Title: AMIGOS Act
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance

Summary:
American Medical Investment Generating Overseas Security Act or the AMIGOS Act
This bill prohibits the President from taking action to support the waiver of certain intellectual property obligations owed by members of the World Trade Organization in relation to the prevention, containment, mitigation, or treatment of COVID-19.
The bill also establishes prioritization for allocating excess COVID-19 vaccines to other countries, and it requires that such vaccines be marked as assistance from the American people or the United States and include a depiction of the U.S. flag (if appropriate).

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3236 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3236

To prohibit the President from taking any action to support the waiver 
  of obligations of members of the World Trade Organization under the 
 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights in 
 relation to the prevention, containment, mitigation, or treatment of 
   COVID-19 unless a statute is enacted expressly authorizing such a 
  waiver with respect to the prevention, containment, mitigation, or 
             treatment of COVID-19, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 14, 2021

Ms. Salazar (for herself, Mr. Rice of South Carolina, Mr. Donalds, Mr. 
 Jackson, and Mr. Bilirakis) introduced the following bill; which was 
 referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the 
Committee on Ways and Means, 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 prohibit the President from taking any action to support the waiver 
  of obligations of members of the World Trade Organization under the 
 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights in 
 relation to the prevention, containment, mitigation, or treatment of 
   COVID-19 unless a statute is enacted expressly authorizing such a 
  waiver with respect to the prevention, containment, mitigation, or 
             treatment of COVID-19, 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 ``American Medical Investment 
Generating Overseas Security Act'' or the ``AMIGOS Act''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON ACTION TO SUPPORT WAIVER OF OBLIGATIONS OF WTO 
              MEMBERS UNDER THE TRIPS AGREEMENT IN RELATION TO THE 
              PREVENTION, CONTAINMENT, MITIGATION, OR TREATMENT OF 
              COVID-19.

    The President may not take any action to support the waiver of 
obligations of members of the World Trade Organization under the TRIPS 
Agreement to implement or apply sections 1, 4, 5, and 7 of part II of 
the TRIPS Agreement or to enforce such sections under part III of the 
TRIPS Agreement in relation to the prevention, containment, mitigation, 
or treatment of COVID-19 unless a statute is enacted expressly 
authorizing such a waiver with respect to the prevention, containment, 
mitigation, or treatment of COVID-19.

SEC. 3. PRIORITY IN ALLOCATING EXCESS VACCINES FOR COVID-19 TO OTHER 
              COUNTRIES.

    (a) In General.--In allocating vaccines for COVID-19 that are 
procured by or otherwise subject to the control of the Federal 
Government and in excess of the demand for such vaccines by individuals 
in the United States who are eligible to receive such vaccines, the 
President shall allocate such vaccines in accordance with the following 
order of priority:
            (1) First, to other countries in the Western Hemisphere 
        with the lowest rates of immunization for COVID-19.
            (2) Second, to other countries in the Western Hemisphere 
        based on other metrics developed by the President.
            (3) Third, to United States allies and partner countries 
        with the lowest rates of immunization for COVID-19.
            (4) Fourth, to United States allies and partner countries 
        based on the metrics developed under paragraph (2).
    (b) Exceptions.--In allocating vaccines described in subsection 
(a), the President may waive the prioritization otherwise required by 
such subsection to allocate such vaccines to countries that are 
determined by the President to be--
            (1) experiencing a significantly high number of per capita 
        COVID-19 cases and associated hospitalizations;
            (2) at risk of a country-wide health care system collapse 
        as a result of COVID-19; or
            (3) experiencing the spread of a variant of SARS-CoV-2 that 
        needs to be contained.
    (c) Monitoring.--The President shall monitor the allocation of 
vaccines for COVID-19 to foreign countries under this section to ensure 
the governments of such countries provide such vaccines to the peoples 
of such countries in a timely manner and do not otherwise withhold such 
vaccines.

SEC. 4. MARKING REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Except as provided in subsection (b), vaccines for 
COVID-19 provided to foreign countries under section 3 shall be marked 
as assistance from the American people or the United States Government 
and shall include a depiction of the flag of the United States if 
appropriate.
    (b) Exception.--The marking requirements of subsection (a) shall 
not apply if the President determines that such requirements will 
endanger the lives or safety of persons delivering such vaccines or 
would have an adverse effect on the administration of such vaccines.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) COVID-19.--The term ``COVID-19'' refers to the 2019 
        coronavirus disease caused by SARS-CoV-2.
            (2) SARS-CoV-2.--The term ``SARS-CoV-2'' refers to the 
        severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus 
        responsible for COVID-19 and includes any viral variant 
        mutating therefrom with pandemic potential.
            (3) TRIPS agreement.--The term ``TRIPS Agreement'' means 
        the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property 
        Rights referred to in section 101(d)(15) of the Uruguay Round 
        Agreements Act (19 U.S.C. 3511(d)(15)).
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