I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1961 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services to establish and implement a department-wide after- 
action program and a risk communication strategy, and for other pur-
poses. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 6, 2025 
Mr. TORRES of New York introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Sec-
retary of Health and Human Services to establish and 
implement a department-wide after-action program and 
a risk communication strategy, 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 ‘‘Coordinated Agency 
Response Enhancement Act’’ or the ‘‘CARE Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. HHS AFTER-ACTION PROGRAM. 
Part P of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 280g et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following: 
‘‘SEC. 399V–8. DEPARTMENT-WIDE AFTER-ACTION PRO-
GRAM. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish, 
maintain, and implement an after-action program to— 
‘‘(1) identify and implement solutions for issues 
found following any response by the Department of 
Health and Human Services to a determination of a 
public health emergency under section 319(a); and 
‘‘(2) encourage collaboration among the agen-
cies of the Department, including by integrating any 
public health emergency after-action programs of 
such agencies. 
‘‘(b) DEADLINE.—The Secretary shall establish and 
begin implementation of the after-action program under 
subsection (a) not later than 2 years after the date of en-
actment of this section. 
‘‘(c) COORDINATION WITH STAKEHOLDERS.—The 
after-action program under subsection (a) shall include 
input from, and coordinate with, relevant external stake-
holders involved in each public health emergency response 
of the Department of Health and Human Services, such 
as— 
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‘‘(1) other Federal agencies; 
‘‘(2) other jurisdictions, including the health de-
partments of States, Indian Tribes, and territories 
of the United States and municipalities thereof; and 
‘‘(3) nongovernmental partners. 
‘‘(d) OVERSIGHT BY INSPECTOR GENERAL.—The In-
spector General of the Department of Health and Human 
Services shall, whenever the Inspector General determines 
appropriate, based on assessed risks and emerging 
needs— 
‘‘(1) evaluate the efficacy of the after-action 
program under subsection (a), including by evalu-
ating the ability of the program to identify chal-
lenges and propose solutions; and 
‘‘(2) submit to Congress a report summarizing 
the evaluation under paragraph (1). 
‘‘(e) COMPREHENSIVE GUIDELINES FOR AFTER-AC-
TION PROGRAM REPORTS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, as the 
Secretary determines appropriate, incorporate in any 
report of the after-action program under subsection 
(a) the elements described in subparagraphs (A) 
through (M) of paragraph (2). 
‘‘(2) ELEMENTS DESCRIBED.— 
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‘‘(A) EMERGENCY OPERATIONS PLAN, CON-
TINUITY OF OPERATIONS PLAN, AND BUSINESS 
CONTINUITY PLAN REVIEWS.—A description of 
the process and outcomes of reviewing and up-
dating emergency operations plans, continuity 
of operations plans, and business continuity 
plans both annually and after significant public 
health emergencies. Such description may in-
clude insights into the relevancy and efficiency 
of such plans in practice. 
‘‘(B) 
INFORMATION
SHARING, 
SITUA-
TIONAL AWARENESS.—A description of the es-
tablishment and effectiveness of protocols for 
efficient information sharing (consistent with 
applicable disclosure laws) and situational 
awareness among health care facilities and 
partners, including the development and deploy-
ment of an integrated joint information system. 
‘‘(C) 
COORDINATION
WITH
NATIONAL, 
STATE, AND LOCAL COALITIONS AND COMMU-
NITY PARTNERS.—Descriptions of— 
‘‘(i) strategies for coordination with 
national, State, and local health care pa-
tient and public health coalitions and com-
munity partners, focusing on active en-
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gagement and information sharing (con-
sistent with applicable disclosure laws); 
‘‘(ii) information technology solutions 
used for coordination during public health 
emergencies; and 
‘‘(iii) how medical operations coordi-
nation cells were implemented for effective 
patient load balancing during surges to as-
sure regional health care coordination. 
‘‘(D) INCIDENT MANAGEMENT.—A descrip-
tion of incident management structures, includ-
ing the maintenance of the incident command 
system and the establishment of an incident ac-
tion planning process. 
