Title: National Strategy To Increase Life Expectancy Act of 2018
Policy area: Health

Summary:
National Strategy To Increase Life Expectancy Act of 2018
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services to develop a national strategy to increase life expectancy in the United States to at least that of the average life expectancy in member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (an intergovernmental organization focused on global economic development). The strategy must address specified issues, included the causes of premature death and inequalities in life expectancies.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7035 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7035

To provide for a National Strategy To Increase Life Expectancy, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 5, 2018

 Ms. Wasserman Schultz (for herself, Ms. Jackson Lee, and Ms. Kelly of 
  Illinois) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for a National Strategy To Increase Life Expectancy, 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 ``National Strategy To Increase Life 
Expectancy Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    The Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) United States life expectancy at birth, formerly longer 
        than many other wealthy nations, has lagged over the past four 
        decades and currently stands at 78.6 years compared with the 
        Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average 
        of nearly 81 years.
            (2) If United States life expectancy matched the 
        Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development average, 
        more than 210,000 deaths would be prevented annually.
            (3) United States life expectancy declined in 2015 and 
        2016, the first decline in 2 consecutive years since a deadly 
        influenza pandemic caused declines in 1962 and 1963.
            (4) Preliminary data indicates that United States life 
        expectancy declined in 2017, which would mark the first decline 
        in 3 consecutive years since 1916-1918, which included the 
        Spanish influenza pandemic that killed an estimated 675,000 
        Americans.
            (5) The gap in life expectancy between the United States 
        and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development 
        has been attributed in part to numerous factors, including the 
        opioid epidemic, smoking, obesity, insufficient exercise, 
        infant mortality, maternal mortality, affordable access to 
        high-quality health care, gun violence, economic inequality, 
        and social isolation.
            (6) There is significant and growing inequality in life 
        expectancy in the United States based on socioeconomic status, 
        race, ethnicity, and geography.

SEC. 3. NATIONAL STRATEGY TO INCREASE LIFE EXPECTANCY.

    The Public Health Service Act is amended by inserting after section 
310A of such Act (42 U.S.C. 242s) the following new section:

