[House Report 117-516]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


117th Congress    }                                    {     Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session       }                                    {     117-516

======================================================================

 
   RESOLUTION OF INQUIRY REQUESTING THE PRESIDENT AND DIRECTING THE 
   SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES TO TRANSMIT, RESPECTIVELY, 
   CERTAIN DOCUMENTS TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES RELATING TO ANY 
                            COVID-19 VACCINE

                                _______
                                

 September 28, 2022.--Referred to the House Calendar and ordered to be 
                                printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Pallone, from the Committee on Energy and Commerce, submitted the 
                               following

                             ADVERSE REPORT

                             together with

                             MINORITY VIEWS

                      [To accompany H. Res. 1244]

    The Committee on Energy and Commerce, to whom was referred 
the resolution (H. Res. 1244) of inquiry requesting the 
President and directing the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services to transmit, respectively, certain documents to the 
House of Representatives relating to any COVID-19 vaccine, 
having considered the same, reports unfavorably thereon without 
amendment and recommends that the resolution not be agreed to.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
   I. Purpose and Summary.............................................2
  II. Background and Need for the Legislation.........................2
 III. Committee Hearings..............................................2
  IV. Committee Consideration.........................................3
   V. Committee Votes.................................................3
  VI. Oversight Findings..............................................5
 VII. New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditure5
VIII. Federal Mandates Statement......................................5
  IX. Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives...........5
   X. Duplication of Federal Programs.................................5
  XI. Committee Cost Estimate.........................................5
 XII. Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff Benefits.....5
XIII. Advisory Committee Statement....................................6
 XIV. Applicability to Legislative Branch.............................6
  XV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation..................6
 XVI. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported...........6
XVII. Minority Views..................................................7

                         I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    H. Res. 1244 requests from the President and directs the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) to transmit, not 
later than 14 days after the adoption of the resolution, copies 
of any document, record, memorandum, correspondence, or other 
recorded communication that refers or relates to any 
coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine.

                II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    Through this resolution of inquiry, the minority seeks to 
obtain an unprecedented amount of information set forth in 
extremely broad and undefined terms. This is an attempt to 
distract from efforts to combat the COVID-19 pandemic and 
simultaneously sow doubt and distrust of vaccines as safe and 
effective medical countermeasures. Federal agencies have 
partnered with private industry to advance the development and 
distribution of safe and effective vaccines in the midst of a 
pandemic. The science behind the development of mRNA COVID-19 
vaccines has been in development for decades, and the vaccines 
meet the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) rigorous 
scientific standards for safety, effectiveness, and 
manufacturing quality.\1\ In the first year of vaccine 
availability in the United States, it is estimated that vaccine 
uptake prevented approximately 1.1 million deaths and 10.3 
million hospitalizations.\2\ To date, more than 612 million 
COVID-19 vaccine doses have been administered.
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    \1\Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ensuring COVID-19 
Vaccine Safety in the US (July 19, 2022) (https://www.cdc.gov/
coronavirus/2019-ncov/vaccines/safety.html).
    \2\The Commonwealth Fund, The U.S. COVID-19 Vaccination Program at 
One Year: How Many Deaths and Hospitalizations Were Averted? (Dec. 14, 
2021) (https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2021/
dec/us-covid-19-vaccination-program-one-year-how-many-deaths-and).
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    In recent advancements, FDA has authorized and the Centers 
for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has recommended a 
COVID-19 booster vaccine specifically tailored to protect 
against severe disease caused by the prominent ``omicron'' 
variant that continues to circulate and infect individuals. The 
``omicron'' variant and its subvariants--including BA.5 and 
BA.4--are the most contagious variants to date and account for 
88 percent of cases in the United States.\3\ The introduction 
of an ``omicron'' specific booster has the potential to slow 
the spread of COVID-19 across the United States and paves the 
way for new vaccines and boosters to quell seasonal spikes of 
COVID-19 cases. The undefined and unlimited scope and absence 
of a question within the language of this falls short of the 
standard for resolutions of inquiry set by the Committee in 
prior Congresses. For these reasons, the Committee ordered H. 
Res. 1244 reported to the House adversely.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\Yale Medicine, Omicron and BA.5: A Guide on What We Know (Sept. 
7, 2022) (https://www.yalemedicine.org/news/5-things-to-know-
omicron#:08:text=According%20 
to%20the%20CDC%2C%20the,the%20end%20of%20that%20month).
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                        III. COMMITTEE HEARINGS

    The Committee on Energy and Commerce has not held a hearing 
on H. Res. 1244.

