[House Report 117-531]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


117th Congress    }                                     {       Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session       }                                     {      117-531

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

 
   RESOLUTION OF INQUIRY DIRECTING THE PRESIDENT TO PROVIDE CERTAIN 
DOCUMENTS IN THE PRESIDENT'S POSSESSION TO THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
RELATING TO ACTIONS TAKEN BY THE SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 
               RELATED TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC RESPONSE

                                _______
                                

 September 29, 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. 1268]

    The Committee on Energy and Commerce, to whom was referred 
the resolution (H. Res. 1268) of inquiry directing the 
President to provide certain documents in the President's 
possession to the House of Representatives relating to actions 
taken by the Secretary of Health and Human Services related to 
the COVID-19 pandemic response, having considered the same, 
report unfavorably thereon without amendment and recommend 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..............................................  3
  IV. Committee Consideration.........................................  3
   V. Committee Votes.................................................  3
  VI. Oversight Findings..............................................  5
 VII. New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditure  5
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. 1268 directs the President to furnish the House of 
Representatives copies of documents or communication in the 
President's possession that refers or relates to actions taken 
by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) related to 
the coronavirus disease of 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic response. 
H. Res. 1268 requires that the President disclose the number of 
in-person meetings that the Secretary has taken on the topic of 
the COVID-19 response; visits the Secretary has taken to the 
National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention (CDC), and the Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA); days that the Secretary has worked from 
Washington, D.C., and California; and work trips taken by the 
Secretary. It also requires the disclosure of expenses incurred 
during the Secretary's travel and an accounting of 
accommodations made for the Secretary's work at alternative 
locations. Finally, it requires an account of delegations of 
authority executed and the number of classified COVID-19 
briefings attended by the Secretary.

                II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    Through this resolution of inquiry, the Minority seeks to 
obtain information about the movements and actions of the HHS 
Secretary as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic response. This 
includes an account of all in-person meetings and site visits 
for which the Secretary has participated.
    Over the past 19 months, HHS has stood up and continues to 
operate important measures to curb COVID-19 illnesses, 
hospitalizations, and deaths, such as launching a nationwide 
Test to Treat Initiative,\1\ standing up the largest free 
vaccination program in the country's history,\2\ and rigorously 
testing and authorizing a new ``omicron'' variant-specific 
vaccine.\3\ The Administration also launched COVIDTests.gov so 
that Americans could have free at-home COVID-19 tests shipped 
directly to their homes. More than 600 million tests have been 
distributed through this program.\4\ These efforts to provide 
broad access to free vaccines, tests, and treatments have been 
critical to preventing serious illness and reducing COVID-
related deaths.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Department of Health and Human Services, Fact Sheet: Biden 
Administration Launches Nationwide Test-to-Treat Initiative Ensuring 
Rapid `On the Spot' Access to Lifesaving COVID Treatments (Mar. 8, 
2022) (www.hhs.gov/about/news/2022/03/08/fact-sheet-biden-
administration-launches-nationwide-test-treat-initiative-ensuring-
rapid-on-spot-access-lifesaving-covid-
treatments.html) (press release).
    \2\The White House, National COVID-19 Preparedness Plan 
(www.whitehouse.gov/covidplan/#protect) (accessed Sept. 21, 2022).
    \3\Food and Drug Administration, Coronavirus (COVID-19) Update: FDA 
Authorizes Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech Bivalent COVID-19 Vaccines for Use 
as a Booster Dose (Aug. 31, 2022) (www.fda.gov/news-events/press-
announcements/coronavirus-covid-19-update-fda-authorizes-moderna-
pfizer-biontech-bivalent-covid-19-vaccines-use).
    \4\Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, Aug. 29, 
2022 (https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2022/08/
29/press-briefing-by-press-secretary-karine-jean-pierre-august-29 2022/
).
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    It appears the resolution is intended to minimize these 
efforts implemented by HHS in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic 
instead of obtaining relevant information from the Department 
for legitimate oversight purposes. H. Res. 1268 is a 
distraction from the critical work of the Committee to expand 
access to health care, improve patients' lives, and oversee and 
support the public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 
For these reasons, the Committee ordered H. Res. 1268 reported 
to the House adversely.

                        III. COMMITTEE HEARINGS

    The Committee on Energy and Commerce has not held hearings 
on the resolution of inquiry.

                      IV. COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

    H. Res. 1268 was introduced on July 26, 2022, by 
Representative Guthrie (R-KY) and was referred to the Committee 
on Energy and Commerce. Subsequently, on July 27, 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. 1268, without amendment, adversely 
reported to the House by a recorded vote of 31 yeas and 23 
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 vote taken on H. 
Res. 1268, including a motion by Mr. Pallone ordering H. Res. 
1268 adversely reported to the House, without amendment. The 
motion on unfavorably reporting the resolution was approved by 
a record vote of 31 yeas to 23 nays. The following are the 
record votes taken during Committee consideration, including 
the names of those members voting for and against:


                         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 direct 
the President to provide certain documents in the President's 
possession to the House of Representatives relating to actions 
taken by the Secretary of HHS related to the COVID-19 pandemic 
response.

                   X. DUPLICATION OF FEDERAL PROGRAMS

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII, no provision of H. 
Res. 1268 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. 1268 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. 1268 directs the President to furnish the House of 
Representatives copies of documents or communication in the 
President's possession that refers or relates to actions taken 
by the Secretary of HHS related to the COVID-19 pandemic 
response. H. Res. 1268 requires that the President disclose the 
number of in-person meetings that the Secretary has taken on 
the topic of the COVID-19 response; visits the Secretary has 
taken to NIH, CDC, and FDA; days that the Secretary has worked 
from Washington, D.C., and California; and work trips taken by 
the Secretary. The resolution also requires the disclosure of 
expenses incurred during the Secretary's travel and an 
accounting of accommodations made for the Secretary's work at 
alternative locations. Finally, the resolution requires an 
account of delegations of authority executed and the number of 
classified COVID-19 briefings attended by the Secretary.

