I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8203 
To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop an action 
plan, make targeted grants, and develop public awareness campaigns 
with respect to COVID–19 and the disproportionate impact of the 
COVID–19 pandemic on racial and ethnic minorities and other vulnerable 
populations. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 11, 2020 
Mr. CA´RDENAS (for himself and Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to 
develop an action plan, make targeted grants, and de-
velop public awareness campaigns with respect to 
COVID–19 and the disproportionate impact of the 
COVID–19 pandemic on racial and ethnic minorities and 
other vulnerable populations. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 
(a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 
‘‘COVID–19 Health Disparities Action Act of 2020’’. 
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(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 
this Act is as follows: 
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 
Sec. 2. Health disparity-informed contact tracing grants. 
Sec. 3. COVID–19 health disparities action plan. 
Sec. 4. Federal public awareness campaigns to address health disparities. 
Sec. 5. Grant program for public awareness campaigns to address health dis-
parities. 
Sec. 6. Vaccine safety public awareness campaign. 
Sec. 7. Addendum to testing plans to address disparities. 
Sec. 8. Definitions. 
SEC. 2. HEALTH DISPARITY-INFORMED CONTACT TRACING 
GRANTS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Sec-
retary’’), acting through the Director of the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention and in coordination with 
the Office of Minority Health of the Department of Health 
and Human Services, and, as appropriate, in coordination 
with the relevant Offices of Minority Health of the Depart-
ment of Health and Human Services, the National Insti-
tute of Minority Health and Health Disparities, and the 
Indian Health Service, shall award grants to eligible enti-
ties to conduct contact tracing operations, using amounts 
appropriated under the heading ‘‘Public Health and Social 
Services Emergency Fund’’ under the heading ‘‘Office of 
the Secretary’’ under the heading ‘‘Department of Health 
and Human Services’’ of title I of division B of the Pay-
check Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement 
Act (Public Law 116–139). 
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(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for a grant 
under this section, an entity shall— 
(A) be a State, local, Tribal, or territorial 
health department, a nonprofit community- 
based organization, a nonprofit faith-based or-
ganization, an urban Indian organization, a 
Tribal organization, or a health care provider, 
serving one or more of the grant regions de-
scribed in paragraph (2); and 
(B) submit an application to the Secretary 
at such time, in such manner, and containing 
such information as the Secretary may require, 
including demographic data on the entity’s em-
ployees or projected hires at the time of submis-
sion. 
(2) GRANT
REGIONS.—The Secretary may 
award grants to eligible entities serving one or more 
of the following: 
(A) A State. 
(B) A territory. 
(C) An Indian Tribe. 
(D) A Tribal organization. 
(E) An urban Indian organization. 
(F) A county. 
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(G) A metropolitan statistical area. 
(H) Any other city, town, or other public 
body created by, or pursuant to, State law. 
(3) PROHIBITION
ON
DISCRIMINATION.—Pro-
grams funded under this section shall not discrimi-
nate on the basis of actual or perceived sex, race, 
color, ethnicity, national origin, disability, sexual ori-
entation, gender identity, or religion. Nothing in this 
section shall be construed to invalidate or limit 
rights, remedies, procedures, or legal standards 
available under any other Federal law or any law of 
a State or a political subdivision of a State, includ-
ing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000a 
et seq.), title IX of the Education Amendments of 
1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.), section 504 of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794), the 
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 
12101 et seq.), and section 1557 of the Patient Pro-
tection and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 18116). 
(c) PRIORITIZATION.—In awarding grants under sub-
section (a), the Secretary shall give special consideration 
to eligible entities that have demonstrated a commitment 
to recruiting and retaining employees who are racial and 
ethnic minorities representative of the demographic 
groups of a grant area served by the entity, which may 
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include entities that employ, or plan to employ, community 
health workers, as defined in section 2113(f)(4) of the So-
cial Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1397mm(f)(4)). 
(d) REPORTING.— 
(1) BY ENTITIES.—An eligible entity receiving 
a grant under this section shall report to the Sec-
retary demographic information of employees di-
rectly involved in contact tracing operations sup-
ported by such grant not later than 60 days after 
receipt of such grant. 
(2) BY THE SECRETARY.—Beginning not later 
than 90 days after the date on which the first grant 
is awarded under this section, the Secretary, in co-
ordination with the Deputy Assistant Secretary for 
Minority Health, the Director of the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention, and the Director of 
the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity at 
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
shall make public the data reported under paragraph 
(1). 
SEC. 3. COVID–19 HEALTH DISPARITIES ACTION PLAN. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the 
Director of the Office of Minority Health of the Depart-
ment of Health and Human Services, shall develop an evi-
dence-based action plan (referred to in this section as the 
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‘‘action plan’’) for addressing health disparities related to 
COVID–19 testing, infections, hospitalizations, ICU ad-
missions, and deaths among racial and ethnic minority, 
rural, and other vulnerable populations. 
(b) COORDINATION.—In developing the action plan 
described in subsection (a), the Director of the Office of 
Minority Health shall coordinate with— 
(1) the Director of the Office of Minority 
Health and Health Equity of the Centers for Dis-
ease Control and Prevention; 
(2) the Director of the Office of Extramural 
Research, Education, and Priority Populations of 
the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; 
(3) the Director of the Office of Minority 
Health of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Serv-
ices; 
(4) the Director of the Office of Minority 
Health and Health Equity of the Food and Drug 
Administration; 
(5) the Director of the Office of Health Equity 
of the Health Resources and Services Administra-
tion; 
(6) the Director of the Office of Behavioral 
Health Equity of the Substance Abuse and Mental 
Health Services Administration; 
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(7) the Director of the National Institute of Mi-
nority Health and Health Disparities; and 
(8) the Director of the Indian Health Service. 
