Title: Frontline Health Care Workers Assistance Act
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Frontline Health Care Workers Assistance Act
This bill directs certain actions to procure equipment necessary to prevent, identify, and mitigate cases of COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019).
The National Response Coordination Center of the Federal Emergency Management Agency must, within seven days, submit a report to Congress and the President that (1) assesses the need for equipment, including personal protective equipment and ventilators, across the United States; and (2) identifies the industry sectors and manufacturers capable of fulfilling purchase orders for such equipment, as well as government-owned and privately owned stockpiles of such equipment that could be refurbished.
Within 24 hours, the President must issue a purchase order with the highest priority rating under the Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) for a specified number of N-95 respirators and face masks. (DPAS is used to prioritize national defense-related contracts, subcontracts, and purchase orders.) Within seven days of receiving the center's report, the President must also issue priority purchase orders for the equipment identified in the report under authorities provided by the Defense Production Act of 1950. (That act confers upon the President a broad set of authorities to influence domestic industry in order to provide essential materials and goods for the national defense.) The bill waives certain requirements under the act related to congressional notification and authorization and makes specified funds available for these efforts.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6398 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6398

To provide for the expedited procurement of equipment needed to combat 
           COVID-19 under the Defense Production Act of 1950.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 26, 2020

  Mr. Crow (for himself, Ms. Porter, Mr. Sean Patrick Maloney of New 
   York, Ms. Pressley, Ms. Barragan, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Larson of 
 Connecticut, Mrs. Fletcher, Mr. Suozzi, Mr. Neguse, Ms. Frankel, Mr. 
  McGovern, Mr. Khanna, Mr. Castro of Texas, Mr. Brendan F. Boyle of 
Pennsylvania, Mr. Raskin, Mr. Rouda, Mr. Cox of California, Ms. Roybal-
Allard, Mr. Pocan, Mr. Nadler, Mrs. Hayes, Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire, 
 Mr. Malinowski, and Mr. Kilmer) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to 
the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for the expedited procurement of equipment needed to combat 
           COVID-19 under the Defense Production Act of 1950.

    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 ``Frontline Health Care Workers 
Assistance Act''.

SEC. 2. EXPEDITED PROCUREMENT OF EQUIPMENT NEEDED TO COMBAT COVID-19.

    (a) Report Required.--Not later than 7 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the National Response Coordination Center of the 
Federal Emergency Management Agency, in coordination with the Defense 
Logistics Agency and the Department of Veterans Affairs, and in 
consultation with the Department of Health and Human Services, shall 
submit to Congress and the President a report that includes--
            (1) an assessment of the need across the United States for 
        equipment necessary to prevent, identify, and mitigate cases of 
        coronavirus disease 2019 (commonly known as ``COVID-19''), 
        including personal protective equipment and ventilators;
            (2) an identification of the industry sectors and 
        manufacturers most ready to fulfill purchase orders for such 
        equipment; and
            (3) an identification of government and privately owned 
        stockpiles of equipment not included in the Strategic National 
        Stockpile that could be repaired or refurbished.
    (b) Purchase Orders.--
            (1) Immediate purchases.--Not later than 24 hours after the 
        enactment of this Act, the President shall issue a ``DX'' rated 
        priority purchase order pursuant to Department of Defense 
        Directive 4400.1 to procure 300,000,000 N95 respirators and 
        facemasks under authorities provided by the Defense Production 
        Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4501 et seq.).
            (2) Additional purchases.--Not later than 7 days after 
        receiving the report required by subsection (a), the President 
        shall issue ``DX'' rated priority purchase orders pursuant to 
        Department of Defense Directive 4400.1 to procure equipment 
        identified under paragraph (1) of that subsection under 
        authorities provided by the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 
        U.S.C. 4501 et seq.).
    (c) Waiver of Certain Requirements.--The requirements of sections 
301(d)(1)(A), 302(d)(1), and subparagraphs (B) and (C) of section 
303(a)(6) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 
4531(d)(1)(A), 4532(d)(1), and 4533(a)(6)) are waived for purposes of 
this section.
    (d) Funding.--Amounts available in the Defense Production Act Fund 
under section 304 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 
4534) shall be available for purchases made under this section.
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