[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2942 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2942

  To establish a Hospital Fund for the treatment of individuals with 
             Ebola or other specified infectious diseases.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 19, 2014

Mr. Markey (for himself and Mr. Portman) introduced the following bill; 
     which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, 
                     Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To establish a Hospital Fund for the treatment of individuals with 
             Ebola or other specified infectious diseases.

    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 ``Infectious Disease Hospital Hubs 
Act''.

SEC. 2. PUBLIC HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES EMERGENCY FUND.

    Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 243 
et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 319C-2 the following:

``SEC. 319C-3. TREATMENT OF INDIVIDUALS WITH EBOLA OR OTHER INFECTIOUS 
              DISEASES.

    ``(a) In General.--If the Secretary determines that there is an 
emergency, or significant potential for an emergency, that involves a 
specific infectious disease, the Secretary, after consultation with 
appropriate public health officials, may award grants under subsection 
(b) to prepare for such emergency or potential emergency and grants to 
provide compensatory awards under subsection (c), as may be 
appropriate.
    ``(b) Grants for Surge Capacity and To Enhance Community and 
Hospital Preparedness.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary may award grants to States 
        to enable such States to improve surge capacity and enhance 
        community and hospital preparedness for an emergency involving 
        a specified infectious disease.
            ``(2) Eligibility.--To be eligible for an award under this 
        subsection, a State shall--
                    ``(A) designate, in consultation with the Centers 
                for Disease Control and Prevention and lead health 
                officials of the State, one or more hospitals that 
                volunteer to treat individuals with a specified 
                infectious disease; and
                    ``(B) submit an application at such time, in such 
                manner, and containing such information as the 
                Secretary may require, including an assurance that the 
                State will adhere to any applicable guidelines 
                established by the Secretary.
            ``(3) Use of funds.--An award under this subsection shall 
        be expended for any of the following activities needed to treat 
        individuals with a specified infectious disease:
                    ``(A) Renovating, constructing, or retrofitting a 
                hospital or building.
                    ``(B) Purchasing mobile specialized infectious 
                disease isolation units and equipment.
                    ``(C) Acquiring personal protective equipment to be 
                used by health care workers during management of 
                patients.
                    ``(D) Hiring additional staff as necessary to 
                replace staff assigned to treat individuals with a 
                specified infectious disease.
                    ``(E) Overtime of existing staff for treatment of 
                individuals with a specified infectious disease.
                    ``(F) Handling, transporting, and disposing of 
                waste related to the specialized treatment of a 
                specified infectious disease.
                    ``(G) Covering direct and indirect costs associated 
                with treatment of a specified infectious disease.
                    ``(H) Training health care professionals and other 
                hospital staff, as appropriate, regarding--
                            ``(i) procedures and protocols with respect 
                        to a specified infectious disease;
                            ``(ii) appropriate use of personal 
                        protective equipment;
                            ``(iii) screening questions, triage 
                        techniques, and health information technology 
                        related to an infectious disease, such as 
                        Ebola;
                            ``(iv) identification, testing, and 
                        specimen collection and transport procedures 
                        with respect to a specified infectious disease;
                            ``(v) isolation and quarantine procedures;
                            ``(vi) cleaning and disinfection protocols;
                            ``(vii) handling, transporting, and 
                        disposing of waste related to the specialized 
                        treatment of a specified infectious disease; or
                            ``(viii) handling of human remains of 
                        patients with a specified infectious disease.
            ``(4) Technical assistance.--The Secretary, acting through 
        the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 
        the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, or other 
        heads of agencies of the Department of Health and Human 
        Services, may provide to States awarded grants under this 
        subsection technical assistance on--
                    ``(A) procedures and protocols with respect to a 
                specified infectious disease;
                    ``(B) appropriate use of personal protective 
                equipment;
                    ``(C) screening questions, triage techniques, and 
                health information technology related to an infectious 
                disease, such as Ebola;
                    ``(D) identification, testing, and specimen 
                collection and transport procedures with respect to a 
                specified infectious disease;
                    ``(E) isolation and quarantine procedures;
                    ``(F) cleaning and disinfection protocols;
                    ``(G) handling, transport, and disposal of waste 
                related to the specialized treatment of a specified 
                infectious disease; or
                    ``(H) handling of human remains of patients with a 
                specified infectious disease.
    ``(c) Grants for Distribution of Compensatory Awards.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary may award additional 
        grants to States that receive a grant under subsection (b) for 
        the purpose of distributing compensatory awards to any hospital 
        within the State that has been designated under subsection 
        (b)(2)(A) and has treated an individual with a specified 
        infectious disease.
            ``(2) Use of funds.--A grant awarded under this subsection 
        shall be distributed to any hospital described in paragraph (1) 
        in order to compensate such hospital for--
                    ``(A) documented costs associated with the 
                specialized treatment of an individual with a specified 
                infectious disease, except such compensation may not be 
                provided for the cost of any treatment, payment for 
                which has been made, or can reasonably be expected to 
                be made, under any State compensation program, under an 
                insurance policy, under any Federal or State health 
                benefits program, or by an entity that provides health 
                services on prepaid basis; or
                    ``(B) damages for lost business activity or lost 
                services directly attributable to the specialized 
                treatment of a specific infectious disease, provided 
                that such damages are supported by a reasonably 
                accurate measurement or estimate, including appropriate 
                documentation supporting the claim.
    ``(d) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the term `infectious disease' means a disease that 
        the Secretary determines to be infectious and to require 
        isolation and specialized treatment; and
            ``(2) the term `specified infectious disease' means an 
        infectious disease with respect to which the Secretary 
        determines under subsection (a) there is an emergency or a 
        significant potential for an emergency.
    ``(e) Use of Grant Funds.--A State receiving funds under subsection 
(b) or (c) shall expend such funds solely for any of the purposes 
described in paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (b) or solely for 
disbursement to hospitals under subsection (c)(2), as applicable. Any 
funds not so expended or disbursed within 90 days of receipt of such 
funds shall be returned to the Secretary and shall remain available for 
the purpose of carrying out this section.
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there is authorized to be appropriated $125,000,000 for the period of 
fiscal years 2015 through 2019, to remain available until expended.''.
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