[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1279 Referred in House (RFH)]

  1st Session
                                S. 1279


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 25, 2003

Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, and in 
 addition to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, for a period to be 
subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 
  of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee 
                               concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
     To amend the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
 Assistance Act to authorize the President to carry out a program for 
    the protection of the health and safety of residents, workers, 
               volunteers, and others in a disaster area.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Disaster Area Health and 
Environmental Monitoring Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. PROTECTION OF HEALTH AND SAFETY OF INDIVIDUALS IN A DISASTER 
              AREA.

    Title IV of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency 
Assistance Act is amended by inserting after section 408 (42 U.S.C. 
5174) the following:

``SEC. 409. PROTECTION OF HEALTH AND SAFETY OF INDIVIDUALS IN A 
              DISASTER AREA.

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Individual.--The term `individual' includes--
                    ``(A) a worker or volunteer who responds to a 
                disaster, including--
                            ``(i) a police officer;
                            ``(ii) a firefighter;
                            ``(iii) an emergency medical technician;
                            ``(iv) any participating member of an urban 
                        search and rescue team; and
                            ``(v) any other relief or rescue worker or 
                        volunteer that the President determines to be 
                        appropriate;
                    ``(B) a worker who responds to a disaster by 
                assisting in the cleanup or restoration of critical 
                infrastructure in and around a disaster area;
                    ``(C) a person whose place of residence is in a 
                disaster area;
                    ``(D) a person who is employed in or attends 
                school, child care, or adult day care in a building 
                located in a disaster area; and
                    ``(E) any other person that the President 
                determines to be appropriate.
            ``(2) Program.--The term `program' means a program 
        described in subsection (b) that is carried out for a disaster 
        area.
            ``(3) Substance of concern.--The term `substance of 
        concern' means a chemical or other substance that is associated 
        with potential acute or chronic human health effects, the risk 
        of exposure to which could potentially be increased as the 
        result of a disaster, as determined by the President.
    ``(b) Program.--
            ``(1) In general.--If the President determines that 1 or 
        more substances of concern are being, or have been, released in 
        an area declared to be a disaster area under this Act, the 
        President may carry out a program for the protection, 
        assessment, monitoring, and study of the health and safety of 
        individuals to ensure that--
                    ``(A) the individuals are adequately informed about 
                and protected against potential health impacts of any 
                substance of concern and potential mental health 
                impacts in a timely manner;
                    ``(B) the individuals are monitored and studied 
                over time, including through baseline and followup 
                clinical health examinations, for--
                            ``(i) any short- and long-term health 
                        impacts of any substance of concern; and
                            ``(ii) any mental health impacts;
                    ``(C) the individuals receive health care referrals 
                as needed and appropriate; and
                    ``(D) information from any such monitoring and 
                studies is used to prevent or protect against similar 
                health impacts from future disasters.
            ``(2) Activities.--A program under paragraph (1) may 
        include such activities as--
                    ``(A) collecting and analyzing environmental 
                exposure data;
                    ``(B) developing and disseminating information and 
                educational materials;
                    ``(C) performing baseline and followup clinical 
                health and mental health examinations and taking 
                biological samples;
                    ``(D) establishing and maintaining an exposure 
                registry;
                    ``(E) studying the short- and long-term human 
                health impacts of any exposures through epidemiological 
                and other health studies; and
                    ``(F) providing assistance to individuals in 
                determining eligibility for health coverage and 
                identifying appropriate health services.
            ``(3) Timing.--To the maximum extent practicable, 
        activities under any program established under paragraph (1) 
        (including baseline health examinations) shall be commenced in 
        a timely manner that will ensure the highest level of public 
        health protection and effective monitoring.
            ``(4) Participation in registries and studies.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Participation in any registry or 
                study that is part of a program under paragraph (1) 
                shall be voluntary.
                    ``(B) Protection of privacy.--The President shall 
                take appropriate measures to protect the privacy of any 
                participant in a registry or study described in 
                subparagraph (A).
            ``(5) Cooperative agreements.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The President may carry out a 
                program under paragraph (1) through a cooperative 
                agreement with a medical institution, including a local 
                health department, or a consortium of medical 
                institutions.
                    ``(B) Selection criteria.--To the maximum extent 
                practicable, the President shall select to carry out a 
                program under paragraph (1) a medical institution or a 
                consortium of medical institutions that--
                            ``(i) is located near--
                                    ``(I) the disaster area with 
                                respect to which the program is carried 
                                out; and
                                    ``(II) any other area in which 
                                there reside groups of individuals that 
                                worked or volunteered in response to 
                                the disaster; and
                            ``(ii) has appropriate experience in the 
                        areas of environmental or occupational health, 
                        toxicology, and safety, including experience 
                        in--
                                    ``(I) developing clinical protocols 
                                and conducting clinical health 
                                examinations, including mental health 
                                assessments;
                                    ``(II) conducting long-term health 
                                monitoring and epidemiological studies;
                                    ``(III) conducting long-term mental 
                                health studies; and
                                    ``(IV) establishing and maintaining 
                                medical surveillance programs and 
                                environmental exposure or disease 
                                registries.
            ``(6) Involvement.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In establishing and maintaining 
                a program under paragraph (1), the President shall 
                involve interested and affected parties, as 
                appropriate, including representatives of--
                            ``(i) Federal, State, and local government 
                        agencies;
                            ``(ii) groups of individuals that worked or 
                        volunteered in response to the disaster in the 
                        disaster area;
                            ``(iii) local residents, businesses, and 
                        schools (including parents and teachers);
                            ``(iv) health care providers; and
                            ``(v) other organizations and persons.
                    ``(B) Committees.--Involvement under subparagraph 
                (A) may be provided through the establishment of an 
                advisory or oversight committee or board.
            ``(7) Privacy.--The President shall carry out each program 
        under paragraph (1) in accordance with regulations relating to 
        privacy promulgated under section 264(c) of the Health 
        Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 
        1320d-2 note; Public Law 104-191).
    ``(c) Reports.--Not later than 1 year after the establishment of a 
program under subsection (b)(1), and every 5 years thereafter, the 
President, or the medical institution or consortium of such 
institutions having entered into a cooperative agreement under 
subsection (b)(5), shall submit to the Secretary of Homeland Security, 
the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Labor, the 
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, and appropriate 
committees of Congress a report on programs and studies carried out 
under the program.''.

