Title: Facilitating Innovation to Fight Coronavirus Act
Policy area: Law

Summary:
Facilitating Innovation to Fight Coronavirus Act
This bill provides immunity from civil liability to health care providers for certain actions taken during the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) public health emergency and lengthens the terms of certain medical patents related to the treatment of COVID-19.
Specifically, when testing for or treating COVID-19 during the public health emergency, a health care provider may not be held liable in any federal, state, or local civil proceeding for (1) using or modifying a medical device for an unapproved use or indication; (2) practicing without a license or outside of an area of specialty, if instructed to do so by an individual with such a license or within such an area of speciality; or (3) conducting the testing of, or providing treatment to, a patient outside of the premises of standard health care facilities.
Additionally, certain medical patents that are issued with respect to the treatment of COVID-19 are deemed not to begin until the termination of the presidential emergency declaration relating to COVID-19 and are extended for an additional 10 years.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3630 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3630

To provide certain limitations on liability for actions taken by health 
                   care providers to combat COVID-19.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              May 6, 2020

   Mr. Sasse introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide certain limitations on liability for actions taken by health 
                   care providers to combat COVID-19.

    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 ``Facilitating Innovation to Fight 
Coronavirus Act''.

SEC. 2. LIMITATIONS ON CERTAIN HEALTH PROVIDER LIABILITY.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of Federal, 
State, or local law, no health care provider shall be liable in any 
Federal, State, or local civil proceeding for--
            (1) using or modifying a medical device for an unapproved 
        use or indication;
            (2) practicing without a license or outside of an area of 
        specialty if instructed to do so by an individual with such a 
        license or within such an area of specialty; or
            (3) conducting the testing of, or the provision of 
        treatment to, a patient outside of the premises of standard 
        health care facilities,
where such action was carried out to test, treat, or otherwise counter 
the effects of the Coronavirus Disease COVID-19 during the duration of 
the national emergency declared by the President under the National 
Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) with respect to that disease.
    (b) Definition.--In this section, the term ``health care provider'' 
has the meaning given such term in section 3000(j) of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300jj(3)).

SEC. 3. TERM OF CERTAIN PATENTS.

    (a) Effective Date.--Notwithstanding any provision of title 35, 
United States Code, with respect to an eligible patent, the term of the 
patent shall not begin until the date on which the national emergency 
declared by the President under the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 
1601 et seq.) with respect to that disease terminates.
    (b) Length of Term.--Notwithstanding any provision of title 35, 
United States Code, with respect to an eligible patent, the term of the 
patent shall extend for 10 years longer than it otherwise would under 
such title.
    (c) Definition.--In this section, the term ``eligible patent'' 
means a patent issued for a new or existing pharmaceutical, medical 
device, or other process, machine, manufacture, or composition of 
matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof used or intended for 
use in the treatment of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19).
                                 <all>