                      IV. COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

    H. Res. 1244 was introduced on July 21, 2022, by 
Representative Gosar (R-AZ) and was referred to the Committee 
on Energy and Commerce. Subsequently, on July 22, 2022, the 
resolution was referred to the Subcommittee on Health. The 
resolution was discharged from the Subcommittee on Health on 
September 21, 2022.
    On September 21, 2022, the Committee met in open markup 
session and ordered H. Res. 1244, without amendment, adversely 
reported to the House by a recorded vote of 32 yeas and 22 
nays.

                           V. COMMITTEE VOTES

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires the Committee to list each record vote 
on the motion to report legislation and amendments thereto. The 
Committee advises that there was one record votes taken on H. 
Res. 1244, including a motion by Mr. Pallone ordering H. Res. 
1244 adversely reported to the House, without amendment. The 
motion on forwarding the resolution adversely was approved by a 
record vote of 32 yeas to 22 nays. The following is the record 
vote taken during Committee consideration, including the names 
of those members voting for and against:


	[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]

                         VI. OVERSIGHT FINDINGS

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause 2(b)(1) 
of rule X of the Rules of the House of Representatives, the 
oversight findings and recommendations of the Committee are 
reflected in the descriptive portion of the report.

 VII. NEW BUDGET AUTHORITY, ENTITLEMENT AUTHORITY, AND TAX EXPENDITURES

    Pursuant to 3(c)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House 
of Representatives, the Committee adopts as its own the 
estimate of new budget authority, entitlement authority, or tax 
expenditures or revenues contained in the cost estimate 
prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget Office 
pursuant to section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974.
    The Committee has requested but not received from the 
Director of the Congressional Budget Office a statement as to 
whether this bill contains any new budget authority, spending 
authority, credit authority, or an increase or decrease in 
revenues or tax expenditures.

                    VIII. FEDERAL MANDATES STATEMENT

    The Committee adopts as its own the estimate of Federal 
mandates prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office pursuant to section 423 of the Unfunded Mandates Reform 
Act.

       IX. STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII, the general 
performance goal or objective of this legislation is to request 
the President and direct the Secretary of HHS to transmit, 
respectively, not later than 14 days after the adoption of the 
resolution, copies of any document, record, memorandum, 
correspondence, or other recorded communication that refers or 
relates to any COVID-19 vaccine.

                   X. DUPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII, no provision of H. 
Res. 1244 is known to be duplicative of another Federal 
program, including any program that was included in a report to 
Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139 or the 
most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance.

                      XI. COMMITTEE COST ESTIMATE

    Pursuant to clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII, the Committee 
adopts as its own the cost estimate prepared by the Director of 
the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.

    XII. EARMARKS, LIMITED TAX BENEFITS, AND LIMITED TARIFF BENEFITS

    Pursuant to clause 9(e), 9(f), and 9(g) of rule XXI, the 
Committee finds that H. Res. 1244 contains no earmarks, limited 
tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits.

                   XIII. ADVISORY COMMITTEE STATEMENT

    No advisory committee within the meaning of section 5(b) of 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act was created by this 
legislation.

                XIV. APPLICABILITY TO LEGISLATIVE BRANCH

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not relate to 
the terms and conditions of employment or access to public 
services or accommodations within the meaning of section 
102(b)(3) of the Congressional Accountability Act.

           XV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE LEGISLATION

    H. Res. 1244 requests from the President and directs the 
Secretary of HHS to respectively transmit, not later than 14 
days after the adoption of the resolution, copies of any 
document, record, memorandum, correspondence, or other recorded 
communication that refers or relates to any COVID-19 vaccine, 
to the extent that any such one or more items are within the 
possession of the President or HHS.

       XVI. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

    There are no changes to existing law made by the bill H. 
Res. 1244.

