free phone number under sub12 section (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘establishment, im13 plementation, and maintenance activities car14 ried out under subsections (a) and (b)’’. 

15 SEC. 3. NATIONWIDE MEDIA CAMPAIGN. 

16 Section 1272 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

17 U.S.C. 300d–72) is amended— 

18 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘NA19 TIONWIDE MEDIA CAMPAIGN TO PROMOTE’’ 

20 and inserting ‘‘PROMOTING’’; 

21 (2) in subsection (a)— 

22 (A) by inserting ‘‘and support outreach to’’ 

23 after ‘‘educate’’; 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘poison prevention’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘poisoning and toxic exposure preven3 tion’’; and 

4 (C) by striking ‘‘established under’’ and in5 serting ‘‘and other available communication 

6 technologies established, implemented, or main7 tained under’’; 

8 (3) in subsection (b)— 

9 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

10 by striking ‘‘nationwide poison prevention’’ and 

11 inserting ‘‘nationwide poisoning and toxic expo12 sure prevention’’; and 

13 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘poison 

14 prevention and poison control center’’ and in15 serting ‘‘poisoning and toxic exposure preven16 tion awareness materials, applicable public 

17 health emergency preparedness and response in18 formation, and poison control center’’ after 

19 ‘‘distribution of’’; 

20 (4) by striking subsection (c); 

21 (5) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub22 section (c); and 

23 (6) in subsection (c) (as so redesignated), by 

24 striking ‘‘2015 through 2019’’ and inserting ‘‘2020 

25 through 2024’’. 


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1 SEC. 4. MAINTENANCE OF PROGRAM. 

2 Section 1273 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 300d–73) is amended— 

4 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘and toxic 

5 exposures’’ after ‘‘poisonings’’; 

6 (2) in subsection (b)— 

7 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

8 (i) by striking ‘‘for poison’’ and in9 serting ‘‘for poisoning and toxic exposure’’; 

10 and 

11 (ii) by striking ‘‘and preparedness’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘preparedness and re13 sponse’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (3)— 

15 (i) by striking ‘‘United States and’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘United States,’’; and 

17 (ii) by inserting before the semicolon 

18 the following: ‘‘, and other government 

19 agencies as determined to be appropriate 

20 and nonduplicative by the Secretary’’; and 

21 (C) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘calls’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘contacts’’; 

23 (3) in subsection (d), by striking paragraph (3) 

24 and inserting the following: 

25 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—In no case may the sum of 

26 the number of years for a waiver under this subVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Jul 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1199.RS S1199

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1 section exceed 5 years. Notwithstanding any pre2 vious waivers, in the case of a poison control center 

3 whose accreditation is affected by a public health 

4 emergency declared pursuant to section 319, the 

5 Secretary may, as the circumstances of the emer6 gency reasonably require, provide a waiver under 

7 paragraph (1) or a renewal under paragraph (2) for 

8 up to 2 years.’’; 

9 (4) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘(f) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—With respect to 

12 activities for which a grant is awarded under this section, 

13 the Secretary may require that poison control centers 

14 agree to maintain the expenditures of the center for such 

15 activities at a level that is not less than the level of expend16 itures maintained by the center for the fiscal year pre17 ceding the fiscal year for which the grant is received.’’; 

18 (5) In subsection (g), by striking ‘‘2015 

19 through 2019’’ and inserting ‘‘2020 through 2024’’; 

20 and 

21 (6) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(h) BIENNIAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

23 than 2 years after the date of enactment of the Poison 

24 Center Network Enhancement Act of 2019, and every 2 

25 years thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the ComVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Jul 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1199.RS S1199

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1 mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the 

2 Senate and Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 

3 House of Representatives a report concerning the oper4 ations of, and trends identified by, the Poison Control 

5 Network. Such report shall include— 

6 ‘‘(1) descriptions of the activities carried out 

7 pursuant to sections 1271, 1272, and 1273, and the 

8 alignment of such activities with the purposes pro9 vided under subsection (a); 

