[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5002 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 5002

To improve the quality, appropriateness, and effectiveness of diagnosis 
                in health care, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           December 10, 2020

Mr. Van Hollen introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To improve the quality, appropriateness, and effectiveness of diagnosis 
                in health care, 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. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Improving Diagnosis in Medicine Act 
of 2020''.

SEC. 2. RESEARCH CENTERS OF DIAGNOSTIC EXCELLENCE.

    (a) In General.--Section 912 of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 299b-1) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (c), by inserting after ``part C'' the 
        following: ``and subsection (d)''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Research Centers of Diagnostic Excellence.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Director shall award grants for the 
        establishment and maintenance of centers, to be known as 
        Research Centers of Diagnostic Excellence, that advance 
        research and progress in diagnostic quality, safety, and value 
        in clinical care and population health through implementing the 
        activities specified in paragraph (3).
            ``(2) Considerations.--In awarding grants under paragraph 
        (1), the Director shall take into consideration--
                    ``(A) the level of development within the field of 
                research on improving diagnosis in health care; and
                    ``(B) the need to plan and establish new Research 
                Centers of Diagnostic Excellence.
            ``(3) Activities.--
                    ``(A) Required activities.--Each Research Center of 
                Diagnostic Excellence receiving funds pursuant to 
                paragraph (1) shall use such funds to--
                            ``(i) serve as an interdisciplinary core 
                        diagnostic research hub for conducting 
                        diagnostic safety and quality research;
                            ``(ii) support research and public health 
                        initiatives on improving diagnosis in medicine; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) foster high-impact research on 
                        novel solutions to improve diagnosis that will 
                        significantly reduce patient harm.
                    ``(B) Permissible activities.--In addition to the 
                required activities listed in subparagraph (A), each 
                Research Center of Diagnostic Excellence receiving 
                funds pursuant to paragraph (1) may use such funds to--
                            ``(i) build capacity by cultivating, 
                        training, and developing a highly qualified 
                        diagnostic research workforce;
                            ``(ii) develop and validate operationally 
                        viable measures of diagnostic error to assess 
                        which approaches are effective for monitoring 
                        the diagnosis process of identifying, 
                        analyzing, and reducing diagnostic errors; and
                            ``(iii) utilize strategic partnerships that 
                        capitalize on the capabilities of both academic 
                        research institutions and non-academic health 
                        care, public health, science, and technology 
                        stakeholders.''.

SEC. 3. INTERAGENCY COUNCIL ON IMPROVING DIAGNOSIS IN HEALTH CARE.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services (in 
this section referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall establish within 
the Office of the Secretary an interagency council to be known as the 
Interagency Council on Improving Diagnosis in Health Care (in this 
section referred to as the ``Council'').
    (b) Objectives.--The objectives of the Council shall be the 
following:
            (1) Enhance the quality, appropriateness, and effectiveness 
        of diagnosis in health care through--
                    (A) the establishment and support of a broad base 
                of scientific research;
                    (B) the dissemination and implementation of the 
                results of such research; and
                    (C) the promotion of improvements in clinical and 
                health system practices.
            (2) Identify and eliminate systemic barriers to supporting 
        research in improving diagnosis in health care.
            (3) Identify knowledge gaps, research needs, and 
        deficiencies in clinical and health system delivery, associated 
        with the diagnostic process, with an emphasis on clarifying 
        needs across the diagnostic research continuum.
            (4) Create core diagnostic research services and 
        interdisciplinary teams to facilitate diagnostic research.
            (5) Build capacity by training and developing a highly 
        qualified diagnostic research workforce.
            (6) Establish valid operational measures of diagnostic 
        error.
    (c) Membership.--
            (1) Chairperson.--The Director of the Agency for Healthcare 
        Research and Quality (or the Director's designee) shall be the 
        Chairperson of the Council.
            (2) Members.--
                    (A) In general.--In addition to the Chairperson, 
                the Council shall be comprised of the following:
                            (i) At least 1 designee from each of the 
                        following, appointed by the head of the 
                        applicable department or agency:
                                    (I) The Centers for Disease Control 
                                and Prevention.
                                    (II) The Centers for Medicare & 
                                Medicaid Services.
                                    (III) The Department of Veterans 
                                Affairs.
                                    (IV) The Congressionally Directed 
                                Medical Research Program of the 
                                Department of Defense.
                            (ii) Designees from the National Institutes 
                        of Health, including a least 1 designee from 
                        each of the following:
                                    (I) The National Cancer Institute.
                                    (II) The National Center for 
                                Advancing Translational Sciences.
                                    (III) The National Institute of 
                                Allergy and Infectious Diseases.
                                    (IV) The National Heart, Lung, and 
                                Blood Institute.
                                    (V) The National Institute of 
                                Neurological Disorders and Stroke.
                                    (VI) The National Library of 
                                Medicine.
                            (iii) Designees from such other national 
                        research institutes and national centers as may 
                        be appropriate, as determined by the Director 
                        of the National Institutes of Health.
                    (B) Additional members.--In addition to the 
                designees under subparagraph (A), the Council may 
                include such other designees from Federal departments 
                or agencies as the Chairperson of the Council deems 
                appropriate.
                    (C) Designation.--A person appointed to the Council 
                as a designee shall be a senior official or employee of 
                the department or agency whose responsibilities and 
                subject matter expertise are relevant to the Council's 
                objectives listed in subsection (b), as determined by 
                the designating official.
    (d) Strategic Plan; Reports.--
            (1) Strategic federal plan to improve diagnosis in health 
        care.--Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, the Council shall develop, submit to the Secretary 
        and Congress, and make publicly available a strategic plan, to 
        be known as the Strategic Federal Plan to Improve Diagnosis, 
        that, consistent with the objectives listed in subsection (b)--
                    (A) identifies coordinated opportunities to enhance 
                scientific research and reduce systemic barriers in 
                order to improve diagnosis in health care; and
                    (B) includes legislative and administrative policy 
                recommendations.
            (2) Reports to congress.--Not later than July 31 of every 
        odd-numbered year beginning with the first such year after the 
        date of submission of the first Strategic Federal Plan to 
        Improve Diagnosis under paragraph (1), the Council shall 
        prepare, submit to the Secretary and Congress, and make 
        publicly available an updated Strategic Federal Plan to Improve 
        Diagnosis that includes--
                    (A) such updates as the Council determines to be 
                appropriate;
                    (B) information on the overall progress of the 
                Federal Government in reducing barriers to research on, 
                and supporting projects to improve, diagnosis in health 
                care; and
                    (C) legislative and administrative policy 
                recommendations, including addressing any needs for 
                greater legislative authority to meet the objectives 
                listed in subsection (b).

SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act 
(including the amendments made by this Act) $8,000,000 for each of 
fiscal years 2021 through 2025, to remain available until expended.
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