                          XVII. MINORITY VIEWS

    Energy and Commerce Committee Republicans recognize that 
that vaccines save lives. Thanks to vaccines, preventable 
illnesses like measles, rubella, diphtheria and polio are no 
longer endemic to the United States. And thanks to the success 
of the Trump Administration's Operation Warp Speed initiative, 
vaccines are the reason the world is on the road back to 
normalcy from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Trump Administration 
established Operation Warp Speed on May 15, 2020, to accelerate 
the development, manufacturing, and distribution of COVID-19 
vaccines, therapeutics, and diagnostics.\1\ This public-private 
partnership facilitated, at an unprecedented pace, the 
development, manufacturing, and distribution of COVID-19 
countermeasures. As a result of this ambitious initiative, the 
Americans can now choose between four safe and effective 
vaccines that help prevent serious illness, hospitalization, 
and death from COVID-19.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Trump 
Administration Announces Framework and Leadership for `Operation Warp 
Speed' (May 15, 2020), available at https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/
2020/05/15/trump-administration-announces-framework-and-leadership-for-
operation-warp-speed.html.
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    Unfortunately, the Biden Administration politicized these 
life-saving tools by forcing vaccine mandates, which in turn 
alienated many Americans and contributed to worker shortages 
across the nation. While these mandates were framed as offering 
benefits or freedoms for the vaccinated, a sizeable proportion 
of Americans saw them as conditioning access to health, work, 
travel and social activities, and viewed them as inherently 
punitive, discriminatory and coercive.\2\ In 2021, 47.8 million 
workers quit their jobs, an average of nearly 4 million each 
month.\3\ Hundreds of thousands of these employees who left 
their jobs were health and social assistance workers. The 
vaccine mandates exacerbated severe workforce shortages that 
existed prior to the pandemic, impacting patient care, 
especially in rural and smaller health care facilities. 
Following this administration's lead, cities across the country 
instated their own vaccine mandates for their local employees. 
Over 2,600 municipal workers have been fired in New York for 
refusing to get a COVID-19 vaccination, including police 
officers, teachers and classroom aides.\4\ It is wrong for 
anyone to be forced to make a choice to either comply with such 
a mandate or lose their livelihood, especially when the 
President and Democrats' radical spending and inflation crisis 
has already made it harder for people to afford everyday life.
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    \2\Kevin Bardosh, et al., The Unintended Consequences of COVID-19 
Vaccination Policy, The Wire Science (September 10, 2022), available at 
https://science.thewire.in/health/unintended-consequences-covid-19-
vaccine-policy/.
    \3\Society for Human Resource Management, Interactive Chart: How 
Historic Has the Great Resignation Been? (March 9, 2022), available at 
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/talent-acquisition/
pages/interactive-quits-level-by-year.aspx.
    \4\Susan Edelman, 850 more unvaxxed NYC teachers, aides fired for 
not complying with mandate, New York Post (September 17, 2022), 
available at https://nypost.com/2022/09/17/850-more-unvaxxed-nyc-
teachers-school-aides-fired/.
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    Vaccine mandates also severely damaged public trust in 
public health institutions. Especially for many Americans who 
had low trust in the federal government and this 
administration, vaccine mandates created a strong confirmation 
bias that the powers that be were acting in an authoritarian 
and biased matter. This ultimately undermined vaccine 
confidence. President Biden normalizing the stigmatization and 
bullying of those who declined to be vaccinated by declaring 
COVID-19 was a ``pandemic of the unvaccinated,'' was 
unproductive and only created further alienation.\5\ H. Res. 
1244 is a simple resolution. It requests that the President of 
the United States and the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services transmit copies of any documents, memoranda, 
correspondence or other recorded communications that refer or 
relate to any COVID-19 vaccine. The Biden Administration should 
never have resorted to using force to increase vaccination 
rates. They should have built trust--not resentment--by 
encouraging people to talk to their doctors. In order to better 
inform future public health policy, the Congress should better 
understand the cost benefit analysis undertaken by this 
administration on strategies to improve vaccine uptake, 
including analysis related to the effectiveness of vaccine 
mandates. Evaluating the lessons learned from vaccination 
policies of the COVID-19 pandemic is essential to ensuring that 
future pandemic policy is effective, proportionate, and 
ethically justified.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \5\Yasmin Tayag, Stop Calling It a `Pandemic of the Unvaccinated', 
The Atlantic (September 16, 2021), available at https://
www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2021/09/persuade-unvaccinated-
protect-unvaccinated/620091/.

                                    Cathy McMorris Rodgers,
               Republican Leader, Committee on Energy and Commerce.

                                  [all]