I 
114TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2651 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to prevent and treat diabetes, 
to promote and improve the care of individuals with diabetes, and to 
reduce health disparities, relating to diabetes, within racial and ethnic 
minority groups, including the African-American, Hispanic American, 
Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander, and Amer-
ican Indian and Alaskan Native communities. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 4, 2015 
Ms. DEGETTE (for herself, Mr. WHITFIELD, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Ms. 
MICHELLE LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico, and Ms. LEE) introduced 
the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to prevent and 
treat diabetes, to promote and improve the care of indi-
viduals with diabetes, and to reduce health disparities, 
relating to diabetes, within racial and ethnic minority 
groups, including the African-American, Hispanic Amer-
ican, Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Other Pa-
cific Islander, and American Indian and Alaskan Native 
communities. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Eliminating Dispari-
ties in Diabetes Prevention, Access, and Care Act of 
2015’’. 
TITLE I—NATIONAL INSTITUTES 
OF HEALTH 
SEC. 101. RESEARCH, TREATMENT, AND EDUCATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subpart 3 of part C of title IV 
of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 285c et seq.) 
is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 434B. DIABETES IN MINORITY POPULATIONS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Director of NIH shall ex-
pand, intensify, and support ongoing research and other 
activities with respect to prediabetes and diabetes, particu-
larly type 2, in minority populations. 
‘‘(b) RESEARCH.— 
‘‘(1) DESCRIPTION.—Research under subsection 
(a) shall include investigation into— 
‘‘(A) the causes of diabetes, including so-
cioeconomic, geographic, clinical, environmental, 
genetic, and other factors that may contribute 
to increased rates of diabetes in minority popu-
lations; and 
‘‘(B) the causes of increased incidence of 
diabetes complications in minority populations, 
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and possible interventions to decrease such inci-
dence. 
‘‘(2) INCLUSION OF MINORITY PARTICIPANTS.— 
In conducting and supporting research described in 
subsection (a), the Director of NIH shall seek to in-
clude minority participants as study subjects in clin-
ical trials. 
‘‘(c) REPORT; COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Diabetes Mellitus 
Interagency Coordinating Committee shall— 
‘‘(A) prepare and submit to the Congress, 
not later than 6 months after the date of enact-
ment of this section, a report on Federal re-
search and public health activities with respect 
to prediabetes and diabetes in minority popu-
lations; and 
‘‘(B) develop and submit to the Congress, 
not later than 1 year after the date of enact-
ment of this section, an effective and com-
prehensive Federal plan (including all appro-
priate Federal health programs) to address 
prediabetes and diabetes in minority popu-
lations. 
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‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The report under paragraph 
(1)(A) shall at minimum address each of the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(A) Research on diabetes and prediabetes 
in minority populations, including such research 
on— 
‘‘(i) genetic, behavioral, and environ-
mental factors; and 
‘‘(ii) prevention and complications 
among individuals within these populations 
who have already developed diabetes. 
‘‘(B) Surveillance and data collection on 
diabetes and prediabetes in minority popu-
lations, including with respect to— 
‘‘(i) efforts to better determine the 
prevalence of diabetes among Asian Amer-
ican and Pacific Islander subgroups; and 
‘‘(ii) efforts to coordinate data collec-
tion on the American Indian population. 
‘‘(C) Community-based interventions to ad-
dress diabetes and prediabetes targeting minor-
ity populations, including— 
‘‘(i) the evidence base for such inter-
ventions; 
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‘‘(ii) the cultural appropriateness of 
such interventions; and 
‘‘(iii) efforts to educate the public on 
the causes and consequences of diabetes. 
‘‘(D) Education and training programs for 
health 
professionals 
(including 
community 
health workers) on the prevention and manage-
ment of diabetes and its related complications 
that is supported by the Health Resources and 
Services Administration, including such pro-
grams supported by— 
‘‘(i) the National Health Service 
Corps; or 
‘‘(ii) the community health centers 
program under section 330. 
‘‘(d) EDUCATION.—The Director of NIH shall— 
‘‘(1) through the National Institute on Minority 
Health and Health Disparities and the National Di-
abetes Education Program— 
‘‘(A) make grants to programs funded 
under section 464z–4 (relating to centers of ex-
cellence) for the purpose of establishing a men-
toring program for health care professionals to 
be more involved in weight counseling, obesity 
research, and nutrition; and 
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‘‘(B) provide for the participation of mi-
nority health professionals in diabetes-focused 
research programs; and 
‘‘(2) make grants for programs to establish a 
pipeline from high school to professional school that 
will increase minority representation in diabetes-fo-
cused health fields by expanding Minority Access to 
Research Careers (MARC) program internships and 
mentoring opportunities for recruitment. 
‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 
‘‘(1) The ‘Diabetes Mellitus Interagency Coordi-
nating Committee’ means the Diabetes Mellitus 
Interagency Coordinating Committee established 
under section 429. 
‘‘(2) The term ‘minority population’ means a 
racial and ethnic minority group, as defined in sec-
tion 1707.’’. 
TITLE 
II—CENTERS 
FOR 
DIS-
EASE CONTROL AND PREVEN-
TION 
SEC. 201. RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND OTHER ACTIVITIES. 
Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 243 et seq.) is amended by inserting after sec-
tion 317T the following section: 
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‘‘SEC. 317U. DIABETES IN MINORITY POPULATIONS. 
‘‘(a) RESEARCH AND OTHER ACTIVITIES.— 
‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 
through the Director of the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, shall conduct and support 
research and public health activities with respect to 
diabetes in minority populations. 