(c) LITERATURE REVIEW AND CONSULTATION.—In 
developing the action plan described in subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall— 
(1) review peer-reviewed literature to identify 
evidence-informed and evidence-based best practices 
for addressing health disparities among racial and 
ethnic minority, rural, and other vulnerable popu-
lations; and 
(2) consult with— 
(A) community-based organizations with 
expertise in addressing health disparities that 
affect racial and ethnic minority, rural, and 
other vulnerable populations; and 
(B) State, local, Tribal, and territorial 
health officials that serve areas with high con-
centrations of racial and ethnic minority, rural, 
and other vulnerable populations that have been 
disproportionately impacted by the COVID–19 
pandemic. 
(d) REQUIREMENTS.—The action plan shall in-
clude— 
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deaths among racial and ethnic minority, rural, and 
other vulnerable populations, including specific dates 
by when such actions will be taken and completed 
and the metrics that will be used to evaluate the im-
pact of such actions; and 
(5) a summary of any additional resources that 
the Secretary requires in order to fully identify and 
address health disparities related to COVID–19 test-
ing, infections, hospitalizations, ICU admissions, and 
deaths among racial and ethnic minority, rural, and 
other vulnerable populations. 
(e) SUBMISSION OF ACTION PLAN AND REPORTS ON 
THE ACTION PLAN.— 
(1) INITIAL ACTION PLAN.—Not later than 30 
days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary shall submit the action plan to the Com-
mittee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 
and the Committee on Finance of the Senate and 
the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the 
Committee on Ways and Means of the House of 
Representatives, and make such plan publicly avail-
able on the internet website of the Department of 
Health and Human Services. 
(2) UPDATES.—Not later than 30 days after 
the date of publication of the initial action plan 
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under paragraph (1), and at least every 30 days 
thereafter until the date that is 6 months after the 
COVID–19 public health emergency has ended, the 
Secretary shall submit updates to the action plan to 
Congress. Each such update shall provide updates 
on the Secretary’s actions and the relevant evalua-
tion metrics, and shall include any actions that the 
Secretary has identified since issuance of the initial 
action plan under paragraph (1) and any previous 
updates under this paragraph, as necessary to ad-
dress health disparities related to COVID–19 test-
ing, infections, hospitalizations, ICU admissions, and 
deaths among racial and ethnic minority, rural, and 
other vulnerable populations. The Secretary shall 
make each update publicly available on the internet 
website of the Department of Health and Human 
Services. 
(3) FINAL
REPORT
ON
ACTION
PLANS.—Not 
later than 1 year after the end of the COVID–19 
public health emergency, the Secretary shall submit 
to Congress a final report analyzing the health dis-
parities related to COVID–19 testing, infections, 
hospitalizations, ICU admissions, and deaths among 
racial and ethnic minority, rural, and other vulner-
able populations, including an analysis of the social 
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determinants of health and the underlying causes of 
health disparities. The report shall include— 
(A) the Secretary’s long-term plan for ad-
dressing racial and ethnic health disparities, in-
cluding an assessment of any additional re-
sources that may be required for the Office of 
Minority Health of the Department of Health 
and Human Services, or such department in 
general, to sustain long-term initiatives to ad-
dress racial and ethnic health disparities; and 
(B) recommendations for Congress to ad-
dress the underlying causes and prevent health 
disparities among racial and ethnic minority, 
rural, and other vulnerable populations during 
future public health emergencies. 
(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$1,000,000 for fiscal year 2020. 
SEC. 4. FEDERAL PUBLIC AWARENESS CAMPAIGNS TO AD-
DRESS HEALTH DISPARITIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the 
Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion and in coordination with the Office of Minority 
Health and, as appropriate, in coordination with the rel-
evant Offices of Minority Health in the Department of 
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Health and Human Services, the National Institute of Mi-
nority Health and Health Disparities, and the Indian 
Health Service, shall develop and implement accessible, 
multilingual and culturally competent public awareness 
campaigns about COVID–19 directed at racial and ethnic 
minority, rural, and other vulnerable populations that 
have experienced health disparities during the COVID–19 
public health emergency related to testing, infections, hos-
pitalizations, ICU admissions, and deaths. 
(b) REQUIREMENTS.—The public awareness cam-
paigns under this section shall— 
(1) prioritize communities where the greatest 
health disparities have been identified with respect 
to testing access and rates of infections, hospitaliza-
tions, and deaths related to COVID–19; 
(2)(A) provide information, based on scientific 
evidence, about the benefits of being tested for 
COVID–19, the availability of COVID–19 testing 
with no cost-sharing for most United States resi-
dents, and the actions that individuals can take to 
protect themselves from COVID–19, including mask-
ing and social distancing; and 
(B) dispel misinformation about COVID–19 
symptoms, testing, or treatment; and 
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(3) use print, radio, or internet media, or other 
forms of public communication, including local, inde-
pendent, or community-based written news and elec-
tronic publications. 
(c) COORDINATION.—The public awareness cam-
paigns under this section shall be complementary to, and 
coordinated with, any other Federal, State, and local ef-
forts, including the action plan described in section 3, as 
appropriate. 
(d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 45 days 
after the date on which appropriated funds are made avail-
able to the Secretary under this section, the Secretary 
shall submit to Congress a report on how such funds have 
been used during such 45-day period and a plan for using 
any remaining funds within the next 45 days. 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$10,000,000 for fiscal year 2020. 
SEC. 5. GRANT PROGRAM FOR PUBLIC AWARENESS CAM-
PAIGNS TO ADDRESS HEALTH DISPARITIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the 
Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion and in coordination with the Office of Minority 
Health, and, as appropriate, in coordination with the rel-
evant Offices of Minority Health in the Department of 
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