ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE.

SEC. 102. ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR PREPAREDNESS AND RESPONSE.(a) Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.—Subtitle B of title XXVIII of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300hh–11 et seq.) is amended—(1) in the subtitle heading, by inserting “All-Hazards” before “Emergency Preparedness”;(2) by redesignating section 2811 as section 2812;120 STAT. 2833(3) by inserting after the subtitle heading the following new section:“SEC. 2811. COORDINATION OF PREPAREDNESS FOR AND RESPONSE TO ALL-HAZARDS PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCIES.“(a) In General.—There is established within the Department of Health and Human Services the position of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response. The President, with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint an individual to serve in such position. Such Assistant Secretary shall report to the Secretary.“(b) Duties.—Subject to the authority of the Secretary, the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response shall carry out the following functions:“(1) Leadership.—Serve as the principal advisor to the Secretary on all matters related to Federal public health and medical preparedness and response for public health emergencies.“(2) Personnel.—Register, credential, organize, train, equip, and have the authority to deploy Federal public health and medical personnel under the authority of the Secretary, including the National Disaster Medical System, and coordinate such personnel with the Medical Reserve Corps and the Emergency System for Advance Registration of Volunteer Health Professionals.“(3) Countermeasures.—Oversee advanced research, development, and procurement of qualified countermeasures (as defined in section 319F–1) and qualified pandemic or epidemic products (as defined in section 319F–3).“(4) Coordination.—“(A) Federal integration.—Coordinate with relevant Federal officials to ensure integration of Federal preparedness and response activities for public health emergencies.“(B) State, local, and tribal integration.—Coordinate with State, local, and tribal public health officials, the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, health care systems, and emergency medical service systems to ensure effective integration of Federal public health and medical assets during a public health emergency.“(C) Emergency medical services.—Promote improved emergency medical services medical direction, system integration, research, and uniformity of data collection, treatment protocols, and policies with regard to public health emergencies.“(5) Logistics.—In coordination with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the General Services Administration, and other public and private entities, provide logistical support for medical and public health aspects of Federal responses to public health emergencies.“(6) Leadership.—Provide leadership in international programs, initiatives, and policies that deal with public health and medical emergency preparedness and response.“(c) Functions.—The Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response shall—“(1) have authority over and responsibility for—120 STAT. 2834“(A) the National Disaster Medical System (in accordance with section 301 of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act); and“(B) the Hospital Preparedness Cooperative Agreement Program pursuant to section 319C–2;“(2) exercise the responsibilities and authorities of the Secretary with respect to the coordination of—“(A) the Medical Reserve Corps pursuant to section 2813;“(B) the Emergency System for Advance Registration of Volunteer Health Professionals pursuant to section 319I;“(C) the Strategic National Stockpile; and“(D) the Cities Readiness Initiative; and“(3) assume other duties as determined appropriate by the Secretary.” ; and(4) by striking “Assistant Secretary for Public Health Emergency Preparedness” each place it appears and inserting “Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response”.(b) Transfer of Functions; References.—(1) Transfer of functions.—There shall be transferred to the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response the functions, personnel, assets, and liabilities of the Assistant Secretary for Public Health Emergency Preparedness as in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act.(2) References.—Any reference in any Federal law, Executive order, rule, regulation, or delegation of authority, or any document of or pertaining to the Assistant Secretary for Public Health Emergency Preparedness as in effect the day before the date of enactment of this Act, shall be deemed to be a reference to the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.(c) Stockpile.—Section 319F–2(a)(1) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d–6b(a)(1)) is amended by—(1) inserting “in collaboration with the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and” after “Secretary,”; and(2) inserting at the end the following: “The Secretary shall conduct an annual review (taking into account at-risk individuals) of the contents of the stockpile, including non-pharmaceutical supplies, and make necessary additions or modifications to the contents based on such review.”.(d) At-Risk Individuals.—Title XXVIII of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300hh et seq.), as amended by section 303 of this Act, is amended by inserting after section 2813 the following:“SEC. 2814. AT-RISK INDIVIDUALS. “The Secretary, acting through such employee of the Department of Health and Human Services as determined by the Secretary and designated publicly (which may, at the discretion of the Secretary, involve the appointment or designation of an individual as the Director of At-Risk Individuals), shall—“(1) oversee the implementation of the National Preparedness goal of taking into account the public health and medical needs of at-risk individuals in the event of a public health emergency, as described in section 2802(b)(4);120 STAT. 2835“(2) assist other Federal agencies responsible for planning for, responding to, and recovering from public health emergencies in addressing the needs of at-risk individuals;“(3) provide guidance to and ensure that recipients of State and local public health grants include preparedness and response strategies and capabilities that take into account the medical and public health needs of at-risk individuals in the event of a public health emergency, as described in section 319C–1(b)(2)(A)(iii);“(4) ensure that the contents of the strategic national stockpile take into account at-risk populations as described in section 2811(b)(3)(B);“(5) oversee the progress of the Advisory Committee on At-Risk Individuals and Public Health Emergencies established under section 319F(b)(2) and make recommendations with a focus on opportunities for action based on the work of the Committee;“(6) oversee curriculum development for the public health and medical response training program on medical management of casualties, as it concerns at-risk individuals as described in subparagraphs (A) through (C) of section 319F(a)(2);“(7) disseminate novel and best practices of outreach to and care of at-risk individuals before, during, and following public health emergencies; and“(8) not later than one year after the date of enactment of the Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, prepare and submit to Congress a report describing the progress made on implementing the duties described in this section.” .