[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 121 (Tuesday, June 23, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37667-37668]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13492]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES


National Healthcare Preparedness Programs (NHPP); Single Source 
Cooperative Agreement to the American Red Cross

AGENCY: Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response 
(ASPR), Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The National Healthcare Preparedness Programs (NHPP) Branch of 
the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response 
(ASPR), in the Department of Health and Human Services intends to 
provide a Single Source Cooperative Agreement to the American Red 
Cross. The Cooperative Agreement will support the stability of the 
American Red Cross blood operations and humanitarian services during 
the COVID-19 pandemic. The total proposed cost of the Single Source 
Cooperative Agreement is not to exceed $118,000,000 for a total of 12 
months.

DATES: The period of performance is from June 22, 2020 to June 21, 
2021. The recipient may use a portion of the funding to retroactively 
compensate costs for preparedness activities undertaken since January 
20, 2020. The recipient must request retroactive compensation at the 
time of the application, and the request should contain the following 
information: Time period; line item budget for the period; and, 
narrative description of the COVID-19 preparedness activities. Award 
amount: Estimate $118,000,000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: [email protected], (202) 245-
0722.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The National Healthcare Preparedness Program 
(NHPP) Branch is the program office for this Cooperative Agreement:
    Single Source Justification: The American Red Cross is both the 
largest provider of blood products in the nation and the largest global 
humanitarian network, as well as a critical partner to the U.S. 
Government in bolstering the

[[Page 37668]]

strength of health care during national emergencies. The American Red 
Cross and NHPP will collaborate to maintain American Red Cross 
operations and support the nation's health care during the COVID-19 
pandemic. This collaboration will enable hospitals and other health 
care entities to meet demand for blood supply and avoid shortages of 
this lifesaving medical resource, as well as sustain the American Red 
Cross's disaster relief work, which provides supplies, financial 
assistance, food, and connections to health care providers to 
communities during large scale disasters. During this unprecedented 
outbreak, it is particularly important to maintain continuity of vital 
disaster relief operations and to preserve the strength of America's 
blood supply. The American Red Cross is facing increased costs--for 
example, for supplies and equipment related to infection control during 
blood donation operations. As the nation moves out of response and into 
recovery from COVID-19, it will be vital to maintain operations in 
order to ensure communities have uninterrupted access to the American 
Red Cross's frontline humanitarian services and to prevent health care 
from facing blood supply shortages at an already precarious time. There 
is no direct equivalent of the American Red Cross, which supported more 
than 97,300 households with recovery assistance and provided over 6.4 
million blood products to help patients in Fiscal Year 2019 and which 
is uniquely positioned to quickly respond to the demands of the health 
care system. Supporting collaboration between the U.S. Public Health 
Service and public and private community health programs and agencies 
to respond to health emergencies is an authority provided to HHS under 
section 311(c)(1) of the Public Health Service Act. Funding to respond 
to the coronavirus, including addressing the blood supply chain, is 
appropriated to HHS in the CARES Act. Collaboration with the American 
Red Cross has the potential to augment existing nationwide COVID-19 
community relief efforts, and to provide solutions and mitigate risks 
to the nation's blood supply. The dual protection of American Red 
Cross's humanitarian aid network and its blood operations, a piece of 
critical infrastructure for the United States health care system, is 
essential to ASPR's mission to save lives and protect Americans against 
21st century health security threats. By collaborating with the 
American Red Cross to meet new challenges and costs incurred by the 
COVID-19 pandemic, maintain blood supply and continuity of relief 
services, and strengthen partnerships between the American Red Cross 
and health care coalitions supported through NHPP's Hospital 
Preparedness Program, NHPP's goal for this cooperative agreement is for 
health care to be able to quickly draw upon a strong public-private 
partnership and humanitarian network to provide lifesaving medical care 
for Americans--now and in the future as the United States continues to 
recover from this pandemic event.

    Dated: June 18, 2020.
Robert P. Kadlec,
Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response.
[FR Doc. 2020-13492 Filed 6-22-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4150-37-P