[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1770 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







105th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 1770

  To elevate the position of Director of the Indian Health Service to 
 Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services, to provide for the 
  organizational independence of the Indian Health Service within the 
    Department of Health and Human Services, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 17, 1998

  Mr. McCain (for himself, Mr. Campbell, Mr. Inouye, and Mr. Conrad) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
                      Committee on Indian Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To elevate the position of Director of the Indian Health Service to 
 Assistant Secretary of Health and Human Services, to provide for the 
  organizational independence of the Indian Health Service within the 
    Department of Health and Human Services, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. OFFICE OF ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR INDIAN HEALTH.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established within the Department of 
Health and Human Services the Office of the Assistant Secretary for 
Indian Health.
    (b) Assistant Secretary for Indian Health.--In addition to the 
functions performed on the date of enactment of this Act by the 
Director of the Indian Health Service, the Assistant Secretary for 
Indian Health shall perform such functions as the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services may designate.
    (c) References.--Reference in any other Federal law, Executive 
order, rule, regulation, or delegation of authority, or any document of 
or relating to the Director of the Indian Health Service shall be 
deemed to refer to the Assistant Secretary for Indian Health.
    (d) Rate of Pay.--
            (1) Positions at level iv.--Section 5315 of title 5, United 
        States Code, is amended--
                    (A) by striking the following:
            ``Assistant Secretaries of Health and Human Services 
        (6).''; and
                    (B) by inserting the following:
            ``Assistant Secretaries of Health and Human Services 
        (7).''.
            (2) Positions at level v.--Section 5316 of such title is 
        amended by striking the following:
            ``Director, Indian Health Service, Department of Health and 
        Human Services.''.
    (e) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) In general.--Section 601 of the Indian Health Care 
        Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1661) is amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a)--
                            (i) in the second sentence, by striking ``a 
                        Director,'' and inserting ``the Assistant 
                        Secretary for Indian Health,'';
                            (ii) in the third sentence, by striking 
                        ``The Director of the Indian Health Service'' 
                        and inserting ``The Assistant Secretary for 
                        Indian Health'';
                            (iii) in the fourth sentence, by striking 
                        ``the Director'' and inserting ``the Assistant 
                        Secretary for Indian Health''; and
                            (iv) by striking the fifth sentence;
                    (B) in subsection (c), by striking ``Director of 
                the Indian Health Service'' both places it appears and 
                inserting ``Assistant Secretary for Indian Health''; 
                and
                    (C) in subsection (d), by striking ``Director of 
                the Indian Health Service'' and inserting ``Assistant 
                Secretary for Indian Health''.
            (2) Miscellaneous.--The following provisions are each 
        amended by striking ``Director of the Indian Health Service'' 
        each place it appears and inserting ``Assistant Secretary for 
        Indian Health'':
                    (A) Section 816(c)(1) of the Indian Health Care 
                Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1680f(c)(1)).
                    (B) Section 203(a)(1) of the Rehabilitation Act of 
                1973 (29 U.S.C. 761b(a)(1)).
                    (C) Subsections (b) and (e) of section 518 of the 
                Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1377 (b) 
                and (e)).
                    (D) Section 803B(d)(1) of the Native American 
                Programs Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 2991b-2(d)(1)).

SEC. 2. ORGANIZATION OF INDIAN HEALTH SERVICE WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT OF 
              HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES.

    (a) Organization.--Section 601 of the Indian Health Care 
Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1661), as amended by section 1(e)(1), is 
further amended--
            (1) by striking ``within the Public Health Service of the 
        Department of Health and Human Services'' each place it appears 
        and inserting ``within the Department of Health and Human 
        Services''; and
            (2) in the third sentence of subsection (a), by striking 
        ``report to the Secretary through the Assistant Secretary for 
        Health of the Department of Health and Human Services'' and 
        inserting ``report to the Secretary''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The section heading of section 601 of 
the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1661) is amended to 
read as follows:

   ``establishment of the indian health service as an agency of the 
               department of health and human services''.

    (c) Utilization of Public Health Service Personnel.--
            (1) In general.--Nothing in the amendments made by this 
        section may be interpreted as terminating or otherwise 
        modifying any authority providing for the utilization by the 
        Indian Health Service of officers or employees of the Public 
        Health Service for the purposes of carrying out the 
        responsibilities of the Indian Health Service.
            (2) Treatment of officers and employees.--Any officer or 
        employee that is utilized in the manner described in paragraph 
        (1) shall be treated as an officer or employee detailed to an 
        executive department under section 214(a) of the Public Health 
        Service Act (42 U.S.C. 215(a)).
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