[House Report 118-488]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


118th Congress  }                                              {   Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session     }                                              {  118-488

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



 
  EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES FOR CHILDREN REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2024

                                _______
                                

  May 7, 2024.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Mrs. Rodgers of Washington, from the Committee on Energy and Commerce, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 6960]

    The Committee on Energy and Commerce, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 6960) to amend the Public Health Service Act to 
reauthorize the Emergency Medical Services for Children 
program, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon 
without amendment and recommends that the bill do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Purpose and Summary..............................................     1
Background and Need for Legislation..............................     2
Committee Action.................................................     2
Committee Votes..................................................     2
Oversight Findings and Recommendations...........................     5
New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures     5
Congressional Budget Office Estimate.............................     5
Federal Mandates Statement.......................................     5
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............     5
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................     5
Related Committee and Subcommittee Hearings......................     5
Committee Cost Estimate..........................................     6
Earmark, Limited Tax Benefits, and Limited Tariff Benefits.......     6
Advisory Committee Statement.....................................     6
Applicability to Legislative Branch..............................     6
Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation...................     6
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............     6

                          Purpose and Summary

    H.R. 6960 reauthorizes the Emergency Medical Services for 
Children program for five years.

                  Background and Need for Legislation

    The program reauthorized under the Emergency Medical 
Services for Children Reauthorization Act provides support to 
states and schools of medicine to expand and improve emergency 
care for children.\1\ Recent data suggests that emergency 
departments with high pediatric readiness are associated with 
lower mortality rates among children with critical illness.\2\ 
The same study also found that over 1,400 pediatric deaths may 
have been avoided (during the study years) had all emergency 
departments surveyed been well-prepared.\3\ This legislation 
will continue support for this critical program to expand and 
improve emergency care for children and help prevent avoidable 
pediatric deaths.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\https://mchb.hrsa.gov/programs-impact/emergency-medical-
services-children-emsc.
    \2\Newgard CD, Lin A, Malveau S, Cook JNB, Smith M, Kuppermann N, 
Remick KE, Gausche-Hill M, Goldhaber-Fiebert J, Burd RS, Hewes HA, 
Salvi A, Xin H, Ames SG, Jenkins PC, Marin J, Hansen M, Glass NE, 
Nathens AB, McConnell KJ, Dai M, Carr B, Ford R, Yanez D, Babcock SR, 
Lang B, Mann NC; Pediatric Readiness Study Group. Emergency Department 
Pediatric Readiness and Short-term and Long-term Mortality Among 
Children Receiving Emergency Care. JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Jan 
3;6(1):e2250941. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.50941. Erratum in: 
JAMA Netw Open. 2023 Feb 1;6(2):e231365. PMID: 36637819; PMCID: 
PMC9857584.
    \3\Ibid.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                            Committee Action

    On February 14, 2024, the Subcommittee on Health held a 
hearing on H.R. 6960. The title of the hearing was 
``Legislative Proposals to Support Patients and Caregivers.'' 
The Subcommittee received testimony from:
           Andy Shih, PhD, Chief Science Officer, 
        Autism Speaks;
           Corey Feist, JD, MBA, Co-Founder and CEO, 
        Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes' Foundation;
           Joanne Pike, DrPH, President and CEO, 
        Alzheimer's Association;
           Gordon Tomaselli, MD, Former President, 
        American Heart Association; Marilyn and Stanley M. Katz 
        Dean, Emeritus and Professor of Medicine, Albert 
        Einstein College of Medicine; Adjunct Professor of 
        Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine;
           Michelle Whitten, President, CEO, and Co-
        Founder, Global Down Syndrome Foundation;
           Randy Strozyk, President, American Ambulance 
        Association; and
           Christina Annunziata, MD, PhD, Senior Vice 
        President of Extramural Discovery Science, American 
        Cancer Society.
    On March 12, 2024, the Subcommittee on Health met in open 
markup session and forwarded H.R. 6960, without amendment, to 
the full Committee by a record vote of 23 yeas and 0 nays.
    On March 20, 2024, the full Committee on Energy and 
Commerce met in open markup session and ordered H.R. 6960, 
without amendment, favorably reported to the House by a record 
vote of 48 yeas and 0 nays.

                            Committee Votes

    Clause 3(b) of rule XIII requires the Committee to list the 
record votes on the motion to report legislation and amendments 
thereto. The following reflects the record votes taken during 
the Committee consideration:


                 Oversight Findings and Recommendations

    Pursuant to clause 2(b)(1) of rule X and clause 3(c)(1) of 
rule XIII, the Committee held a hearing and made findings that 
are reflected in this report.