SEC. 3. NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES REPORT ON DISASTER AREA HEALTH AND 
              ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND MONITORING.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services, and the Administrator of the 
Environmental Protection Agency shall jointly enter into a contract 
with the National Academy of Sciences to conduct a study and prepare a 
report on disaster area health and environmental protection and 
monitoring.
    (b) Expertise.--The report under subsection (a) shall be prepared 
with the participation of individuals who have expertise in--
            (1) environmental health, safety, and medicine;
            (2) occupational health, safety, and medicine;
            (3) clinical medicine, including pediatrics;
            (4) toxicology;
            (5) epidemiology;
            (6) mental health;
            (7) medical monitoring and surveillance;
            (8) environmental monitoring and surveillance;
            (9) environmental and industrial hygiene;
            (10) emergency planning and preparedness;
            (11) public outreach and education;
            (12) State and local health departments;
            (13) State and local environmental protection departments;
            (14) functions of workers that respond to disasters, 
        including first responders; and
            (15) public health and family services.
    (c) Contents.--The report under subsection (a) shall provide advice 
and recommendations regarding protecting and monitoring the health and 
safety of individuals potentially exposed to any chemical or other 
substance associated with potential acute or chronic human health 
effects as the result of a disaster, including advice and 
recommendations regarding--
            (1) the establishment of protocols for the monitoring of 
        and response to chemical or substance releases in a disaster 
        area for the purpose of protecting public health and safety, 
        including--
                    (A) chemicals or other substances for which samples 
                should be collected in the event of a disaster, 
                including a terrorist attack;
                    (B) chemical- or substance-specific methods of 
                sample collection, including sampling methodologies and 
                locations;
                    (C) chemical- or substance-specific methods of 
                sample analysis;
                    (D) health-based threshold levels to be used and 
                response actions to be taken in the event that 
                thresholds are exceeded for individual chemicals or 
                other substances;
                    (E) procedures for providing monitoring results 
                to--
                            (i) appropriate Federal, State, and local 
                        government agencies;
                            (ii) appropriate response personnel; and
                            (iii) the public;
                    (F) responsibilities of Federal, State and local 
                agencies for--
                            (i) collecting and analyzing samples;
                            (ii) reporting results; and
                            (iii) taking appropriate response actions; 
                        and
                    (G) capabilities and capacity within the Federal 
                Government to conduct appropriate environmental 
                monitoring and response in the event of a disaster, 
                including a terrorist attack; and
            (2) other issues as specified by the Secretary of Homeland 
        Security, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the 
        Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated such sums as are necessary to carry out this section.

SEC. 4. PREDISASTER HAZARD MITIGATION.

    Section 203(m) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and 
Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5133(m)) is amended by striking 
``December 31, 2003'' and inserting ``September 30, 2006''.

            Passed the Senate November 21, 2003.

            Attest:

                                             EMILY J. REYNOLDS,

                                                             Secretary.