‘‘(E) 
COMMUNICATIONS, 
INFORMATION 
SHARING.—A description of strategies for the 
development and maintenance of a dynamic 
communications framework for real-time infor-
mation sharing (consistent with applicable dis-
closure laws) and situational awareness. 
‘‘(F) STAFF, SPACE, AND RESIDENT MAN-
AGEMENT.—A description of strategies for com-
prehensive staff management plans, scalable 
space management strategies, and policies 
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adopted to maintain patient and resident well- 
being. 
‘‘(G) LOGISTICS AND SUPPLY CHAIN MAN-
AGEMENT.—A description of strategies for de-
veloping comprehensive logistics and supply 
chain management strategies to ensure a steady 
and sufficient supply of personal protective 
equipment, 
medical 
equipment, 
pharma-
ceuticals, and other items. 
‘‘(H) RESOURCE
MANAGEMENT.—A de-
scription of strategies for implementing crisis 
standards of care protocols to optimize the allo-
cation and use of medical and non-medical as-
sets during emergencies, including guidelines 
for the conservation, reuse, or repurposing of 
supplies. 
‘‘(I) INFECTION PREVENTION.—A descrip-
tion of strategies for enhancing infection pre-
vention measures, including staff training, envi-
ronmental cleaning, and patient screening, to 
mitigate the spread of infectious diseases within 
health care facilities. 
‘‘(J) TREATMENT, TRANSPORT, AND DIS-
CHARGE
PROTOCOLS.—A description of how 
treatment, transport, and discharge protocols 
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were standardized to ensure consistency and ef-
ficiency in patient care and movement, includ-
ing the incorporation of telehealth and remote 
monitoring solutions where feasible, explaining 
the technologies used and the outcomes of the 
interventions. 
‘‘(K) CASE
MANAGEMENT
PROTOCOLS.— 
Descriptions of— 
‘‘(i) how case management protocols 
were refined to address both clinical and 
non-clinical needs of patients and resi-
dents; and 
‘‘(ii) the measures taken to ensure co-
ordinated care and support throughout the 
treatment and recovery phases, detailing 
the challenges faced and the strategies em-
ployed to overcome such challenges. 
‘‘(L) MEDICAL COUNTERMEASURES.—De-
scriptions of— 
‘‘(i) the strategy employed to accel-
erate the development, distribution, and 
administration 
of 
medical 
counter-
measures, such as vaccines, therapeutics, 
diagnostic tests, and treatments; and 
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‘‘(ii) the challenges encountered in 
making such medical countermeasures 
available for use during the public health 
emergency and how such challenges were 
addressed. 
‘‘(M) RECOVERY.—A description of any 
implemented recovery strategies focusing on ad-
ministrative, financial, policy, and equity con-
siderations. 
‘‘(f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated, to remain available until 
expended— 
‘‘(1) $3,500,000 to carry out subsections (a), 
(b), (c), and (e), including the first 4 reports of the 
after-action program; and 
‘‘(2) such sums as may be necessary to carry 
out subsection (d).’’. 
SEC. 3. RISK COMMUNICATION STRATEGY. 
Part P of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 280g et seq.), as amended by section 2, is fur-
ther amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 399V–9. RISK COMMUNICATION STRATEGY. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall establish, 
maintain, and implement a comprehensive strategy to en-
sure that communications about infectious diseases and 
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other public health risks by agencies and offices of the 
Department of Health and Human Services, including the 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, are clear, ac-
curate, and prioritize the populations most at risk. 
‘‘(b) COMPONENTS.—The strategy under subsection 
(a) shall be designed to— 
‘‘(1) clearly identify at-risk populations during 
public health emergencies; and 
‘‘(2) ensure that communications are targeted, 
understandable, and accessible. 
‘‘(c) INITIAL STRATEGY.—The Secretary shall estab-
lish and begin implementation of the initial strategy under 
subsection (a) not later than 1 year after the date of en-
actment of this section.’’. 
Æ 
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