‘‘(2) CERTAIN
ACTIVITIES.—Activities under 
paragraph (1) regarding diabetes in minority popu-
lations shall include the following: 
‘‘(A) Further enhancing the National 
Health and Nutrition Examination Survey by 
over-sampling Asian American, Native Hawai-
ian, and Other Pacific Islanders in appropriate 
geographic areas to better determine the preva-
lence of diabetes in such populations as well as 
to improve the data collection of diabetes pene-
tration disaggregated into major ethnic groups 
within such populations. The Secretary shall en-
sure that any such oversampling does not re-
duce the oversampling of other minority popu-
lations including African-American and Latino 
populations. 
‘‘(B) Through the Division of Diabetes 
Translation— 
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‘‘(i) providing for prevention research 
to better understand how to influence 
health care systems changes to improve 
quality of care being delivered to such pop-
ulations; 
‘‘(ii) carrying out model demonstra-
tion projects to design, implement, and 
evaluate effective diabetes prevention and 
control interventions for minority popu-
lations, including culturally appropriate 
community-based interventions; 
‘‘(iii) developing and implementing a 
strategic plan to reduce diabetes in minor-
ity populations through applied research to 
reduce disparities and culturally and lin-
guistically appropriate community-based 
interventions; 
‘‘(iv) supporting, through the national 
diabetes prevention program under section 
399V–3, diabetes prevention program sites 
in underserved regions highly impacted by 
diabetes; and 
‘‘(v) implementing, through the na-
tional diabetes prevention program under 
section 399V–3, a demonstration program 
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developing new metrics measuring health 
outcomes related to diabetes that can be 
stratified by specific minority populations. 
‘‘(b) EDUCATION.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
vention, shall direct the Division of Diabetes Translation 
to conduct and support both programs to educate the pub-
lic on diabetes in minority populations and programs to 
educate minority populations about the causes and effects 
of diabetes. 
‘‘(c) DIABETES; HEALTH PROMOTION, PREVENTION 
ACTIVITIES, AND ACCESS.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
vention and the National Diabetes Education Program, 
shall conduct and support programs to educate specific 
minority populations through culturally appropriate and 
linguistically appropriate information campaigns about 
prevention of, and managing, diabetes. 
‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 
term ‘minority population’ means a racial and ethnic mi-
nority group, as defined in section 1707.’’. 
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TITLE III—HEALTH RESOURCES 
AND SERVICES ADMINISTRA-
TION 
SEC. 301. RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND OTHER ACTIVITIES. 
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 new section: 
‘‘SEC. 399V–6. PROGRAMS TO EDUCATE HEALTH PRO-
VIDERS ON THE CAUSES AND EFFECTS OF DI-
ABETES IN MINORITY POPULATIONS. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Director of the Health Resources and Services Admin-
istration, shall conduct and support programs described 
in subsection (b) to educate health professionals on the 
causes and effects of diabetes in minority populations. 
‘‘(b) PROGRAMS.—Programs described in this sub-
section, with respect to education on diabetes in minority 
populations, shall include the following: 
‘‘(1) Giving priority, under the primary care 
training and enhancement program under section 
747— 
‘‘(A) to awarding grants to focus on or ad-
dress diabetes; and 
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‘‘(B) adding minority populations to the 
list of vulnerable populations that should be 
served by such grants. 
‘‘(2) Providing additional funds for the Health 
Careers Opportunity Program, Centers for Excel-
lence, and the Minority Faculty Fellowship Program 
to partner with the Office of Minority Health under 
section 1707 and the National Institutes of Health 
to strengthen programs for career opportunities fo-
cused on diabetes treatment and care within under-
served regions highly impacted by diabetes. 
‘‘(3) Developing a diabetes focus within, and 
providing additional funds for, the National Health 
Service Corps Scholarship Program— 
‘‘(A) to place individuals in areas that are 
disproportionately affected by diabetes and to 
provide diabetes treatment and care in such 
areas; and 
‘‘(B) to provide such individuals continuing 
medical education specific to diabetes care.’’. 
TITLE IV—INDIAN HEALTH 
SERVICE 
SEC. 401. RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND OTHER ACTIVITIES. 
Part P of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 280g et seq.), as amended by section 301, is 
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further amended by adding at the end the following sec-
tion: 
‘‘SEC. 399V–7. RESEARCH, EDUCATION, AND OTHER ACTIVI-
TIES REGARDING DIABETES IN AMERICAN IN-
DIAN POPULATIONS. 
‘‘In addition to activities under sections 317V–6 and 
434B, the Secretary, acting through the Indian Health 
Service and in collaboration with other appropriate Fed-
eral agencies, shall— 
‘‘(1) conduct and support research and other 
activities with respect to diabetes; and 
‘‘(2) coordinate the collection of data on clini-
cally and culturally appropriate diabetes treatment, 
care, prevention, and services by health care profes-
sionals to the American Indian population.’’. 
TITLE V—INSTITUTE OF 
MEDICINE REPORT 
SEC. 501. UPDATED REPORT ON HEALTH DISPARITIES. 
The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
seek to enter into an arrangement with the Institute of 
Medicine under which the Institute will— 
(1) not later than 1 year after the date of en-
actment of this Act, submit to the Congress an up-
dated version of the Institute’s 2002 report entitled 
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‘‘Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic 
Disparities in Health Care’’; and 
(2) in such updated version, address how racial 
and ethnic health disparities have changed since the 
publication of the original report. 
Æ 
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