Vaccine Fairness Act
Bill: H.R.979 | Sponsor: Rep. Craig, Angie (D-MN)
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Vaccine Fairness Act
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide weekly reports to Congress concerning the distribution of COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) vaccines to the public.
HHS must also make publicly available certain data on the number of vaccine doses administered.

To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit to 
  Congress a weekly report on COVID-19 vaccine distribution, 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 ``Vaccine Fairness Act''.

SEC. 2. COVID-19 VACCINE DISTRIBUTION REPORTS.

    (a) Weekly Report to Congress.--Not later than 7 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, and every 7 days thereafter, the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services (in this section referred to as 
the ``Secretary'') shall submit to Congress a report on the 
effectiveness of efforts relating to the distribution of COVID-19 
vaccines to the public.
    (b) Contents of Report.--Each report submitted under subsection (a) 
shall include, with respect to the 7-day period preceding the date on 
which such report is submitted, the following:
            (1) The number of doses of COVID-19 vaccines distributed 
        for administration to the public.
            (2) A description of any substantial purchase of COVID-19 
        vaccines by a Federal Government agency or private 
        organization.
            (3) The number of doses of COVID-19 vaccines that were 
        distributed to State or local health departments.
            (4) A description of the progress made in distributing 
        COVID-19 vaccines to the following:
                    (A) High-risk and other priority groups, 
                including--
                            (i) racial and ethnic minorities;
                            (ii) individuals who are pregnant or 
                        breastfeeding;
                            (iii) individuals with disabilities;
                            (iv) homeless individuals;
                            (v) newly resettled refugees; and
                            (vi) individuals in rural communities.
                    (B) High-risk facilities, including--
                            (i) long-term care facilities;
                            (ii) group homes; and
                            (iii) jails and prisons.
            (5) A description of any deviations from Federal 
        distribution plans, including issues relating to the following:
                    (A) Sites administering large numbers of COVID-19 
                vaccines, such as pharmacy chain stores, schools, and 
                primary health care providers.
                    (B) Tracking procedures for COVID-19 vaccines, 
                particularly in areas of greatest need.
                    (C) Outreach to health care providers and the 
                public about the availability, benefits, safety, 
                contraindications, and costs of receiving COVID-19 
                vaccines.
                    (D) Outreach to health care providers regarding the 
                responsibilities of such providers to track vaccine 
                administration and monitor adverse events.
                    (E) Recordkeeping and data collection relating to 
                the administration of COVID-19 vaccines (including 
                Federal support for State and local immunization 
                information systems).
                    (F) Overuse or gaps in treatment.
    (c) Public Availability of Certain Data.--The Secretary shall make 
publicly available on an appropriate website of the Department of 
Health and Human Services, and regularly update, data on the number of 
doses of COVID-19 vaccines administered to the public, disaggregated 
with respect to each of the following:
            (1) Age.
            (2) Race.
            (3) Ethnicity.
            (4) ZIP Code.
    (d) Termination.--This section shall cease to have effect on the 
date that is 18 months after the date on which the initial report is 
submitted to Congress under subsection (a).
    (e) State Defined.--In this section, the term ``State'' means each 
of the several States, the District of Columbia, each commonwealth, 
territory, or possession of the United States, and each federally 
recognized Indian Tribe.
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