I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2778 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to redesignate the National Center 
on Minority Health and Health Disparities as the National Institute 
for Minority Health and Health Disparities, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 9, 2009 
Mr. JACKSON of Illinois (for himself and Mr. CUMMINGS) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to redesignate the 
National Center on Minority Health and Health Dispari-
ties as the National Institute for Minority Health and 
Health Disparities, 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 ‘‘Health Equity and 
Accountability through Research Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR MINORITY HEALTH AND 
HEALTH DISPARITIES. 
(a) REDESIGNATION.— 
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(1) IN
GENERAL.—Title IV of the Public 
Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 281 et seq.) is 
amended— 
(A) in section 401(b)(24), by striking ‘‘Na-
tional Center on Minority Health and Health 
Disparities’’ and inserting ‘‘National Institute 
for Minority Health and Health Disparities’’; 
and 
(B) in subpart 6 of part E— 
(i) in the subpart heading, by striking 
‘‘Center’’ and inserting ‘‘Institute’’; 
(ii) in the headings of sections 485E 
and 485H, by striking ‘‘CENTER’’ and in-
serting ‘‘INSTITUTE’’; and 
(iii) by striking (other than in section 
485E(i)(1)) the term ‘‘Center’’ each place 
it appears and inserting ‘‘Institute’’. 
(2) REFERENCES.—Any reference in any law, 
map, regulation, document, paper, or other record of 
the United States to the National Center on Minor-
ity Health and Health Disparities shall be deemed to 
be a reference to the National Institute for Minority 
Health and Health Disparities. 
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(b) 
DUTIES; 
AUTHORITIES; 
FUNDING.—Section 
485E of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 287c– 
31) is amended— 
(1) by amending subsection (e) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(e) DUTIES OF THE DIRECTOR.— 
‘‘(1) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION OF MINOR-
ITY HEALTH AND HEALTH DISPARITY ACTIVITIES.— 
With respect to minority health and health dispari-
ties, the Director of the Institute shall plan, coordi-
nate, and evaluate research and other activities con-
ducted or supported by the institutes and centers of 
the National Institutes of Health. In carrying out 
the preceding sentence, the Director of the Institute 
shall evaluate the minority health and health dis-
parity activities of each of such institutes and cen-
ters and shall provide for the periodic reevaluation 
of such activities. Such institutes and centers shall 
be responsible for providing information to the Insti-
tute, including data on clinical trials funded or con-
ducted by these institutes and centers. 
‘‘(2) CONSULTATIONS.—The Director of the In-
stitute shall carry out this subpart (including devel-
oping and revising the plan and budget required by 
subsection (f) in consultation with the heads of the 
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institutes and centers of the National Institutes of 
Health, the advisory councils of such institutes and 
centers, and the advisory council established pursu-
ant to subsection (j). 