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

    There are no changes to existing law made by the bill H. 
Res. 1268.

                          XVII. MINORITY VIEWS

    Through this resolution of inquiry, the minority seeks to 
obtain information about the movements and actions of the HHS 
Secretary as it relates to the COVID-19 pandemic response. This 
includes an account of all in-person meetings and site visits 
for which the Secretary has participated. Providing 
accountability for such meetings is legitimate and routinely 
provided by agency heads such as the EPA administrator and the 
FDA commissioner. HHS itself has provided some but very 
incomplete information in this area for the HHS Secretary.
    This resolution stems from a January 31, 2022, letter from 
Republican committee leaders (Representatives McMorris Rodgers, 
Griffith and Guthrie) to HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, 
requesting information in response to concerns that he has 
largely been missing in action during the COVID-19 pandemic 
response.\1\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Letter from Representatives Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Brett 
Guthrie, and Morgan Griffith of the House Energy and Commerce Committee 
to The Honorable Xavier Becerra, HHS Secretary (January 31, 2022), 
available at https://republicans-energycommerce.house.gov/wp-
content/uploads/2022/01/1.31.22-Letter-to-HHS-Secretary-Becerra.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Concerns have been raised both inside and outside the 
administration about Secretary Becerra's leadership and 
visibility. NBC News reported last December about Secretary 
Becerra's low profile as HHS Secretary and noted that since he 
was sworn in, he had yet to appear at a White House or COVID-19 
media briefing.\2\ In fact, his first visit to the National 
Institutes of Health (NIH) was eight months into the job.\3\ 
Additionally, NBC News reported that `conversations with six 
former senior health policy officials from both Democratic and 
Republican administrations, as well as three people closely 
familiar with the agency's activities, revealed that they were 
mystified about why Becerra's leadership has been, as several 
of them put it, ``invisible.''\4\ Oddly, when the public online 
HHS Employee Directory was queried, there were no matching 
records for Secretary Becerra's name, and White House visitor 
logs indicate that Secretary Becerra has not visited the White 
House since he was confirmed as HHS Secretary as of the 
beginning of this year.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\Laura Strickler and Heidi Przybyla, The very low public profile 
of Biden's health secretary, NBC News, (Jan. 26, 2021), available at 
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/joe-biden/low-public-profile-xavier-
becerra-one-bidens-topcabinet-officials-rcna8027; see also: Nathaniel 
Weixel, HHS secretary under fire for being `invisible' leader during 
pandemic, The Hill (January 26, 2022), available at https://
thehill.com/policy/healthcare/591374-hhs-secretaryunder-fire-for-being-
invisible-leader-during-pandemic; Naomi Lim, Despite pandemic, health 
secretary Xavier Becerra keeps low profile, Washington Examiner (July 
26, 2021), available at https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/politics/
xavier-becerra-low-profile.
    \3\Id.
    \4\Id.
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    Further, the Washington Post published an article on 
January 31, 2022, with the headline, ``White House frustrations 
grow over health chief Becerra's handling of pandemic.''\5\ The 
Post reported that ``White House officials have grown so 
frustrated with top health official Xavier Becerra as the 
pandemic rages on that they have openly mused about who might 
be better in the job, although political considerations have 
stopped them from taking steps to replace him, officials 
involved in the discussions said.''\6\ The Post further 
reported that ``his low profile has become more confounding as 
the pandemic has worn on.''\7\ The Post also reported that 
White House officials, ``said the health secretary isn't 
fulfilling a core responsibility of his job, which is to act as 
a de facto field marshal coordinating the nation's vast health 
bureaucracy to achieve the White House's strategy, even though 
he does not set it.''\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \5\Dan Diamond, Yasmeen Abutaleb and Tyler Pager, White House 
frustrations grow over health chief Becerra's handling of pandemic, 
Washington Post (January 31, 2022), available at https://
www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/01/31/becerra-hhs-pandemic-
response-leadership/.
    \6\Id.
    \7\Id.
    \8\Id.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    These concerns became even more salient when GAO added HHS 
leadership in the pandemic response to the GAO High Risk List. 
On January 27, 2022, GAO added the HHS leadership of public 
health emergencies to the GAO High Risk List.\9\ For over a 
decade, GAO had found issues with how HHS's leadership prepares 
for and responds to emergencies, including COVID-19, other 
infectious diseases, and extreme weather events, such as 
hurricanes. Under these circumstances, it is even more 
critically important to determine the Secretary's actual role 
and performance during the COVID-19 pandemic response.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \9\Government Accountability Office, COVID-19: Significant 
Improvements Are Needed for Overseeing Relief Funds and Leading 
Responses to Public Health Emergencies, GAO-22-105291 (January 27, 
2022), available at https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-22-105291.
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    In response to this inquiry, Secretary Becerra in a letter 
dated April 27, 2022, detailed some of the work of HHS in 
response to the pandemic. However, he did not respond to the 
specific information requests. Although the HHS Secretary did 
not respond to the specific requests, he did not question the 
motives of the request or the legitimacy of the request. The 
resolution requests specific details about the Secretary's 
official activities and execution of his duties. The resolution 
does not comment or make any implication about the performance 
of HHS in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
    This resolution is of immense importance to the American 
people. They have a right to know about the basic details of 
Secretary Becerra's level of involvement in the pandemic 
response.

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

                                  [all]