10 ‘‘(2) a description of trends in volume of con11 tacts to poison control centers; 

12 ‘‘(3) a description of trends in poisonings and 

13 toxic exposures reported to poison control centers, as 

14 applicable and appropriate; 

15 ‘‘(4) an assessment of the impact of the public 

16 awareness campaign, including any geographic vari17 ations; 

18 ‘‘(5) a description of barriers, if any, preventing 

19 poison control centers from achieving the purposes 

20 and programs under this section and sections 1271 

21 and 1272; 

22 ‘‘(6) a description of the standards for accredi23 tation described in subsection (c), including any 

24 variations in those standards, and any efforts to creVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:29 Jul 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S1199.RS S1199

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1 ate and maintain consistent standards across organi2 zations that accredit poison control centers; and 

3 ‘‘(7) the number of and reason for any waivers 

4 provided under subsection (d).’’. 

5 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Poison Center Network 

7 Enhancement Act of 2019’’. 

8 SEC. 2. NATIONAL TOLL-FREE NUMBER. 

9 Section 1271 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

10 U.S.C. 300d-71) is amended— 

11 (1) in the section heading, by inserting before the 

12 period the following: ‘‘AND OTHER COMMUNICA13 TION CAPABILITIES’’; and 

14 (2) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary— 

17 ‘‘(1) shall provide coordination and assistance to 

18 poison control centers for the establishment and main19 tenance of a nationwide toll-free phone number, to be 

20 used to access such centers; and 

21 ‘‘(2) may provide coordination and assistance to 

22 poison control centers and consult with professional 

23 organizations for the establishment, implementation, 

24 and maintenance of other communication technologies 

25 to be used to access such centers.’’; 


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1 (3) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection 

2 (c); 

3 (4) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(b) ROUTING CONTACTS WITH POISON CONTROL

6 CENTERS.—Not later than 18 months after the date of en7 actment of the Poison Center Network Enhancement Act of 

8 2019, the Secretary shall coordinate with the Chairman of 

9 the Federal Communications Commission, to the extent 

10 technically and economically feasible, to ensure that com11 munications with the national toll-free number are routed 

12 to the appropriate poison control center based on the phys13 ical location of the contact rather than the area code of the 

14 contact device.’’; and 

15 (5) in subsection (c), as so redesignated— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘2015 through 2019’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘2020 through 2024’’; and 

18 (B) by striking ‘‘maintenance of the nation19 wide toll free phone number under subsection 

20 (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘establishment, implementa21 tion, and maintenance activities carried out 

22 under subsections (a) and (b)’’. 

23 SEC. 3. NATIONWIDE MEDIA CAMPAIGN. 

24 Section 1272 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

25 U.S.C. 300d-72) is amended— 


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1 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘NA2 TIONWIDE MEDIA CAMPAIGN TO PROMOTE’’ and 

3 inserting ‘‘PROMOTING’’; 

4 (2) in subsection (a)— 

5 (A) by inserting ‘‘and support outreach to’’ 

6 after ‘‘educate’’; 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘poison prevention’’ and in8 serting ‘‘poisoning and toxic exposure preven9 tion’’; and 

10 (C) by striking ‘‘established under’’ and in11 serting ‘‘and other available communication 

12 technologies established, implemented, or main13 tained under’’; 

14 (3) in subsection (b)— 

15 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

16 by striking ‘‘nationwide poison prevention’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘nationwide poisoning and toxic expo18 sure prevention’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘poison 

20 prevention and poison control center’’ and in21 serting ‘‘poisoning and toxic exposure prevention 

22 awareness materials, applicable public health 

23 emergency preparedness and response informa24 tion, and poison control center’’ after ‘‘distribu25 tion of’’; and 


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1 (4) by striking subsection (c); 

2 (5) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection 

3 (c); and 

4 (6) in subsection (c) (as so redesignated), by 

5 striking ‘‘2015 through 2019’’ and inserting ‘‘2020 

6 through 2024’’. 