‘‘(3) COORDINATION OF ACTIVITIES.—The Di-
rector of the Institute— 
‘‘(A) shall act as the primary Federal offi-
cial with responsibility for coordinating all re-
search and activities conducted or supported by 
the National Institutes of Health on minority or 
other health disparities; 
‘‘(B) shall represent the health disparities 
research program of the National Institutes of 
Health, including the minority health and other 
health disparities research program, at all rel-
evant executive branch task forces, committees, 
and planning activities; and 
‘‘(C) shall maintain communications with 
all relevant agencies of the Public Health Serv-
ice, including the Indian Health Service, and 
various other departments and agencies of the 
Federal Government to ensure the timely trans-
mission of information concerning advances in 
minority health disparities research and other 
health disparities research among these various 
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agencies for dissemination to affected commu-
nities and health care providers.’’; 
(2) by amending subsection (f) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(f) STRATEGIC PLAN.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of 
this section and other applicable law, the Director of 
the Institute, in consultation with the Director of 
NIH, the Directors of the other institutes and cen-
ters of the National Institutes of Health, and the 
advisory council established pursuant to subsection 
(j), shall— 
‘‘(A) annually review and revise a strategic 
plan (referred to in this section as ‘the plan’) 
and budget for the conduct and support of all 
minority health disparity research and other 
health disparity research activities of the insti-
tutes and centers of the National Institutes of 
Health that include time-based targeted objec-
tives with measurable outcomes and assure that 
the annual review and revision of the plan uses 
an established trans-National Institutes of 
Health process subject to timely review, ap-
proval, and dissemination; 
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‘‘(B) ensure that the plan and budget es-
tablish priorities among the health disparities 
research activities that such agencies are au-
thorized to carry out; 
‘‘(C) ensure that the plan and budget es-
tablish objectives regarding such activities, de-
scribe the means for achieving the objectives, 
and designate the date by which the objectives 
are expected to be achieved; 
‘‘(D) ensure that all amounts appropriated 
for such activities are expended in accordance 
with the plan and budget; 
‘‘(E) annually submit to Congress a report 
on the progress made with respect to the plan; 
and 
‘‘(F) create and implement a plan for the 
systemic review of research activities supported 
by the National Institutes of Health that are 
within the mission of both the Institute and 
other institutes and centers of the National In-
stitutes of Health, including by establishing 
mechanisms for— 
‘‘(i) tracking minority health and 
health disparity research conducted within 
the institutes and centers assessing the ap-
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propriateness of this research with regard 
to the overall goals and objectives of the 
plan; 
‘‘(ii) the early identification of appli-
cations and proposals for grants, contracts, 
and cooperative agreements supporting ex-
tramural training, research, and develop-
ment, that are submitted to the institutes 
and centers that are within the mission of 
the Institute; 
‘‘(iii) providing the Institute with the 
written descriptions and scientific peer re-
view results of such applications and pro-
posals; 
‘‘(iv) enabling the institutes and cen-
ters to consult with the Director of the In-
stitute prior to final approval of such ap-
plications and proposals; and 
‘‘(v) reporting to the Director of the 
Institute all such applications and pro-
posals that are approved for funding by 
the institutes and centers. 
‘‘(2) CERTAIN
COMPONENTS
OF
PLAN
AND 
BUDGET.—With respect to health disparities re-
search activities of the agencies of the National In-
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stitutes of Health, the Director of the Institute shall 
ensure that the plan and budget under paragraph 
(1) provide for— 
‘‘(A) basic research and applied research, 
including research and development with re-
spect to products; 
‘‘(B) research that is conducted by the 
agencies; 
‘‘(C) research that is supported by the 
agencies; 
‘‘(D) proposals developed pursuant to so-
licitations by the agencies and for proposals de-
veloped independently of such solicitations; and 
‘‘(E) 
behavioral 
research 
and 
social 
sciences research, which may include cultural 
and linguistic research in each of the agencies. 
‘‘(3) MINORITY
HEALTH
DISPARITIES
RE-
SEARCH.—The plan and budget under paragraph (1) 
shall include a separate statement of the plan and 
budget for minority health disparities research.’’; 
(3) by amending subsection (h) to read as fol-
lows: 
‘‘(h) RESEARCH ENDOWMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Insti-
tute shall carry out a program to facilitate minority 
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health and health disparities research and other 
health disparities research by providing research en-
dowments at— 
‘‘(A) centers of excellence under section 
736; and 
‘‘(B) centers of excellence under section 
485F. 
‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY.—The Director of the Insti-
tute shall provide for a research endowment under 
paragraph (1) only if the institution involved meets 
the following conditions: 
‘‘(A) The institution does not have an en-
dowment that is worth in excess of an amount 
equal to 50 percent of the national average of 
endowment funds at institutions that conduct 
similar biomedical research or training of health 
professionals. 
‘‘(B) The application of the institution 
under paragraph (1) regarding a research en-
dowment has been recommended pursuant to 
technical and scientific peer review and has 
been approved by the advisory council estab-
lished pursuant to subsection (j). 
‘‘(C) The institution at any time was 
deemed to be eligible to receive a grant under 
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