I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3263 
To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish in the Department 
of Homeland Security a medical countermeasures program, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 17, 2021 
Mrs. MILLER-MEEKS (for herself, Mr. VAN DREW, and Mr. GIMENEZ) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Home-
land Security 
A BILL 
To amend the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to establish 
in the Department of Homeland Security a medical coun-
termeasures program, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘DHS Medical Counter-
measures Act’’. 
SEC. 2. MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURES PROGRAM. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle C of title XIX of the 
Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 311 et seq.) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 
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‘‘SEC. 1932. MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURES. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish a 
medical countermeasures program to facilitate personnel 
readiness, and protection for the Department’s employees 
and working animals in the event of a chemical, biological, 
radiological, nuclear, or explosives attack, naturally occur-
ring disease outbreak, or pandemic, and to support De-
partment mission continuity. 
‘‘(b) OVERSIGHT.—The Chief Medical Officer of the 
Department shall provide programmatic oversight of the 
medical countermeasures program established pursuant to 
subsection (a), and shall— 
‘‘(1) develop Department-wide standards for 
medical countermeasure 
storage, 
security, 
dis-
pensing, and documentation; 
‘‘(2) maintain a stockpile of medical counter-
measures, including antibiotics, antivirals, and radio-
logical countermeasures, as appropriate; 
‘‘(3) preposition appropriate medical counter-
measures in strategic locations nationwide, based on 
threat and employee density, in accordance with ap-
plicable Federal statutes and regulations; 
‘‘(4) provide oversight and guidance regarding 
the dispensing of stockpiled medical counter-
measures; 
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‘‘(5) ensure rapid deployment and dispensing of 
medical countermeasures in a chemical, biological, 
radiological, nuclear, or explosives attack, naturally 
occurring disease outbreak, or pandemic; 
‘‘(6) provide training to Department employees 
on medical countermeasure dispensing; and 
‘‘(7) support dispensing exercises. 
‘‘(c) 
MEDICAL
COUNTERMEASURES
WORKING 
GROUP.—The Chief Medical Officer shall establish a med-
ical countermeasures working group comprised of rep-
resentatives from appropriate components and offices of 
the Department to ensure that medical countermeasures 
standards are maintained and guidance is consistent. 
‘‘(d) 
MEDICAL
COUNTERMEASURES
MANAGE-
MENT.—Not later than 120 days after the date of the en-
actment of this section, the Chief Medical Officer shall de-
velop and submit to the Secretary an integrated logistics 
support plan for medical countermeasures, including— 
‘‘(1) a methodology for determining the ideal 
types and quantities of medical countermeasures to 
stockpile and how frequently such methodology shall 
be reevaluated; 
‘‘(2) a replenishment plan; and 
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‘‘(3) inventory tracking, reporting, and rec-
onciliation procedures for existing stockpiles and 
new medical countermeasure purchases. 
‘‘(e) STOCKPILE ELEMENTS.—In determining the 
types and quantities of medical countermeasures to stock-
pile under subsection (d), the Chief Medical Officer shall 
utilize, if available— 
‘‘(1) Department chemical, biological, radio-
logical, and nuclear risk assessments; and 
‘‘(2) Centers for Disease Control and Preven-
tion guidance on medical countermeasures. 
‘‘(f) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall 
submit to the Committee on Homeland Security of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Home-
land Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate the 
plan developed in accordance with subsection (d) and brief 
such Committees regarding implementing the require-
ments of this section. 
‘‘(g) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘medical 
countermeasures’ means antibiotics, antivirals, radio-
logical countermeasures, and other countermeasures that 
may be deployed to protect the Department’s employees 
and working animals in the event of a chemical, biological, 
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radiological, nuclear, or explosives attack, naturally occur-
ring disease outbreak, or pandemic.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 
in section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is 
amended by adding after the item relating to section 1931 
the following new item: 
‘‘Sec. 1932. Medical countermeasures.’’. 
Æ 
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