If the Secretary determines, after consultation with such public health officials as may be necessary, that—
(1) a disease or disorder presents a public health emergency; or
(2) a public health emergency, including significant outbreaks of infectious diseases or bioterrorist attacks, otherwise exists,
The Secretary may use amounts in the Fund established under paragraph (1), to—
(1) In general There is established in the Treasury a fund to be designated as the “Public Health Emergency Fund” to be made available to the Secretary without fiscal year limitation to carry out subsection (a) only if a public health emergency has been declared by the Secretary under such subsection or if the Secretary determines there is the significant potential for a public health emergency, to allow the Secretary to rapidly respond to the immediate needs resulting from such public health emergency or potential public health emergency. The Secretary shall plan for the expedited distribution of funds to appropriate agencies and entities. There is authorized to be appropriated to the Fund such sums as may be necessary.
The Secretary may use amounts in the Fund established under paragraph (1), to—
(A) facilitate coordination between and among Federal, State, local, Tribal, and territorial entities and public and private health care entities that the Secretary determines may be affected by a public health emergency or potential public health emergency referred to in paragraph (1) (including communication of such entities with relevant international entities, as applicable);
(B) make grants, provide for awards, enter into contracts, and conduct supportive investigations pertaining to a public health emergency or potential public health emergency, including further supporting programs under section 247d–3a, 247d–3b, or 247d–3c of this title;
(C) facilitate and accelerate, as applicable, advanced research and development of security countermeasures (as defined in section 247d–6b of this title), qualified countermeasures (as defined in section 247d–6a of this title), or qualified pandemic or epidemic products (as defined in section 247d–6d of this title), that are applicable to the public health emergency or potential public health emergency under paragraph (1);
(D) strengthen biosurveillance capabilities and laboratory capacity to identify, collect, and analyze information regarding such public health emergency or potential public health emergency, including the systems under section 247d–4 of this title;
(E) support initial emergency operations and assets related to preparation and deployment of intermittent disaster response personnel under section 300hh–11 of this title and the Medical Reserve Corps under section 300hh–15 of this title; and
(F) carry out other activities, as the Secretary determines applicable and appropriate.
Not later than 90 days after the end of each fiscal year, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Commerce and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives a report describing—
(A) the expenditures made from the Public Health Emergency Fund in such fiscal year; and
(B) each public health emergency for which the expenditures were made and the activities undertaken with respect to each emergency which was conducted or supported by expenditures from the Fund.
(4) Review Not later than 2 years after June 24, 2019, the Secretary, in coordination with the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, shall conduct a review of the Fund under this section and provide recommendations to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives on policies to improve such Fund for the uses described in paragraph (2).
Not later than 4 years after June 24, 2019, the Comptroller General of the United States shall—
(A) conduct a review of the Fund under this section, including its uses and the resources available in the Fund; and
(B) submit to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a report on such review, including recommendations related to such review, as applicable.
Funds appropriated under this section shall be used to rapidly respond to public health emergencies or potential public health emergencies and supplement and not supplant other Federal, State, and local public funds provided for activities under this chapter or funds otherwise provided for emergency response.
In any case in which the Secretary determines that, wholly or partially as a result of a public health emergency that has been determined pursuant to subsection (a), individuals or public or private entities are unable to comply with deadlines for the submission to the Secretary of data or reports required under any law administered by the Secretary, the Secretary may, notwithstanding any other provision of law, grant such extensions of such deadlines as the circumstances reasonably require, and may waive, wholly or partially, any sanctions otherwise applicable to such failure to comply. Before or promptly after granting such an extension or waiver, the Secretary shall notify the Congress of such action and publish in the Federal Register a notice of the extension or waiver.
To seek authority for a temporary reassignment of personnel under paragraph (1), the Governor of a State or a tribal organization shall submit to the Secretary a request for such reassignment flexibility and shall include in the request each of the following:
(1) Emergency reassignment of federally funded personnel Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and subject to paragraph (2), upon request by the Governor of a State or a tribal organization or such Governor or tribal organization’s designee, the Secretary may authorize the requesting State or Indian tribe to temporarily reassign, for purposes of immediately addressing a public health emergency in the State or Indian tribe, State and local public health department or agency personnel funded in whole or in part through programs authorized under this chapter, as appropriate.
To seek authority for a temporary reassignment of personnel under paragraph (1), the Governor of a State or a tribal organization shall submit to the Secretary a request for such reassignment flexibility and shall include in the request each of the following:
(A) Public health emergency The Secretary may authorize a temporary reassignment of personnel under paragraph (1) only during the period of a public health emergency determined pursuant to subsection (a).
(B) Contents of requestTo seek authority for a temporary reassignment of personnel under paragraph (1), the Governor of a State or a tribal organization shall submit to the Secretary a request for such reassignment flexibility and shall include in the request each of the following: (i) An assurance that the public health emergency in the geographic area of the requesting State or Indian tribe cannot be adequately and appropriately addressed by the public health workforce otherwise available. (ii) An assurance that the public health emergency would be addressed more efficiently and effectively through the requested temporary reassignment of State and local personnel described in paragraph (1). (iii) An assurance that the requested temporary reassignment of personnel is consistent with any applicable All-Hazards Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan under section 247d–3a of this title. (iv) An identification of— (I) each Federal program from which personnel would be temporarily reassigned pursuant to the requested authority; and (II) the number of personnel who would be so reassigned from each such program. (v) Such other information and assurances upon which the Secretary and Governor of a State or tribal organization agree.
(C) Consideration In reviewing a request for temporary reassignment under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider the degree to which the program or programs funded in whole or in part by programs authorized under this chapter would be adversely affected by the reassignment.
