Biosurveillance Enhancement Act of 2007

Bill: 110-hr-1290
Sponsor: Rep. Langevin, James R. [D-RI-2]
Introduced: 2007-03-01 in the House
Policy area: Emergency Management
Subjects: Agriculture and Food
Animal diseases
Animals
Biological warfare
Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
Communicable diseases
Communication in medicine
Congressional reporting requirements
Crime and Law Enforcement
Data banks
Department of Homeland Security
Emergency communication systems
Environmental Protection
Environmental health
Epidemics
Epidemiology
Executive reorganization
Food safety
Government Operations and Politics
Government paperwork
Health
Health information systems
Health surveys
Information networks
Information technology
Medical records
Medical statistics
Plant diseases
Public health
Right of privacy
Science, Technology, Communications
Terrorism

Summary:
action_date: 2007-03-01
text: 
Biosurveillance Enhancement Act of 2007 - Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a National Biosurveillance Integration Center (NBIC) to enhance the government's capability to rapidly identify, characterize, and localize a biological event (a terrorist act involving biological agents or toxins or a naturally occurring outbreak of infectious disease of potential national significance) by integrating and analyzing data related to human health, animals, plants, food, and the environment.

 Requires the Director of NBIC to develop, operate, and maintain an integrated network to detect a biological event that presents a risk to the United States or its infrastructure or key assets. Includes among the Director's responsibilities establishment of a procedure to enable government and private sector entities to report suspicious events. Requires the Director to continuously evaluate data, integrate homeland security information with NBIC data, and establish a mechanism for real-time communication with the National Operations Center.

Directs the Secretary to: (1) seek agreements for appropriate federal agency heads to integrate biosurveillance information capabilities through NBIC and to provide timely, evaluated information; (2) ensure that the Director is notified of homeland security information regarding significant biological threats and receives timely reports; (3) designate NBIC as a public health authority; and (4) ensure that NBIC complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 and applicable privacy regulations.

Requires: (1) the Director to establish an interagency working group; and (2) the Secretary to report annually to Congress.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2007-03-05
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.
action_date: 2007-03-05
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on Emerging Threats, Cybersecurity, and Science and Technology.
action_date: 2007-03-01
text: Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 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.
action_date: 2007-03-01
text: Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 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.
action_date: 2007-03-01
text: Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 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.
action_date: 2007-03-01
text: Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR E431)
action_date: 2007-03-01
text: Introduced in House
action_date: 2007-03-01
text: Introduced in House