Vaccine INFO Act
Bill: H.R.3742 | Sponsor: Rep. Bilirakis, Gus M. (R-FL)
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Vaccine Information for Nursing Facility Operators Act or the Vaccine INFO Act
This bill requires the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to revise specified regulations that govern infection prevention and control programs in Medicare skilled nursing facilities and Medicaid nursing facilities to ensure that facilities provide their staff with specified information about certain immunizations.
For each immunization recommended for health care personnel by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, facilities must provide their staff with information about the benefits and potential side effects of each immunization.
Additional requirements apply based on whether or not a facility offers any of the recommended immunizations to its staff. Facilities that offer such immunizations must provide the information to staff before offering the immunization. Facilities that do not offer such immunizations must also provide information to staff about the availability and costs of the immunizations.

To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue revised 
    regulations to require the dissemination of information on ACIP 
       recommended immunizations to staff of nursing facilities.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Vaccine Information for Nursing 
Facility Operators Act'' or the ``Vaccine INFO Act''.

SEC. 2. REQUIRING DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION ON ACIP RECOMMENDED 
              IMMUNIZATIONS TO STAFF OF NURSING FACILITIES.

    Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall revise section 
483.80 of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations, to require that the 
policies and procedures that are required under such section to be 
developed by a facility described in such section as part of the 
infection prevention and control program described in such section 
shall include policies and procedures to ensure that--
            (1) all individuals who are staff of the facility (as 
        defined for purposes of such section) are provided information 
        on the benefits and potential side effects for each 
        immunization recommended by the Advisory Committee on 
        Immunization Practices for health care personnel;
            (2) in the case that the facility offers such an 
        immunization to an individual described in paragraph (1), the 
        information described in such paragraph for the respective 
        immunization so offered is provided to such individual before 
        such immunization is offered to such individual by such 
        facility; and
            (3) in the case that the facility does not offer such an 
        immunization to individuals who are described in paragraph (1), 
        the facility includes with the information required to be 
        provided to such individuals under such paragraph for the 
        respective immunization that is not so offered, information on 
        the availability of such immunization, including locations for 
        receiving such immunization, and the associated costs to the 
        individual for such immunization.
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