``SEC. 310B. NATIONAL STRATEGY TO INCREASE LIFE EXPECTANCY.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall develop and maintain a 
national strategy to be known as the National Strategy To Increase Life 
Expectancy (in this section referred to as the `National Strategy') for 
increasing life expectancy in the United States to, at minimum, the 
average life expectancy in the member countries of the Organization for 
Economic Cooperation and Development.
    ``(b) Process; Transmittal to Congress and Public Release.--
            ``(1) Process.--The Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) develop the National Strategy and each update 
                thereto in consultation with--
                            ``(i) other Federal departments and 
                        agencies as appropriate; and
                            ``(ii) medical professionals, patient 
                        advocates, and experts in public health and 
                        other subject matter areas impacting life 
                        expectancy; and
                    ``(B) shall publish a proposed version of the 
                National Strategy and each update thereto in the 
                Federal Register and provide a period of at least 30 
                days for the public to submit comments on each such 
                proposal before finalizing the National Strategy or 
                update, respectively.
            ``(2) Transmittal; release.--Not later than 2 years after 
        the date of enactment of the National Strategy To Increase Life 
        Expectancy Act of 2018, the Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) transmit the final National Strategy to the 
                appropriate congressional committees; and
                    ``(B) release the final National Strategy to the 
                public.
            ``(3) Updates.--Every 2 years following the transmittal 
        under paragraph (2) of the initial National Strategy, the 
        Secretary shall--
                    ``(A) make updates, as the Secretary determines 
                appropriate, to the National Strategy pursuant to the 
                process described in paragraph (1);
                    ``(B) transmit the updated National Strategy to the 
                appropriate congressional committees; and
                    ``(C) release the updated National Strategy to the 
                public.
            ``(4) Appointment of senior official.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall designate a 
                senior official at the Department of Health and Human 
                Services to be responsible for coordinating the 
                development, updating, and implementation of the 
                National Strategy.
                    ``(B) Duties.--The duties of the official 
                designated under paragraph (1) shall include--
                            ``(i) acting as a liaison with all Federal 
                        agencies regarding the development, updating, 
                        and implementation of the National Strategy;
                            ``(ii) working to ensure that there is 
                        proper coordination among agencies in 
                        developing, updating, and implementing the 
                        National Strategy;
                            ``(iii) being knowledgeable about budget 
                        priorities and familiar with all efforts within 
                        the Department of Health and Human Services 
                        impacting life expectancy; and
                            ``(iv) communicating the National Strategy 
                        to Congress and being available to answer 
                        questions related to the National Strategy at 
                        congressional hearings, if requested by 
                        committees of appropriate jurisdiction, on the 
                        contents of the National Strategy and the 
                        progress of the Department of Health and Human 
                        Services in implementing the National Strategy.
    ``(c) Contents.--The National Strategy shall include the following:
            ``(1) Causes.--An identification of the most significant 
        causes of premature death in the United States, including an 
        analysis of the relative importance of the opioid epidemic, 
        smoking, obesity, insufficient exercise, infant mortality, 
        maternal mortality, affordable access to high-quality health 
        care, gun violence, economic inequality, social isolation, and 
        such other factors or causes as the Secretary determines to be 
        significant, in preventing the life expectancy in the United 
        States from being as high as the average life expectancy in the 
        member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation 
        and Development.
            ``(2) Analysis of recent absolute decline.--A discussion of 
        and data regarding--
                    ``(A) in the initial National Strategy, the 
                absolute decline of life expectancy in the United 
                States preceding the enactment of the National Strategy 
                To Increase Life Expectancy Act of 2018; and
                    ``(B) in each update to the National Strategy, any 
                absolute decline of life expectancy in the United 
                States over the period since the previous transmittal 
                of the National Strategy pursuant to subsection (b).
            ``(3) Analysis of inequality in life expectancy within the 
        united states.--A discussion of and data regarding the 
        inequality in life expectancy within the United States.
            ``(4) Analysis of differences in life expectancy by sex.--A 
        discussion of and data regarding differences in life 
        expectancy, including differing causes of premature death, 
        between men and women.
            ``(5) Analysis of differing causes of premature death by 
        age.--A discussion of and data regarding differing causes of 
        premature death for Americans of different age groups, and how 
        such differing causes have contributed to the gap between the 
        life expectancy in the United States and the average life 
        expectancy in the member countries of the Organization for 
        Economic Cooperation and Development.
            ``(6) Evaluation of existing efforts.--An assessment of the 
        effectiveness of and ways in which the Federal Government is 
        addressing the causes identified under paragraphs (1), (2), 
        (3), (4), and (5) which shall include a projection of life 
        expectancy in the United States in each of the next 10 years.
            ``(7) Proposed changes.--A discussion of comprehensive, 
        research-based, long-range, quantifiable proposed changes to 
        efforts in order to--
                    ``(A) expeditiously increase the life expectancy in 
                the United States to, at a minimum, the average life 
                expectancy in the member countries of the Organization 
                for Economic Cooperation and Development; and
                    ``(B) significantly reduce the inequality in life 
                expectancy within the United States.
            ``(8) Projection of life expectancy gains with 
        implementation of proposed changes.--A projection of life 
        expectancy in the United States in each year of implementation 
        of the changes proposed in the National Strategy, and a 
        projection of the life expectancy in the member countries of 
        the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in 
        each of those years, until such year as the projected life 
        expectancy in the United States equals or exceeds the projected 
        average life expectancy in the member countries of the 
        Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
            ``(9) Budget.--A proposed budget that identifies sufficient 
        resources needed to successfully execute the National Strategy 
        until such year as the projected life expectancy in the United 
        States equals or exceeds the projected average life expectancy 
        in the member countries of the Organization for Economic 
        Cooperation and Development.
            ``(10) Authority for proposed changes.--For each change 
        proposed in the National Strategy, a determination of which, if 
        any, Federal department or agency should be responsible for 
        implementing such change and whether the department or agency 
        has the authority and resources to do so.
    ``(d) Implementation.--The head of each Federal department or 
agency shall, pursuant to authority vested in the department or agency 
by provisions of law other than this section, work to implement each 
proposed recommendation in the National Strategy, as applicable, unless 
the National Strategy indicates that the department or agency needs 
additional resources or authorities to undertake such implementation.
    ``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there are authorized to be appropriated--
            ``(1) $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2020 and 2021; 
        and
            ``(2) $1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 
        2029.''.
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