Federal Emergency Pandemic Response Act

Bill: 116-s-4204
Sponsor: Sen. Johnson, Ron [R-WI]
Introduced: 2020-07-02 in the Senate
Policy area: Emergency Management
Subjects: Cardiovascular and respiratory health
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Congressional oversight
Department of Health and Human Services
Department of Homeland Security
Emergency medical services and trauma care
Emergency planning and evacuation
Executive agency funding and structure
Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
Federal officials
Federal-Indian relations
Government employee pay, benefits, personnel management
Government information and archives
Government studies and investigations
Health care coverage and access
Health information and medical records
Health technology, devices, supplies
Hospital care
Immunology and vaccination
Industrial policy and productivity
Infectious and parasitic diseases
Manufacturing
Medical tests and diagnostic methods
Minority health
Public contracts and procurement
State and local government operations
Strategic materials and reserves
Worker safety and health

Summary:
action_date: 2020-07-02
text: 

Federal Emergency Pandemic Response Act

 
This bill addresses the issue of national pandemic preparedness and response. It directs the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to convene an Interagency Task Force to analyze U.S. preparedness for national pandemics.
 
The task force shall, among other things (1) determine the mission of the Strategic National Stockpile and clearly define it, and (2) assess the current and future inventory needs of the stockpile. 
 
The bill establishes within (1) the executive branch the Unified Coordination Group led by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and (2) FEMA a Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force to address the supply of critical protective and life saving equipment.
 
The National Response Coordination Center, acting through the appropriate FEMA Regional Administrators, shall (1) request voluntary information from states regarding their holdings of equipment and medical supply necessary in the event of a pandemic, and (2) share information with states regarding the federal government's current inventory and plan. 
 
FEMA, in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), shall monitor the inventory stockpile levels, economic and health care models, and evaluate available data on supply and demand trends to restock and increase the inventory of supplies maintained in the stockpile.
 
The bill authorizes DHS to transfer personal protective equipment or medically necessary equipment to HHS during a declared public health emergency.

action_date: 2020-10-19
text: 

Federal Emergency Pandemic Response Act

 
This bill addresses the issue of national pandemic preparedness and response. It directs the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) or another federal agency, as determined by the OMB, to convene an Interagency Task Force to analyze U.S. preparedness for national pandemics.
 
The task force shall, among other things (1) determine the mission of the Strategic National Stockpile and clearly define it, and (2) assess the current and future inventory needs of the stockpile. 
 
The task force must report at specified intervals, including (1) identifying communities where racial and ethnic disparities in COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) infection, hospitalization, and death rates are out of proportion to the community's population by a certain threshold; and (2) recommendations about how to best allocate critical COVID-19 resources to such communities.
 
During pandemic and related public health emergencies involving the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Response Coordination Center, acting through the appropriate FEMA Regional Administrators, shall (1) request voluntary information from state, local, tribal, and territorial governments regarding their holdings of equipment and medical supplies; and (2) share information with such governments regarding the federal inventory and the plan developed.
 
The Department of Health and Human Services, in coordination with the Department of Homeland Security, may sell drugs, vaccines and other biological products, medical devices, or other supplies maintained in the Strategic National Stockpile under specified circumstances.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2020-10-19
text: Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 573.
action_date: 2020-10-19
text: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Johnson with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 116-279.
action_date: 2020-10-19
text: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Johnson with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. With written report No. 116-279.
action_date: 2020-07-22
text: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
action_date: 2020-07-02
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
action_date: 2020-07-02
text: Introduced in Senate