[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1921 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1921

 To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to encourage States to 
 adopt administrative procedures with respect to nonmedical exemptions 
                  for State immunization requirements.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             August 4, 2015

  Mr. Murphy introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
                  referred to the Committee on Finance

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend title XIX of the Social Security Act to encourage States to 
 adopt administrative procedures with respect to nonmedical exemptions 
                  for State immunization requirements.

    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 ``Vaccinate America's Children through 
Complete Information & Education Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. ENCOURAGING STATES TO STRENGTHEN ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES 
              RELATED TO NONMEDICAL EXEMPTIONS FROM STATE VACCINATION 
              REQUIREMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 1928 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
1396s) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (i); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (g) the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(h) Administrative Procedures for Granting Nonmedical 
Exemptions.--
            ``(1) Certification of adoption of procedures.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A State program under this 
                section does not comply with the requirements of this 
                section unless the State certifies to the Secretary 
                that the State has established administrative 
                procedures for granting nonmedical exemptions from 
                State immunization requirements (as defined in 
                subparagraph (B)) that include at least 2 of the 
                prerequisites described in paragraph (2).
                    ``(B) Nonmedical exemption from state immunization 
                requirement.--For purposes of this subsection, the term 
                `nonmedical exemption from State immunization 
                requirements' means any exemption from a State law that 
                requires a child to receive a pediatric vaccine 
                (including school immunization requirements) that is 
                not based on a medical reason.
            ``(2) Nonmedical exemption prerequisites.--The 
        prerequisites for granting a nonmedical exemption from State 
        immunization requirements described in this paragraph are the 
        following:
                    ``(A) The State requires that prior to the 
                exemption being granted, a parent or guardian seeking a 
                nonmedical exemption from State immunization 
                requirements for a child shall discuss the consequences 
                of nonvaccination with the child's pediatrician or 
                other primary care provider and that the discussion is 
                noted in the child's medical record.
                    ``(B) The State requires that prior to the 
                exemption being granted, a parent or guardian seeking a 
                nonmedical exemption from State immunization 
                requirements for a child read and sign a form that 
                discusses the risks of nonvaccination and submits the 
                form to the State.
                    ``(C) The State requires that prior to the 
                exemption being granted, a parent or guardian seeking a 
                nonmedical exemption from State immunization 
                requirements for a child submits to the State a 
                notarized letter describing the parent's or guardian's 
                reasons for seeking the exemption.
                    ``(D) The State requires that all nonmedical 
                exemptions from State immunization requirements shall 
                only be granted for a 1-year period and shall be 
                required to be renewed annually if a parent or guardian 
                of a child wants the exemption to continue for another 
                year.
            ``(3) Penalty.--
                    ``(A) In general.--With respect to a fiscal year, 
                if a State fails to submit the certification required 
                under paragraph (1) or if the administrative procedures 
                established by the State for granting nonmedical 
                exemptions from State immunization requirements do not 
                include at least 2 of the prerequisites described in 
                paragraph (2), the State shall pay the Secretary an 
                amount equal to--
                            ``(i) in the case of a State that is not a 
                        manufacturer of pediatric vaccines, 5 percent 
                        of the value (as determined by the Secretary) 
                        of the vaccines provided to the State under 
                        subsection (b)(2)(A) for that fiscal year; and
                            ``(ii) in the case of a State that is a 
                        manufacturer of pediatric vaccines, 5 percent 
                        of the sum of--
                                    ``(I) the value (as determined by 
                                the Secretary) of any vaccines provided 
                                to the State under subsection (b)(2)(A) 
                                for that fiscal year; and
                                    ``(II) the amount paid to the State 
                                for the fiscal year under subsection 
                                (b)(2)(C).
                    ``(B) Treatment as an overpayment.--A State payment 
                required to be made to the Secretary under subparagraph 
                (A) shall be deemed an overpayment to the State under 
                this title to be disallowed against the State's regular 
                quarterly draw for all spending under section 
                1903(d)(2). Such a disallowance is not subject to a 
                reconsideration under section 1116(e).''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Section 1928 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 
        1396s), as amended by subsection (a), is further amended--
                    (A) in subsection (a)(1)(A), by striking 
                ``subsection (h)(8)'' and inserting ``subsection 
                (i)(8)''; and
                    (B) in subsection (b)(2)(A)(iv), by striking 
                ``subsection (h)(3)'' and inserting ``subsection 
                (i)(3)''.
            (2) Section 609(d) of the Employee Retirement Income 
        Security Act of 1974 (42 U.S.C. 1169(d)) is amended by striking 
        ``section 1928(h)(6)'' and inserting ``section 1928(i)(6)''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this Act shall take 
effect on the date that is 1 year after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
                                 <all>