42 U.S.C. § 204a (THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE)
§ 204a. Deployment readiness
(a) Readiness requirements for Commissioned Corps officers
(1) In general
The Secretary, with respect to members of the following Corps components, shall establish requirements, including training and medical examinations, to ensure the readiness of such components to respond to urgent or emergency public health care needs that cannot otherwise be met at the Federal, State, and local levels:
(A) Active duty Regular Corps.
(B) Ready Reserve Corps.
(2) Annual assessment of members
The Secretary shall annually determine whether each member of the Corps meets the applicable readiness requirements established under paragraph (1).
(3) Failure to meet requirements
A member of the Corps who fails to meet or maintain the readiness requirements established under paragraph (1) or who fails to comply with orders to respond to an urgent or emergency public health care need shall, except as provided in paragraph (4), in accordance with procedures established by the Secretary, be subject to disciplinary action as prescribed by the Secretary.
(4) Waiver of requirements
(A) In general
The Secretary may waive one or more of the requirements established under paragraph (1) for an individual who is not able to meet such requirements because of—
(i) a disability;
(ii) a temporary medical condition; or
(iii) any other extraordinary limitation as determined by the Secretary.
(B) Regulations
The Secretary shall promulgate regulations under which a waiver described in subparagraph (A) may be granted.
(5) Urgent or emergency public health care need
For purposes of this section and section 215 of this title, the term “urgent or emergency public health care need” means a health care need, as determined by the Secretary, arising as the result of—
(A) a national emergency declared by the President under the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.);
(B) an emergency or major disaster declared by the President under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5121 et seq.);
(C) a public health emergency declared by the Secretary under section 247d of this title; or
(D) any emergency that, in the judgment of the Secretary, is appropriate for the deployment of members of the Corps.
(b) Corps management for deployment
The Secretary shall—
(1) organize members of the Corps into units for rapid deployment by the Secretary to respond to urgent or emergency public health care needs;
(2) establish appropriate procedures for the command and control of units or individual members of the Corps that are deployed at the direction of the President or the Secretary in response to an urgent or emergency public health care need of national, State or local significance;
(3) ensure that members of the Corps are trained, equipped and otherwise prepared to fulfill their public health and emergency response roles; and
(4) ensure that deployment planning takes into account—
(A) any deployment exemptions that may be granted by the Secretary based on the unique requirements of an agency and an individual’s functional role in such agency; and
(B) the nature of the urgent or emergency public health care need.
(c) Deployment of detailed or assigned officers
For purposes of pay, allowances, and benefits of a Commissioned Corps officer who is detailed or assigned to a Federal entity, the deployment of such officer by the Secretary in response to an urgent or emergency public health care need shall be deemed to be an authorized activity of the Federal entity to which the officer is detailed or assigned.
(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title II, § 203A, as added Pub. L. 109–417, title II, § 206(b), Dec. 19, 2006, 120 Stat. 2851; amended Pub. L. 116–136, div. A, title III, § 3214(b), Mar. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 373.)
heading: References in Text
text: The National Emergencies Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(5)(A), is Pub. L. 94–412, Sept. 14, 1976, 90 Stat. 1255, as amended, which is classified principally to chapter 34 (§ 1601 et seq.) of Title 50, War and National Defense. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1601 of Title 50 and Tables.
The Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(5)(B), is Pub. L. 93–288, May 22, 1974, 88 Stat. 143, as amended, which is classified principally to chapter 68 (§ 5121 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 5121 of this title and Tables.
heading: Amendments
text: 2020—Subsec. (a)(1)(B). Pub. L. 116–136 substituted “Ready Reserve Corps” for “Active Reserves”.
heading: Purpose
text: Pub. L. 109–417, title II, § 206(a), Dec. 19, 2006, 120 Stat. 2851, provided that:
“It is the purpose of this section [enacting this section and amending sections 215 and 254d of this title] to improve the force management and readiness of the Commissioned Corps to accomplish the following objectives:
“(1) To ensure the Corps is ready to respond rapidly to urgent or emergency public health care needs and challenges.
“(2) To ensure the availability of the Corps for assignments that address clinical and public health needs in isolated, hardship, and hazardous duty positions, and, when required, to address needs related to the well-being, security, and defense of the United States.
“(3) To establish the Corps as a resource available to Federal and State Government agencies for assistance in meeting public health leadership and service roles.”