Title: Family Asthma Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Family Asthma Act
This bill requires the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to collaborate with state and local health departments to (1) conduct activities regarding asthma, including deterring the harmful consequences of uncontrolled asthma, and disseminating health education and information regarding prevention of asthma episodes and strategies for managing asthma; and (2) develop state plans incorporating public health responses to reduce the burden of asthma, particularly regarding disproportionately affected populations.
Additionally, the bill revises and expands requirements for asthma surveillance activities and requires the CDC to coordinate data collection activities to maximize the comparability of results.
Further, the Department of Health and Human Services must submit an assessment of current activities related to asthma prevention, management, and surveillance that includes recommendations for the future direction of asthma activities.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4622 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4622

   To amend the Public Health Service Act with regard to research on 
                    asthma, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 8, 2019

 Mr. Cummings (for himself, Mr. Engel, Mr. Upton, and Mr. King of New 
    York) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Public Health Service Act with regard to research on 
                    asthma, 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 ``Family Asthma Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) According to the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, in 2017 more than 25,100,000 people in the United 
        States had been diagnosed with asthma, including an estimated 
        6,200,000 children.
            (2) According to the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, asthma usually affects racial and ethnic 
        minorities, including African Americans, American Indians, 
        Alaska Natives, Puerto Ricans, and people of multiple races 
        more than non-Hispanic Whites. In 2017, Puerto Ricans and 
        African Americans had the highest lifetime prevalence of asthma 
        at 20.6 and 15.2 percent, respectively.
            (3) According to the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, among children, males have higher rates of asthma 
        than females, and in adults women have higher rates of asthma 
        than men. Individuals living below the poverty threshold also 
        had significantly higher rates of asthma in 2017 than 
        individuals living above the poverty threshold.
            (4) According to the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, in 2017 more than 3,500 people in the United States 
        died from asthma. The rate of mortality from asthma is higher 
        among African Americans and women.
            (5) The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report 
        that asthma accounted for approximately 180,000 
        hospitalizations and 1,800,000 visits to hospital emergency 
        departments in 2016.
            (6) According to the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, the annual cost of asthma to the United States is 
        approximately $81,900,000,000, including $3,000,000,000 in 
        indirect costs from missed days of school and work.
            (7) According to the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention, 5,200,000 school days and 8,500,000 work days are 
        missed annually as a result of asthma.
            (8) Asthma episodes can be triggered by both outdoor air 
        pollution and indoor air pollution, including pollutants such 
        as cigarette smoke and combustion by-products. Asthma episodes 
        can also be triggered by indoor allergens such as animal dander 
        and outdoor allergens such as pollen and molds.
            (9) Public health interventions and medical care in 
        accordance with existing guidelines have been proven effective 
        in the treatment and management of asthma. Better asthma 
        management could reduce the numbers of emergency department 
        visits and hospitalizations due to asthma. Studies published in 
        medical journals, including the Journal of Asthma and The 
        Journal of Pediatrics, have shown that better asthma management 
        results in improved asthma outcomes at a lower cost.
            (10) In 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention reported that less than half of people with asthma 
        reported receiving self-management training for their asthma. 
        More education about triggers, proper treatment, and asthma 
        management methods is needed.
            (11) The alarming rise in the prevalence of asthma, its 
        adverse effect on school attendance and productivity, and its 
        cost for hospitalizations and emergency room visits, highlight 
        the importance of public health interventions, including 
        increasing awareness of asthma as a chronic illness, its 
        symptoms, the role of both indoor and outdoor environmental 
        factors that exacerbate the disease, and other factors that 
        affect its exacerbations and severity. The goals of the Federal 
        Government and its partners in the nonprofit and private 
        sectors should include reducing the number and severity of 
        asthma attacks, asthma's financial burden, and the health 
        disparities associated with asthma.
            (12) The high health and financial burden caused by asthma 
        underscores the importance of adherence to the National Asthma 
        Education and Prevention Guidelines of the National Heart, 
        Lung, and Blood Institute. Increasing adherence to guidelines-
        based care and resulting patient management practices will 
        enhance the quality of life for patients with asthma and 
        decrease asthma-related morbidity and mortality.

SEC. 3. ASTHMA-RELATED ACTIVITIES OF THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL 
              AND PREVENTION.

    Section 317I of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247b-10) 
is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 317I. ASTHMA-RELATED ACTIVITIES OF THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE 
              CONTROL AND PREVENTION.