   New Budget Authority, Entitlement Authority, and Tax Expenditures

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(2) of rule XIII, the Committee 
finds that H.R. 6960 would result in no new or increased budget 
authority, entitlement authority, or tax expenditures or 
revenues.

                  Congressional Budget Office Estimate

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII, at the time this 
report was filed, the cost estimate prepared by the Director of 
the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974 was not available.

                       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.

         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 
continue resources to states and schools of medicine to expand 
and improve emergency care for children.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII, no provision of 
H.R. 6960 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.

              Related Committee and Subcommittee Hearings

    Pursuant to clause 3(c)(6) of rule XIII, the following 
related hearing was used to develop or consider H.R. 6960:
           On February 14, 2024, the Subcommittee on 
        Health held a hearing on H.R. 6960. The title of the 
        hearing was ``Legislative Proposals to Support Patients 
        and Caregivers.'' The Subcommittee received testimony 
        from:
                   Andy Shih, PhD, Chief Science 
                Officer, Autism Speaks;
                   Corey Feist, JD, MBA, Co-Founder 
                and CEO, Dr. Lorna Breen Heroes' Foundation;
                   Joanne Pike, DrPH, President and 
                CEO, Alzheimer's Association;
                   Gordon Tomaselli, MD, Former 
                President, American Heart Association; Marilyn 
                and Stanley M. Katz Dean, Emeritus and 
                Professor of Medicine, Albert Einstein College 
                of Medicine; Adjunct Professor of Medicine, 
                Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine;
                   Michelle Whitten, President, 
                CEO, and Co-Founder, Global Down Syndrome 
                Foundation;
                   Randy Strozyk, President, 
                American Ambulance Association; and
                   Christina Annunziata, MD, PhD, 
                Senior Vice President of Extramural Discovery 
                Science, American Cancer Society.

                        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. At the time this report was 
filed, the estimate was not available.

       Earmark, 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.R. 6960 contains no earmarks, limited 
tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits.

                      Advisory Committee Statement

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

                  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.

             Section-by-Section Analysis of the Legislation


Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 provides that the Act may be cited as the 
``Emergency Medical Services for Children Reauthorization Act 
of 2024''.

Section 2. Reauthorization of grants for emergency medical services for 
        children

    Section 2 reauthorizes Section 1910 of the Public Health 
Service Act for five fiscal years.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (existing law 
proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italics, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman):

                       PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE ACT




           *       *       *       *       *       *       *
                        TITLE XIX--BLOCK GRANTS


Part A--Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



                emergency medical services for children

  Sec. 1910. (a) For activities in addition to the activities 
which may be carried out by States under section 1904(a)(1)(F), 
the Secretary may make grants to States or accredited schools 
of medicine in States to support a program of demonstration 
projects for the expansion and improvement of emergency medical 
services for children who need treatment for trauma or critical 
care. Any grant made under this subsection shall be for not 
more than a 4-year period (with an optional 5th year based on 
performance), subject to annual evaluation by the Secretary. 
Only 3 grants under this subsection may be made in a State (to 
a State or to a school of medicine in such State) in any fiscal 
year.
  (b) The Secretary may renew a grant made under subsection (a) 
for one additional one-year period only if the Secretary 
determines that renewal of such grant will provide significant 
benefits through the collection, analysis, and dissemination of 
information or data which will be useful to States in which 
grants under such subsection have not been made.
  (c) For purposes of this section--
          (1) the term ``school of medicine'' has the same 
        meaning as in section 701(4); and
          (2) the term ``accredited'' has the same meaning as 
        in section 701(5).
  (d) To carry out this section, there are authorized to be 
appropriated $2,000,000 for fiscal year 1985 and for each of 
the two succeeding fiscal years, $3,000,000 for fiscal year 
1989, $4,000,000 for fiscal year 1990, $5,000,000 for each of 
the fiscal years 1991 and 1992, such sums as may be necessary 
for each of the fiscal years 1993 through 2005, $25,000,000 for 
fiscal year 2010, $26,250,000 for fiscal year 2011, $27,562,500 
for fiscal year 2012, $28,940,625 for fiscal year 2013, 
$30,387,656 for fiscal year 2014, $20,213,000 for each of 
fiscal years 2015 through 2019, [and $22,334,000 for each of 
fiscal years 2020 through 2024] $22,334,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2020 through 2024, and $24,334,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2025 through 2029.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *