[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 31 (Tuesday, March 5, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1123-S1124]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




       PANDEMIC AND ALL-HAZARDS PREPAREDNESS REAUTHORIZATION ACT

  Ms. MIKULSKI. Mr. President, I am pleased to come to the floor in 
support of the Pandemic and All Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization 
Act of 2013, PAHPRA. Last week, the Senate passed this bill by 
unanimous consent and last night the House passed the bill with 
overwhelming bipartisan support. I am so pleased PAHPRA is getting sent 
to the President to be signed into law. Enacting this bill is critical 
for Marylander's safety, jobs, biotech companies, State and local 
health departments, and our State's economy. It is also critical that 
we understand and be responsive to the unique health care needs of 
children in disasters.
  Recent disasters at home and abroad have underscored the importance 
of preparing our Nation to respond to a range of medical and public 
health emergencies, whether naturally occurring or the result of a 
chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear attack. Over the past 
decade, multiple Congresses and administrations have worked together to 
put in place critical medical and public health preparedness and 
response programs and policies. As a result of the passage of the 
Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Act, PAHPA of 2006, the Federal 
Government, in partnership with State and local governments, took 
significant steps to strengthen our Nation's medical and public health 
preparedness and response capabilities. This bipartisan reauthorization 
builds on these efforts by enhancing existing programs and authorities 
using lessons learned over the past 5 years to maximize our Nation's 
resilience to threats, whether naturally occurring or deliberate.
  I thank Senators Harkin, Enzi, Burr, Alexander, and Casey for their 
dedication and commitment to reauthorizing the programs in this bill 
and protecting our country from threats. By coming together, passing 
this bill, and sending it to the President to get signed into law, we 
will strengthen our Nation's ability to prepare for and respond to all 
hazards emergencies, and we will ensure that we have looked out for our 
children. The congenial and bi-partisan process we followed should be a 
model for how we do all of our work here in Congress.
  PAHPRA includes important provisions that I fought for as Chairwoman 
of the HELP Subcommittee on Children and Families. I led the effort to 
create a National Advisory Committee on Children and Disasters to 
continue the good work started by the National Commission on Children 
and Disasters. The advisory committee, established by my amendment, 
will bring together children's advocates and federal agencies to ensure 
we are well equipped to care for our most vulnerable population when 
preparing for, responding to and recovering from a disaster. I am 
committed to getting this advisory committee up and running this year. 
Doing all that we can to protect our most vulnerable is of the utmost 
importance.
  I would also like to thank the American Academy of Pediatrics for 
their commitment to children's health and for building a coalition of 
support for my amendment to establish the Advisory Committee. Save the 
Children and the Children's Health Fund were also steadfast advocates 
for this committee and other important pediatric provisions contained 
in this bill.
  This advisory committee will include a variety of pediatric experts, 
from those who work in Federal agencies, to non-federal health care 
professionals, to employees of relevant State and local agencies. I 
made sure that at least four members of this committee would not be 
federal bureaucrats to ensure that all views and perspectives are 
considered. Community-based pediatricians, nurses, and State and local 
public health and emergency management professionals are on the front 
lines responding to emergencies every day. These folks know what the 
situation is like on the ground.
  The advisory committee will serve an important role in making sure 
that the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of 
Homeland Security swiftly implement the medical and public health 
recommendations put forth by the National Commission on Children and 
Disasters. Committee members will also advise federal agencies on the 
medical and public health policies and

[[Page S1124]]

procedures that the agencies and their grantees should implement to 
meet the needs of children when preparing for, responding to, and 
recovering from all-hazards.
  As we all know, children are not little adults. Kids who are battered 
during a disaster and suffer physical harm or are exposed to an 
infectious disease, need special medications, devices, and supplies, 
whether it is a liquid form of a medication, a pediatric ventilator, 
baby formula, or even diapers.
  PAHPRA reauthorizes several provisions that I have fought for over 
the years that support the research and development of chemical, 
biological, radiological, and nuclear countermeasures. Project 
Bioshield and the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development 
Authority, BARDA, are economic engines of Maryland's economy supporting 
both biotech innovation and domestic manufacturing. Project Bioshield 
is a secure funding source dedicated to the purchase of medical 
countermeasures. BARDA contracts with companies to support the 
development and commercialization of medical countermeasures and 
carries out all Project Bioshield acquisition contracts. Project 
Bioshield and BARDA together provide drug manufacturers with the 
incentives they need to enter this market and develop lifesaving 
therapeutics.
  Maryland companies are investing in research and development of 
medical countermeasures for bioterror threats because they know there 
is a federal market to buy their drugs, vaccines, needles and masks for 
the Strategic National Stockpile for use when a disaster strikes. 
Marylanders are working hard every day to create countermeasures that 
we hope to never use but will rely on when we are most at need to save 
our lives and our kids' lives. They are developing the next generation 
anthrax, influenza, and smallpox vaccines for the Strategic National 
Stockpile. The drugs we are working so hard to develop also protect our 
troops deployed around the world so that our soldiers get the right 
treatments to keep them safe.
  PAHPRA also codifies the Public Health Emergency Medical 
Countermeasures Enterprise Strategy and Implementation Plan. I worked 
to ensure that the Department of Health and Human Services would report 
on what our country needs to protect our kids so that companies will 
know what countermeasures to develop and HHS and Congress will know how 
many and which products to buy for the stockpile. I also made sure that 
FDA would report to Congress annually on the scientific challenges and 
progress made in developing and licensing countermeasures for pregnant 
women and children.
  I also fought to make sure that State and local health departments 
would have the workforce and financial resources they need to prepare 
for infectious disease outbreaks like the H1N1 influenza, earthquakes, 
and floods, as well as numerous other public health threats that 
communities face on a day-to-day basis. In that vein, I worked to 
improve state and local disaster planning for kids. It is important 
that local education, child care, and other agencies are regularly 
partnering and consulting with health departments as they develop and 
revise their preparedness plans. PAHPRA supports the good work that 
happened in our communities during H1N1. State education, child care 
and health agencies were partnering and consulting with each other day 
in and day out for almost a year to minimize the ill health effects of 
this novel virus. Our public servants at the federal level were 
critical to the response and they worked closely with local officials 
to protect us every hour of every day during the pandemic.
  We must prevent and respond to health threats before they are on our 
doorstep. Making this bipartisan legislation the law of the land will 
help do just that. And I will fight to make sure we are funding these 
programs so that we can be prepared for any and all emergencies that we 
may face here in the United States.

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