    ``(a) Program for Providing Information and Education to the 
Public.--The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention and the National Center for 
Environmental Health, shall collaborate with State and local health 
departments to conduct activities, including the provision of 
information and education to the public regarding asthma including--
            ``(1) deterring the harmful consequences of uncontrolled 
        asthma; and
            ``(2) disseminating health education and information 
        regarding prevention of asthma episodes and strategies for 
        managing asthma.
    ``(b) Development of State Strategic Plans for Asthma Control.--The 
Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, shall collaborate with State and local health 
departments to develop State strategic plans for asthma control 
incorporating public health responses to reduce the burden of asthma, 
particularly regarding disproportionately affected populations.
    ``(c) Compilation of Data.--The Secretary, acting through the 
Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall, in 
cooperation with State and local public health officials--
            ``(1) conduct asthma surveillance activities to collect 
        data on the prevalence and severity of asthma, the 
        effectiveness of public health asthma interventions, and the 
        quality of asthma management, including--
                    ``(A) collection of data on or among people with 
                asthma to monitor the impact on health and quality of 
                life;
                    ``(B) surveillance of health care facilities; and
                    ``(C) collection of data not containing 
                individually identifiable information from electronic 
                health records or other electronic communications;
            ``(2) compile and annually publish data regarding the 
        prevalence of childhood asthma, the child mortality rate, and 
        the number of hospital admissions and emergency department 
        visits by children associated with asthma nationally and in 
        each State by age, sex, race, and ethnicity, as well as 
        lifetime and current prevalence; and
            ``(3) compile and annually publish data regarding the 
        prevalence of adult asthma, the adult mortality rate, and the 
        number of hospital admissions and emergency department visits 
        by adults associated with asthma nationally and in each State 
        by age, sex, race, and ethnicity, as well as lifetime and 
        current prevalence.
    ``(d) Coordination of Data Collection.--The Director of the Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention, in conjunction with State and local 
health departments, shall coordinate data collection activities under 
subsection (c)(2) so as to maximize the comparability of results.
    ``(e) Collaboration.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention are encouraged to collaborate with national, State, 
        and local nonprofit organizations to provide information and 
        education about asthma, and to strengthen such collaborations 
        when possible.
            ``(2) Specific activities.--The Division of Population 
        Health is encouraged to expand its activities with non-Federal 
        partners, especially State-level entities.
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there are authorized to be appropriated $65,000,000 for the period of 
fiscal years 2021 through 2025.
    ``(g) Reports to Congress.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, and once 2 years thereafter, the 
        Secretary shall, in consultation with patient groups, nonprofit 
        organizations, medical societies, and other relevant 
        governmental and nongovernmental entities, submit to Congress a 
        report that--
                    ``(A) catalogs, with respect to asthma prevention, 
                management, and surveillance--
                            ``(i) the activities of the Federal 
                        Government, including an assessment of the 
                        progress of the Federal Government and States, 
                        with respect to achieving the goals of the 
                        Healthy People 2030 initiative; and
                            ``(ii) the activities of other entities 
                        that participate in the program under this 
                        section, including nonprofit organizations, 
                        patient advocacy groups, and medical societies; 
                        and
                    ``(B) makes recommendations for the future 
                direction of asthma activities, in consultation with 
                researchers from the National Institutes of Health and 
                other member bodies of the Asthma Disparities 
                Subcommittee, including--
                            ``(i) a description of how the Federal 
                        Government may improve its response to asthma, 
                        including identifying any barriers that may 
                        exist;
                            ``(ii) a description of how the Federal 
                        Government may continue, expand, and improve 
                        its private-public partnerships with respect to 
                        asthma, including identifying any barriers that 
                        may exist;
                            ``(iii) the identification of steps that 
                        may be taken to reduce the--
                                    ``(I) morbidity, mortality, and 
                                overall prevalence of asthma;
                                    ``(II) financial burden of asthma 
                                on society;
                                    ``(III) burden of asthma on 
                                disproportionately affected areas, 
                                particularly those in medically 
                                underserved populations (as defined in 
                                section 330(b)(3)); and
                                    ``(IV) burden of asthma as a 
                                chronic disease that can be worsened by 
                                environmental exposures;
                            ``(iv) the identification of programs and 
                        policies that have achieved the steps described 
                        under clause (iii), and steps that may be taken 
                        to expand such programs and policies to benefit 
                        larger populations; and
                            ``(v) recommendations for future research 
                        and interventions.
            ``(2) Subsequent reports.--
                    ``(A) Congressional request.--During the 5-year 
                period following the submission of the second report 
                under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall submit updates 
                and revisions of the report upon the request of the 
                Congress.
                    ``(B) Five-year reevaluation.--At the end of the 5-
                year period referred to in subparagraph (A), the 
                Secretary shall--
                            ``(i) evaluate the analyses and 
                        recommendations made in previous reports; and
                            ``(ii) determine whether an additional 
                        updated report is needed and if so submit such 
                        an additional updated report to the Congress, 
                        including appropriate recommendations.''.
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