1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Federal Emergency Pandemic Response Act ”.
Federal Emergency Pandemic Response Act
A BILL
To establish an Interagency Task Force to analyze preparedness for national pandemics, and for other purposes.
2. Interagency Task Force to analyze preparedness for national pandemic
In general— The Secretary of Homeland Security shall convene an Interagency Task Force (referred to in this section as the Task Force) of Federal entities for the purpose of analyzing the preparedness of the United States for national pandemics.
Participants— The Task Force shall be comprised of the following members:
The Secretary of Homeland Security.
The Under Secretary for Management of the Department of Homeland Security.
The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The Administrator of the Transportation Security Agency.
The Director of the Office of Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services.
The Secretary of Defense.
The Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
Any other head of a Federal agency as the Secretary of Homeland Security determines necessary.
Responsibilities— The Task Force shall—
determine the mission of the Strategic National Stockpile and clearly define it;
examine whether the mission statement determined under paragraph (1) aligns with the name of the Strategic National Stockpile and consider whether it is necessary to change the name;
perform an assessment of the current inventory and future inventory needs of the Strategic National Stockpile, including—
list all current medical supplies, equipment and other items in the stockpile;
determine the appropriate inventory levels for each item identified under subparagraph (A) in the stockpile;
determine the appropriate location or locations for storing the stockpile, and which Federal agency should be responsible for maintaining the inventory;
develop a plan to ensure the proper maintenance of the inventory, including when supplies and equipment need to be rotated or disposed of; and
develop a plan to ensure maximum interagency coordination of the management of the stockpile;
consider any other measures relating to the Strategic National Stockpile necessary to ensure that the stockpile is appropriately resourced for future pandemic and related emergencies;
share the information developed under paragraphs (1) through (4) with the National Response Coordination Center; and
not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, submit a report to Congress on the recommendations of the Task Force developed under paragraphs (1) through (4).
3. Establishment of the Unified Coordination Group within the Federal Emergency Management Agency
Establishment— There is established within the executive branch the Unified Coordination Group lead by the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Other participants— In addition to the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management agency, the Unified Coordination Group shall include—
the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response at the Department of Health and Human Services;
the Assistant Secretary for Health at the Department of Health and Human Services; and
the Director of the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention at the Department of Health and Human Services.
Activating the unified coordination group— The Unified Coordination Group shall only be activated upon—
the issuance of a public health emergency by the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
an emergency declaration by the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency; or
a major disaster declaration as determined by the President in response to a public health pandemic.
Responsibilities— The Unified Coordination Group shall—
identify and periodically reevaluate the needs of the Strategic National Stockpile;
refer the information described in paragraph (1) to the National Response Coordination Center at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Department of Health and Human Services; and
share the information gathered from the responsibilities in paragraphs (1) and (2) with the National Response Coordination Center.
4. Establishment of the Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force within the Federal Emergency Management Agency
Establishment— There is established within the Federal Emergency Management Agency a Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force to address the supply of critical protective and life saving equipment.
Responsibilities— The Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force shall—
develop a plan for how the Federal Government will—
preserve and replenish inventoried equipment, including how to extend the shelf life of personal protective equipment and other supplies, including developing and verifying techniques to clean and recycle necessary equipment;
accelerate the production of equipment in the event of an emergency, including working with the private sector to determine—
the current United States manufacturing capacity of necessary equipment;
the expected timeframes for global vendors to deliver necessary equipment to United States distributors; and
how the production and access to necessary equipment would be affected in the event of a global pandemic;
expand the production of necessary equipment, including working with the private sector to identify excess raw materials, workforce, or factory production capacity in response to a pandemic that are necessary to address and overcome supply shortfalls; and
equitably allocate the equipment in the event of a pandemic, including working with major commercial distributors to distribute the rapid distribution of critical resources in short supply to areas most in need during a pandemic; and
participate in information sharing with the National Response Coordination Center in developing the plan required under paragraph (1).
Authority— If necessary to meet current demand in the event of a pandemic, the Secretary of Homeland Security may delegate to the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, acting through the Supply Chain Stabilization Task Force, the authority to enter into contractual agreements with private shipping companies by covering costs for direct shipping from oversees factories into United States airports for the purposes of obtaining personal protective equipment.
5. National Response Coordination Center role in improving transparency
Coordination with States— The National Response Coordination Center, acting through the appropriate Federal Emergency Management Agency Regional Administrators, shall—
request voluntary information from States regarding their holdings of equipment and medical supply necessary in the event of a pandemic; and
share information with States regarding the Federal Government’s current inventory and plan developed under section 4(b)(1).
Report to congress— The National Response Coordination Center shall provide an annual report to Congress on the activities under this section.
6. Other authorities
In general— The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, may sell medical supplies and equipment maintained in the Strategic National Stockpile, or its successor, to the private, nonprofit, or State, local, Tribal, or territorial entity for immediate use and distribution that are—
within 1 year of the medial product or equipment’s expiration date; or
the item maintained in the inventory is determined to no longer be necessary to be maintained in the inventory due to advances in medical and technical capabilities.
Requirement— The Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, in coordination with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, shall monitor the inventory stockpile levels, economic and healthcare models, and evaluate available data on supply and demand trends to restock and increase the inventory of supplies maintained in the Strategic National Stockpile or its successor.
Authorization of transfer of equipment— During a public health emergency declared by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section 319(a) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d(a)), the Secretary of Homeland Security, at the request of the Secretary of Health and Human Services, may transfer to the Department of Health and Human Services, on a reimbursable basis, personal protection equipment or medically necessary equipment in the possession of the Department.
Determination by secretaries—
In general— In carrying out subsection (c)—
before requesting a transfer under subsection (c), the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall determine whether the personal protection equipment or medically necessary equipment is otherwise available, including available by required performance of a contract or order under section 101 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4511); and
the Secretary of Homeland Security shall determine whether the personal protection equipment or medically necessary equipment requested to be transferred under subsection (c) is excess equipment.
Notification— The Secretary of Health and Human Services and the Secretary shall each submit to Congress a notification explaining the determination made under subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, of paragraph (1).
Required inventory— The Secretary of Homeland Security shall—
maintain an inventory of all personal protection equipment and medically necessary equipment in the possession of the Department; and
make the inventory required under paragraph (1) available, on a continual basis, to—
the Secretary of Health and Human Services; and
the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives.