Securing America From Epidemics Act
Bill: H.R.2118 | Sponsor: Rep. Bera, Ami (D-CA)
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Securing America From Epidemics Act
This bill authorizes the United States to participate in the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, an alliance of countries and private partners whose mission is to finance and coordinate the development of vaccines for high-priority, epidemic-potential threats.
The President must report on certain matters concerning U.S. participation in coalition activities, including how this participation supports health security and biodefense priorities.

To authorize United States participation in the Coalition for Epidemic 
           Preparedness Innovations, 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 ``Securing America From Epidemics 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Due to increasing population and population density, 
        human mobility, and ecological change, emerging infectious 
        diseases pose a real and growing threat to global health 
        security.
            (2) While vaccines can be the most effective tools to 
        protect against infectious disease, the absence of vaccines for 
        a new or emerging infectious disease with epidemic potential is 
        a major health security threat globally, posing catastrophic 
        potential human and economic costs.
            (3) The COVID-19 pandemic has infected more than 
        119,960,700 individuals and has killed at least 2,656,822 
        people worldwide, and it is likely that unreported cases and 
        deaths are significant.
            (4) Even regional outbreaks can have enormous human costs 
        and substantially disrupt the global economy and cripple 
        regional economies. The 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa 
        killed more than 11,000 and cost $2,800,000,000 in losses in 
        the affected countries alone.
            (5) While the need for vaccines to address emerging 
        epidemic threats is acute, markets to drive the necessary 
        development of vaccines to address them--a complex and 
        expensive undertaking--are very often critically absent. Also 
        absent are mechanisms to ensure access to those vaccines by 
        those who need them when they need them.
            (6) To address this global vulnerability and the deficit of 
        political commitment, institutional capacity, and funding, in 
        2017, several countries and private partners launched the 
        Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI). CEPI's 
        mission is to stimulate, finance, and coordinate development of 
        vaccines for high-priority, epidemic-potential threats in cases 
        where traditional markets do not exist or cannot create 
        sufficient demand.
            (7) Through funding of partnerships, CEPI seeks to bring 
        priority vaccines candidates through the end of phase II 
        clinical trials, as well as support vaccine platforms that can 
        be rapidly deployed against emerging pathogens.
            (8) CEPI supported the manufacturing of the United States-
        developed Moderna COVID-19 vaccine during its Phase 1 clinical 
        trial, and CEPI has initiated at least 12 partnerships to 
        develop vaccines against COVID-19.
            (9) CEPI is co-leading COVAX, the vaccines pillar of the 
        ACT-Accelerator, which is a global collaboration to quickly 
        produce and equitably distribute safe and effective vaccines 
        and therapeutics for COVID-19.
            (10) Support for and participation in CEPI is an important 
        part of the United States own health security and biodefense 
        and is in the national interest, complementing the work of many 
        Federal agencies and providing significant value through global 
        partnership and burden-sharing.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION FOR UNITED STATES PARTICIPATION.

    (a) In General.--The United States is hereby authorized to 
participate in the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations 
(``Coalition'').
    (b) Designation.--The President is authorized to designate an 
employee of the relevant Federal department or agency providing the 
majority of United States contributions to the Coalition, who should 
demonstrate knowledge and experience in the fields of development and 
public health, epidemiology, or medicine, to serve--
            (1) on the Investors Council of the Coalition; and
            (2) if nominated by the President, on the Board of 
        Directors of the Coalition, as a representative of the United 
        States.
    (c) Reports to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees a report that includes the 
following:
            (1) The United States planned contributions to the 
        Coalition and the mechanisms for United States participation in 
        such Coalition.
            (2) The manner and extent to which the United States shall 
        participate in the governance of the Coalition.
            (3) How participation in the Coalition supports relevant 
        United States Government strategies and programs in health 
        security and biodefense, including--
                    (A) the Global Health Security Strategy required by 
                section 7058(c)(3) of division K of the Consolidated 
                Appropriations Act, 2018 (Public Law 115-141);
                    (B) the applicable revision of the National 
                Biodefense Strategy required by section 1086 of the 
                National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 
                (6 U.S.C. 104); and
                    (C) any other relevant decision-making process for 
                policy, planning, and spending in global health 
                security, biodefense, or vaccine and medical 
                countermeasures research and development.
    (d) United States Contributions.--Amounts authorized to be 
appropriated under chapters 1 and 10 of part I and chapter 4 of part II 
of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) are 
authorized to be made available for United States contributions to the 
Coalition.
    (e) Appropriate Congressional Committees.--In this section, the 
term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
            (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the House of Representatives; and
            (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the Senate.

            Passed the House of Representatives July 20, 2021.

            Attest:

                                             CHERYL L. JOHNSON,

                                                                 Clerk.