7 SEC. 4. MAINTENANCE OF PROGRAM. 

8 Section 1273 of the Public Health Service Act (42 

9 U.S.C. 300d-73) is amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘and toxic ex11 posures’’ after ‘‘poisonings’’; and 

12 (2) in subsection (b)— 

13 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

14 (i) by striking ‘‘for poison’’ and insert15 ing ‘‘for poisoning and toxic exposure’’; and 

16 (ii) by striking ‘‘and preparedness’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘preparedness and response’’; 

18 (B) in paragraph (3)— 

19 (i) by striking ‘‘United States and’’ 

20 and inserting ‘‘United States,’’; and 

21 (ii) by inserting before the semicolon 

22 the following: ‘‘, and other government 

23 agencies as determined to be appropriate 

24 and nonduplicative by the Secretary’’; and 


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1 (C) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘calls’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘contacts’’; 

3 (3) in subsection (d) , by striking paragraph (3) 

4 and inserting the following: 

5 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The sum of the number 

7 of years for a waiver under paragraph (1) and 

8 a renewal under paragraph (2) may not exceed 

9 5 years. 

10 ‘‘(B) PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY.—Not11 withstanding any previous waivers, in the case 

12 of a poison control center whose accreditation is 

13 affected by a public health emergency declared 

14 pursuant to section 319, the Secretary may, as 

15 the circumstances of the emergency reasonably 

16 require, provide a waiver under paragraph (1) 

17 or a renewal under paragraph (2), not to exceed 

18 2 years. The Secretary may require quarterly re19 ports and other information related to such a 

20 waiver or renewal under this paragraph.’’; 

21 (4) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(f) MAINTENANCE OF EFFORT.—With respect to ac24 tivities for which a grant is awarded under this section, 

25 the Secretary may require that poison control centers agree 


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1 to maintain the expenditures of the center for such activities 

2 at a level that is not less than the level of expenditures 

3 maintained by the center for the fiscal year preceding the 

4 fiscal year for which the grant is received.’’; 

5 (5) In subsection (g), by striking ‘‘2015 through 

6 2019’’ and inserting ‘‘2020 through 2024’’; and 

7 (6) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(h) BIENNIAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

9 than 2 years after the date of enactment of the Poison Cen10 ter Network Enhancement Act of 2019, and every 2 years 

11 thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

12 Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and 

13 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Rep14 resentatives a report concerning the operations of, and 

15 trends identified by, the Poison Control Network. Such re16 port shall include— 

17 ‘‘(1) descriptions of the activities carried out 

18 pursuant to sections 1271, 1272, and 1273, and the 

19 alignment of such activities with the purposes pro20 vided under subsection (a); 

21 ‘‘(2) a description of trends in volume of contacts 

22 to poison control centers; 

23 ‘‘(3) a description of trends in poisonings and 

24 toxic exposures reported to poison control centers, as 

25 applicable and appropriate; 


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1 ‘‘(4) an assessment of the impact of the public 

2 awareness campaign, including any geographic vari3 ations; 

4 ‘‘(5) a description of barriers, if any, preventing 

5 poison control centers from achieving the purposes 

6 and programs under this section and sections 1271 

7 and 1272; 

8 ‘‘(6) a description of the standards for accredita9 tion described in subsection (c), including any vari10 ations in those standards, and any efforts to create 

11 and maintain consistent standards across organiza12 tions that accredit poison control centers; and 

13 ‘‘(7) the number of and reason for any waivers 

14 provided under subsection (d).’’. 


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Calendar No. 138 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1199 

A BILL 

To amend the Public Health Service Act to revise 

and extend the poison center network program. 

JULY 9, 2019 

Reported with an amendment 


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