(1) best practices for establishing a department 
or agency process that achieves compliance for de-
partment or agency research, development, or acqui-
sition projects in the life sciences; 
(2) the types of projects that should be as-
sessed; 
(3) at what stage or stages such projects should 
be assessed; and 
(4) means for preventing the release of home-
land or national security information. 
(d) RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.—Based upon 
the findings of the risk assessment undertaken in accord-
ance with subsection (b), the Under Secretary may con-
duct research into the risks and ways to mitigate such 
risks of synthetic biology, including— 
(1) determining the current capability of syn-
thetic nucleic acid providers to effectively differen-
tiate a legitimate customer from a potential terrorist 
or other malicious actor; 
(2) determining the current capability of syn-
thetic nucleic acid providers to effectively screen or-
ders for sequences of homeland security concern; 
and 
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(3) making recommendations regarding screen-
ing software, protocols, and other remaining capa-
bility gaps uncovered by such risk assessment. 
SEC. 305. DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION ANALYZED BY 
THE DEPARTMENT TO STATE, LOCAL, TRIB-
AL, AND PRIVATE ENTITIES WITH RESPON-
SIBILITIES RELATING TO HOMELAND SECU-
RITY. 
Section 201(d)(8) of the Homeland Security Act of 
2002 (6 U.S.C. 121(d)(8)) is amended by striking ‘‘and 
to agencies of State’’ and all that follows and inserting 
‘‘to State, local, tribal, and private entities with such re-
sponsibilities, and, as appropriate, to the public, in order 
to assist in preventing, deterring, or responding to acts 
of terrorism against the United States.’’. 
TITLE IV—PUBLIC HEALTH 
MATTERS 
SEC. 401. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING FEDERAL CO-
ORDINATION 
ON 
MEDICAL 
COUNTER-
MEASURES. 
It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) 10 years after the terrorist attacks of Sep-
tember 11, 2001, and 7 years after enactment of the 
Project BioShield Act of 2004 (Public Law 108– 
276), coordination among Federal agencies involved 
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in activities relating to researching, developing, and 
acquiring medical countermeasures still needs im-
provement; and 
(2) aggressive action should be taken by the 
Department of Health and Human Services (in par-
ticular, the heads of the National Institutes of 
Health, the Biomedical Advanced Research and De-
velopment Authority, the Centers for Disease Con-
trol and Prevention, and the Food and Drug Admin-
istration), the Department of Homeland Security, 
and the Department of Defense to foster greater co-
ordination with respect to such activities, including 
adoption of an interagency agreement that sets forth 
the relative areas of responsibility with respect to es-
tablishing medical countermeasure requirements and 
researching, developing, and acquiring medical coun-
termeasures to meet those requirements. 
SEC. 402. NATIONAL MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURE DIS-
PENSING STRATEGY. 
Title III of the Public Health Service Act is amended 
by inserting after section 319F–4 (42 U.S.C. 247d–6e) 
the following: 
‘‘SEC. 319F–5. NATIONAL MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURE DIS-
PENSING STRATEGY. 
‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 
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‘‘(1) the term ‘dispense’ means to provide med-
ical countermeasures to an affected population in re-
sponse to a threat or incident; and 
‘‘(2) the term ‘medical countermeasure’ means 
a qualified countermeasure (as defined in section 
319F–1(a)(2)). 
‘‘(b) STRATEGY.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, in coordina-
tion with the Secretary of Homeland Security, the 
Secretary of Agriculture, and other appropriate Fed-
eral agencies, shall develop, implement, and, as ap-
propriate, periodically update a National Medical 
Countermeasure Dispensing Strategy to enhance 
preparedness and collective response to a terrorist 
attack on humans or animals with any chemical, bio-
logical, radiological, or nuclear material, that delin-
eates Federal, State, and local responsibilities. 
‘‘(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—The strategy shall be 
sufficiently flexible to meet the unique needs of dif-
ferent communities, including first responders, and 
shall consider— 
‘‘(A) a variety of options for dispensing 
medical countermeasures, including to individ-
uals, schools, universities, hospitals, and elderly 
care facilities; 
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‘‘(B) post-incident requirements for emer-
gency 
use 
authorizations 
before 
counter-
measures can be distributed legally; 
‘‘(C) the inclusion of locally held caches of 
countermeasures in event-specific authorizations 
covering federally held countermeasures of the 
same type; and 
‘‘(D) distribution to the public of home 
medical kits for personal stockpiling purposes, 
within 30 days after a domestic or international 
bioterrorist attack resulting in human infection. 
‘‘(c) COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall coordinate 
with the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Man-
agement Agency, State, local, and tribal authorities, rep-
resentatives from the private sector, and nongovernmental 
organizations on the National Medical Countermeasures 
Dispensing Strategy. 
‘‘(d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall sub-
mit the National Medical Countermeasures Dispensing 
Strategy to the appropriate congressional committees.’’. 
SEC. 403. NATIONAL PRE-EVENT VACCINATION AND ANTI-
MICROBIAL DISPENSING POLICY REVIEW. 
(a) REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary of Health and 
Human Services, in coordination with the Secretary of 
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