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defined in section 8401(17) of title 5, United States Code) 
to serve as instructors of non-law enforcement classes. 
SEC. 513. TERMINATION OF EMPLOYMENT OF VOLUNTEER 
FIREFIGHTERS AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL 
PERSONNEL PROHIBITED. 
(a) TERMINATION PROHIBITED.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—No employee may be termi-
nated, demoted, or in any other manner discrimi-
nated against in the terms and conditions of employ-
ment because such employee is absent from or late 
to the employee’s employment for the purpose of 
serving as a volunteer firefighter or providing volun-
teer emergency medical services as part of a re-
sponse to an emergency or major disaster. 
(2) DEPLOYMENT.—The prohibition in para-
graph (1) shall apply to an employee serving as a 
volunteer firefighter or providing volunteer emer-
gency medical services if such employee— 
(A) is specifically deployed to respond to 
the emergency or major disaster in accordance 
with a coordinated national deployment system 
such as the Emergency Management Assistance 
Compact or a pre-existing mutual aid agree-
ment; or 
(B) is a volunteer firefighter who— 
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(i) is a member of a qualified volun-
teer fire department that is located in the 
State in which the emergency or major dis-
aster occurred; 
(ii) is not a member of a qualified fire 
department that has a mutual aid agree-
ment with a community affected by such 
emergency or major disaster; and 
(iii) has been deployed by the emer-
gency management agency of such State to 
respond to such emergency or major dis-
aster. 
(3) LIMITATIONS.—The prohibition in para-
graph (1) shall not apply to an employee who— 
(A) is absent from the employee’s employ-
ment for the purpose described in paragraph 
(1) for more than 14 days per calendar year; 
(B) responds to the emergency or major 
disaster without being officially deployed as de-
scribed in paragraph (2); or 
(C) fails to provide the written verification 
described in paragraph (5) within a reasonable 
period of time. 
(4) WITHHOLDING OF PAY.—An employer may 
reduce an employee’s regular pay for any time that 
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the employee is absent from the employee’s employ-
ment for the purpose described in paragraph (1). 
(5) VERIFICATION.—An employer may require 
an employee to provide a written verification from 
the official of the Federal Emergency Management 
Agency supervising the Federal response to the 
emergency or major disaster or a local or State offi-
cial managing the local or State response to the 
emergency or major disaster that states— 
(A) the employee responded to the emer-
gency or major disaster in an official capacity; 
and 
(B) the schedule and dates of the employ-
ee’s participation in such response. 
(6) REASONABLE NOTICE REQUIRED.—An em-
ployee who may be absent from or late to the em-
ployee’s employment for the purpose described in 
paragraph (1) shall— 
(A) make a reasonable effort to notify the 
employee’s employer of such absence; and 
(B) continue to provide reasonable notifi-
cations over the course of such absence. 
(b) RIGHT OF ACTION.— 
(1) RIGHT OF ACTION.—An individual who has 
been terminated, demoted, or in any other manner 
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discriminated against in the terms and conditions of 
employment in violation of the prohibition described 
in subsection (a) may bring, in a district court of 
the United States of appropriate jurisdiction, a civil 
action against individual’s employer seeking— 
(A) 
reinstatement 
of 
the 
individual’s 
former employment; 
(B) payment of back wages; 
(C) reinstatement of benefits; and 
(D) if the employment granted seniority 
rights, reinstatement of seniority rights. 
(2) LIMITATION.—The individual shall com-
mence a civil action under this section not later than 
1 year after the date of the violation of the prohibi-
tion described in subsection (a). 
(c) STUDY AND REPORT.— 
(1) STUDY.—The Secretary of Labor shall con-
duct a study on the impact that the requirements of 
this section could have on the employers of volunteer 
firefighters or individuals who provide volunteer 
emergency medical services and who may be called 
on to respond to an emergency or major disaster. 
(2) REPORT.—Not later than 12 months after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of Labor shall submit a report of the study con-
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ducted under paragraph (1) to the Committee on 
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the 
Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship 
of the Senate and the Committee on Education and 
the Workforce and the Committee on Small Business 
of the House of Representatives. 
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
(1) the term ‘‘emergency’’ has the meaning 
given such term in section 102 of the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act (42 U.S.C. 5122); 
(2) the term ‘‘major disaster’’ has the meanings 
given such term in section 102 of the Robert T. 
Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance 
Act (42 U.S.C. 5122); 
(3) the term ‘‘qualified volunteer fire depart-
ment’’ has the meaning given such term in section 
150(e) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; 
(4) the term ‘‘volunteer emergency medical 
services’’ means emergency medical services per-
formed on a voluntary basis for a fire department or 
other emergency organization; and 
(5) the term ‘‘volunteer firefighter’’ means an 
individual who is a member in good standing of a 
qualified volunteer fire department. 
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TITLE VI—BIOPREPAREDNESS 
IMPROVEMENTS 
SEC. 601. CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER AND OFFICE OF 
HEALTH AFFAIRS. 
Section 516 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 
(6 U.S.C. 321e) is amended to read as follows: 
‘‘SEC. 516. CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is in the Department a 
Chief Medical Officer, who shall be appointed by the Presi-
dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, 
and shall have the rank and title of Assistant Secretary 
for Health Affairs and Chief Medical Officer (in this sec-
tion referred to as the ‘Chief Medical Officer’). 
‘‘(b) OFFICE OF HEALTH AFFAIRS.—There is in the 
Department an Office of Health Affairs, which shall be 
headed by the Chief Medical Officer. 
‘‘(c) QUALIFICATIONS.—The individual appointed as 
the Chief Medical Officer shall possess a demonstrated 
ability in and knowledge of medicine, public health, and 
the treatment of illnesses caused by chemical, biological, 
nuclear, and radiological agents. 
‘‘(d) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Chief Medical Officer 
shall have the primary responsibility within the Depart-
ment for medical and health issues related to the general 
roles, responsibilities, and operations of the Department, 
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and terrorist attacks, major disasters, and other emer-
gencies, including— 
‘‘(1) serving as the principal advisor to the Sec-
retary and leading the Department’s medical care, 
public health, food, water, veterinary care, and agro- 
security and defense responsibilities; 
‘‘(2) providing oversight for all medically-re-
lated actions and protocols of the Department’s 
medical personnel; 
‘‘(3) administering the Department’s respon-
sibilities for medical readiness, including— 
‘‘(A) planning and guidance to support im-
provements in local training, equipment, and 
exercises funded by the Department; and 
‘‘(B) consistent with the National Re-
sponse Plan established pursuant to Homeland 
Security Presidential Directive 8, assisting in 
fulfilling the Department’s roles in related 
emergency support functions; 
‘‘(4) serving as the Department’s primary point 
of contact with the Department of Agriculture, the 
Department of Defense, the Department of Health 
and Human Services, the Department of Transpor-
tation, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and 
other Federal departments and agencies, on all mat-
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ters of medical and public health to ensure coordina-
tion consistent with the National Response Plan; 
‘‘(5) serving as the Department’s primary point 
of contact for State, local, tribal, and territorial gov-
ernments, the medical community, and the private 
sector, to ensure that medical readiness and re-
sponse activities are coordinated and consistent with 
the National Response Plan and the Secretary’s inci-
dent management requirements; 
‘‘(6) managing the Department’s biodefense 
and biosurveillance activities including the National 
Biosurveillance Integration System, and the Depart-
ments responsibilities under Project BioShield in co-
ordination with the Under Secretary of Science and 
Technology as appropriate; 
‘‘(7) assuring that the Department’s workforce 
has science-based policy, standards, requirements, 
and metrics for occupational safety and health; 
‘‘(8) supporting the operational requirements of 
the Department’s components with respect to protec-
tive medicine and tactical medical support; 
‘‘(9) developing, in coordination with appro-
priate Department entities and other appropriate 
Federal agencies, end-to-end plans for prevention, 
readiness, protection, response, and recovery from 
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catastrophic events with human, animal, agricul-
tural, or environmental health consequences; 
‘‘(10) integrating into the end-to-end plans de-
veloped under paragraph (9), Department of Health 
and Human Services’ efforts to identify and deploy 
medical assets (including human, fixed, and material 
assets) used in preparation for or response to na-
tional disasters and catastrophes, and to enable ac-
cess to patient electronic medical records by medical 
personnel to aid treatment of displaced persons in 
such circumstance, in order to assure that actions of 
both Departments are combined for maximum effec-
tiveness during an emergency consistent with the 
National Response Plan and applicable emergency 
support functions; 
‘‘(11) performing other duties relating to such 
responsibilities as the Secretary may require; and 
‘‘(12) directing and maintaining a coordinated 
system for medical support of the Department’s 
operational activities.’’. 
SEC. 602. IMPROVING THE MATERIAL THREATS PROCESS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 319F–2(c)(2)(A) of the 
Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–6b(c)(2)(A)) 
is amended— 
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