(D) Termination and extension (i) TerminationA State or Indian tribe’s temporary reassignment of personnel under paragraph (1) shall terminate upon the earlier of the following: (I) The Secretary’s determination that the public health emergency no longer exists. (II) Subject to clause (ii), the expiration of the 30-day period following the date on which the Secretary approved the State or Indian tribe’s request for such reassignment flexibility. (ii) Extension of reassignment flexibilityThe Secretary may extend reassignment flexibility of personnel under paragraph (1) beyond the date otherwise applicable under clause (i)(II) if the public health emergency still exists as of such date, but only if— (I) the State or Indian tribe that submitted the initial request for a temporary reassignment of personnel submits a request for an extension of such temporary reassignment; and (II) the request for an extension contains the same information and assurances necessary for the approval of an initial request for such temporary reassignment pursuant to subparagraph (B).
Unless otherwise provided under the law or regulation of the State or Indian tribe that receives authorization for temporary reassignment of personnel under paragraph (1), personnel eligible for reassignment pursuant to such authorization—
(A) In generalUnless otherwise provided under the law or regulation of the State or Indian tribe that receives authorization for temporary reassignment of personnel under paragraph (1), personnel eligible for reassignment pursuant to such authorization— (i) shall have the opportunity to volunteer for temporary reassignment; and (ii) shall not be required to agree to a temporary reassignment.
(B) Prohibition on conditioning Federal awards The Secretary may not condition the award of a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement under this chapter on the requirement that a State or Indian tribe require that personnel eligible for reassignment pursuant to an authorization under paragraph (1) agree to such reassignment.
The Secretary shall give notice to the Congress in conjunction with the approval under this subsection of—
(A) any initial request for temporary reassignment of personnel; and
(B) any request for an extension of such temporary reassignment.
The Secretary shall—
(A) not later than 6 months after March 13, 2013, issue proposed guidance on the temporary reassignment of personnel under this subsection; and
(B) after providing notice and a 60-day period for public comment, finalize such guidance.
Not later than 4 years after March 13, 2013, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct an independent evaluation, and submit to the appropriate committees of the Congress a report, on temporary reassignment under this subsection, including—
(A) a description of how, and under what circumstances, such temporary reassignment has been used by States and Indian tribes;
(B) an analysis of how such temporary reassignment has assisted States and Indian tribes in responding to public health emergencies;
(C) an evaluation of how such temporary reassignment has improved operational efficiencies in responding to public health emergencies;
(D) an analysis of the extent to which, if any, Federal programs from which personnel have been temporarily reassigned have been adversely affected by the reassignment; and
(E) recommendations on how medical surge capacity could be improved in responding to public health emergencies and the impact of the reassignment flexibility under this section on such surge capacity.
In this subsection—
(A) the terms “Indian tribe” and “tribal organization” have the meanings given such terms in section 5304 of title 25; and
(B) the term “State” includes, in addition to the entities listed in the definition of such term in section 201 of this title, the Freely Associated States.
(8) Sunset This subsection shall terminate on September 30, 2023.
If the Secretary determines, after consultation with such public health officials as may be necessary, that—
If the Secretary determines, after consultation with such public health officials as may be necessary, that—
(A) (i) the criteria set forth for a public health emergency under paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (a) has been met; or (ii) a disease or disorder, including a novel and emerging public health threat, is significantly likely to become a public health emergency; and
(B) the circumstances of such public health emergency, or potential for such significantly likely public health emergency, including the specific preparation for and response to such public health emergency or threat, necessitate a waiver from the requirements of subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44 (commonly referred to as the Paperwork Reduction Act),
(2) Transparency If the Secretary determines that a waiver is necessary under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall promptly post on the Internet website of the Department of Health and Human Services a brief justification for such waiver, the anticipated period of time such waiver will be in effect, and the agencies and offices within the Department of Health and Human Services to which such waiver shall apply, and update such information posted on the Internet website of the Department of Health and Human Services, as applicable.
(3) Effectiveness of waiver Any waiver under this subsection shall take effect on the date on which the Secretary posts information on the Internet website as provided for in this subsection.
(4) Termination of waiver Upon determining that the circumstances necessitating a waiver under paragraph (1) no longer exist, the Secretary shall promptly update the Internet website of the Department of Health and Human Services to reflect the termination of such waiver.
The period of a waiver under paragraph (1) shall not exceed the period of time for the related public health emergency, including a public health emergency declared pursuant to subsection (a), and any immediate postresponse review regarding the public health emergency consistent with the requirements of this subsection.
(A) Period of waiver The period of a waiver under paragraph (1) shall not exceed the period of time for the related public health emergency, including a public health emergency declared pursuant to subsection (a), and any immediate postresponse review regarding the public health emergency consistent with the requirements of this subsection.
(B) Subsequent compliance An initiative subject to a waiver under paragraph (1) that is ongoing after the date on which the waiver expires, shall be subject to the requirements of subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44 and the Secretary shall ensure that compliance with such requirements occurs in as timely a manner as possible based on the applicable circumstances, but not to exceed 30 calendar days after the expiration of the applicable waiver.
(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title III, § 319, as added Pub. L. 106–505, title I, § 102, Nov. 13, 2000, 114 Stat. 2315; amended Pub. L. 107–188, title I, §§ 141, 144(a), 158, June 12, 2002, 116 Stat. 626, 630, 633; Pub. L. 113–5, title II, § 201, Mar. 13, 2013, 127 Stat. 170; Pub. L. 114–255, div. A, title III, § 3087, Dec. 13, 2016, 130 Stat. 1147; Pub. L. 116–22, title II, § 206, title VII, § 701(c), June 24, 2019, 133 Stat. 925, 961.)
