117 HR 5848 IH: To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish within the Office of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the Office of Rural Health, and for other purposes. U.S. House of Representatives 2021-11-03 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.

I117th CONGRESS1st SessionH. R. 5848IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVESNovember 3, 2021Mr. McEachin (for himself, Ms. Sewell, and Mr. Bishop of Georgia) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and CommerceA BILLTo direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish within the Office of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the Office of Rural Health, and for other purposes.

1.

CDC Office of Rural Health

(a)

In general

The Secretary shall establish within the Office of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention an office to be known as the Office of Rural Health, to be headed by a director appointed by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.(b)

Duties

The Director of the Office shall—(1)serve as the primary point of contact in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on matters pertaining to rural health;(2)assist the Secretary in conducting, coordinating, and promoting research regarding public health issues affecting rural populations, and in disseminating the results of such research;(3)work with all personnel and offices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to develop, refine, coordinate, and promulgate policies, best practices, lessons learned, and innovative, successful programs to improve care, services, and social determinants of health for populations who reside in rural areas of the United States;(4)coordinate and support rural health research, conduct and support educational outreach, and disseminate evidence-based interventions related to health outcomes, access to health care, and lifestyle challenges, to prevent death, disease, injury, and disability, and promote healthy behaviors, in rural populations, including rural minority and LGBTQ populations;(5)improve the understanding of the challenges faced by rural populations;(6)identify disparities in the availability of health care and public health interventions for populations living in rural areas;(7)administer grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts to provide technical assistance and other activities as necessary to support activities related to improving health and health care in rural areas; and(8)perform such other functions and duties as the Secretary determines appropriate.(c)

Definitions

In this section:(1)The term Office, except as otherwise specified, means the Office of Rural Health established pursuant to subsection (a).(2)The term Secretary means the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.(d)

Authorization of appropriations

There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2022 and each subsequent fiscal year.