COVID–19 Delivery Act
Bill: H.R.936 | Sponsor: Rep. Jackson Lee, Sheila (D-TX)
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Delivering COVID-19 Vaccinations to All Regions and Vulnerable Communities Act of 2021 or the COVID-19 Delivery Act
This bill directs the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to support COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) vaccination programs.
To assist state or local governments with vaccination efforts, FEMA must coordinate certain activities. Specifically, FEMA must
Additionally, HHS must carry out a program to increase vaccination rates to achieve herd immunity. As part of this program, HHS must temporarily collect data on COVID-19 vaccine administrations. Data collected under this program is subject to relevant privacy protections that apply to other health data. HHS must report on its activities on a daily or weekly basis.
The CDC must also report on the effectiveness of state and local COVID-19 vaccination programs.

To direct the Federal Emergency Management Agency to assist States and 
 local governments with the distribution and tracking of vaccines for 
COVID-19, to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry 
out a national program to oversee the collection and maintenance of all 
  Federal and State data on vaccinations of individuals in the United 
 States for COVID-19 to achieve mass vaccination saturation immunity, 
                        and for other purposes.

    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 ``Delivering COVID-19 Vaccinations to 
All Regions and Vulnerable Communities Act of 2021'' or the ``COVID-19 
Delivery Act''.

SEC. 2. FEMA ASSISTANCE FOR COVID-19 VACCINATIONS.

    In the assistance to State and local governments, the Administrator 
of the Federal Emergency Management Agency shall--
            (1) coordinate efforts for vaccine delivery, including from 
        manufacturing sites to inoculation sites;
            (2) monitor shipments of vaccines through a 24-hour 
        tracking system, including readings on the temperature, real-
        time location, origin, destination data, anticipated time of 
        arrival, and report to recipients on changes and updates on the 
        progress of their delivery shipments and any changes that may 
        impact expected delivery or the viability of the vaccine while 
        in transit;
            (3) develop an advanced communication system to allow the 
        Department of Health and Human Services and public health 
        departments to communicate and share information about vaccine 
        readiness, capability of receiving vaccines, delivery 
        locations, details of facility capability of storing and 
        securing vaccines, personnel authorized to receive deliveries, 
        logistics for delivering vaccines to patients, report on 
        vaccine receipts, condition of vaccines, patient reactions, and 
        feedback on how to improve the process;
            (4) secure transportation for delivery or use of vaccines, 
        and if requested, security for the vaccine delivery sites or 
        inoculation locations to ensure the life and safety of 
        personnel and patients who seek to provide or receive 
        vaccinations free of interference or threat;
            (5) design custom software applications (Apps) with the 
        Department of Health and Human Services for use by public 
        health agencies and any company or person administering 
        vaccines to provide information to patients on the vaccine 
        being received, the date of a second dose and the location of 
        the dose if required, including generating a token that 
        corresponds to an individual's vaccination record to ensure 
        that the right vaccine is administered and if a second 
        inoculation is required and to ensure that an individual is not 
        vaccinated with different vaccines, and any additional 
        information that may be pertinent in the future;
            (6) develop a public education and patient engagement 
        program about the safety and availability of vaccines that also 
        ensures that individuals in areas and locations where 
        vulnerable populations often do not have easy access to health 
        care or vaccinations are informed about vaccine availability; 
        and
            (7) acting through the Department of Health and Human 
        Services, provide additional vaccination centers, in addition 
        to State and local government sites, to augment vaccinations 
        occurring within such States and local governments to address 
        access to at-risk communities when vaccination rates are below 
        80 percent for a population residing with in a census block or 
        track that is experiencing a greater incidence of serious 
        complications, such as hospitalizations and deaths that are 
        above the proportional representation of the at-risk group when 
        compared to the general population, establishing the need for a 
        targeted vaccination effort to reduce the incidence of 
        infections for those individuals at greatest risk for 
        hospitalizations and death from COVID-19.

SEC. 3. CDC REQUIREMENTS.

    The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shall track the 
dissemination of inoculations and report on efficiencies, 
effectiveness, or deficiencies of local and state COVID-19 vaccination 
programs, including the availability of certified individuals under 
Federal, State or territorial authority to administer a vaccination 
under State law, and report to Congressional oversight committees in 
the House of Representatives and the Senate on findings and 
recommendations.

SEC. 4. HHS MANAGEMENT OF COVID-19 VACCINATION DATA TO ACHIEVE MASS 
              VACCINATION SATURATION IMMUNITY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services (in 
this section referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall carry out a 
national program to oversee the collection and maintenance of all 
Federal and State data on vaccinations of individuals in the United 
States for COVID-19, including tracking booster vaccinations, to 
achieve mass vaccination saturation immunity.
    (b) Applicable Privacy Law; Penalties.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary shall maintain data on 
        vaccinations for COVID-19 in accordance with all applicable 
        privacy and security law, including HIPAA privacy and security 
        law (as defined in section 3009(a)(2) of the Public Health 
        Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300jj-19(a)(2)).
            (2) Penalties.--Any person who discloses or uses data on 
        vaccinations for COVID-19 in violation of any provision of law 
        referred to in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) shall be imprisoned for not more than 5 years, 
                or fined in accordance with title 18, or both; and
                    (B) shall be subject, in addition to any other 
                penalties that may be prescribed by law, to a civil 
                money penalty of not more than $10,000 for each such 
                violation.
    (c) Data Retention Limitation.--The Secretary shall destroy any 
data maintained pursuant to subsection (a) by the end of the 5-year 
period beginning on the date of receipt or collection of the data, 
whichever is later.
    (d) Transimission of State Data.--The Secretary shall take such 
steps as may be necessary to encourage and assist each State in 
transmitting to the Secretary on an ongoing basis the State's data with 
respect to vaccination of individuals in such State for COVID-19.
    (e) Ombudsman.--The Secretary shall appoint an ombudsman to--
            (1) support public and stakeholder input on the activities 
        carried out pursuant to this section;
            (2) provide advocacy and advice for those who elect not to 
        be vaccinated for COVID-19; and
            (3) champion the privacy and civil liberty rights of 
        individuals in the United States in connection with vaccination 
        for COVID-19.
    (f) Collaboration.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary 
shall collaborate with stakeholders in establishing vaccine inoculation 
centers in locations including--
            (1) stadiums, arenas, elementary and secondary schools, 
        colleges and universities, and places of worship; and
            (2) other locations determined by the Secretary to be 
        condcive to reaching the greatest number of people in need of 
        inoculations for COVID-19.
    (g) Advisory Board.--For the purpose achieving mass vaccination 
saturation immunity to COVID-19 in the United States, the Secretary 
shall establish a stakeholder advisory board to support the 
collaboration and cooperation of entities including Federal, State, and 
local governments, businesses, colleges, universities, elementary and 
secondary schools, hospitals, clinics, professional medical 
associations, and such other entities as the Secretary determines to be 
essential to such purpose.
    (h) Reports.--On a daily or weekly basis, subject to subsection 
(b), the Secretary shall submit to the Congress and make public reports 
on the activities carried out under this section, including such data 
as the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention 
determines to be relevant to analyzing inoculation statistics and 
progress toward achieving mass vaccination saturation immunity.
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