[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2634 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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114th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 2634
To establish an interagency One Health Program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
March 3, 2016
Mr. Franken introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish an interagency One Health Program, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``One Health Act of 2016''.
SEC. 2. INTERAGENCY ONE HEALTH PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--The President, acting through the National Science
and Technology Council, shall coordinate and support a national,
interagency One Health Program to address infectious diseases in
animals and the environment, and to help prevent the transmission of
known and emerging infectious diseases between animal populations and
human populations.
(b) National One Health Framework.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Science
and Technology Policy, in cooperation with the National Science
and Technology Council, shall develop and submit to Congress a
One Health Framework (referred to in this section as the
``framework'') for coordinated Federal activities under the One
Health Program.
(2) Contents of framework.--The framework described in
paragraph (1) shall describe existing efforts and contain
recommendations for building upon and complementing the
activities of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of
Agriculture, the United States Agency for International
Development, the Environmental Protection Agency, the National
Institutes of Health, the Department of Homeland Security, the
Department of the Interior, and other departments and agencies,
as appropriate, and shall--
(A) identify and describe, as appropriate,
activities of Federal agencies and departments under
the One Health Program;
(B) for the 10-year period beginning in the year
the framework is submitted, establish Federal goals and
priorities that most effectively advance--
(i) scientific understanding of the
connections between human, animal, and
environmental health; and
(ii) workforce development to prevent and
respond to zoonotic disease outbreaks in
animals and humans;
(C) describe specific activities required to
achieve the goals and priorities described in
subparagraph (B), such as competitive research grant
programs, training and support for scientists,
engagement of nongovernmental entities, and
participation in international collaborations and
research efforts;
(D) identify and expand partnerships among Federal
agencies, States, academic institutions,
nongovernmental organizations, and private entities in
order to develop new approaches for reducing hazards to
human health from animal and environmental sources and
to strengthen understanding of the value of an
integrated approach under the One Health Program to
addressing public health threats in a manner that
prevents duplication; and
(E) provide recommendations to Congress regarding
additional action or legislation that may be required
to assist in establishing the One Health Program.
SEC. 3. NATIONAL ONE HEALTH INITIATIVE.
(a) Establishment.--As part of the interagency One Health Program,
in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
the Food and Drug Administration, the Department of Agriculture, the
United States Agency for International Development, the Environmental
Protection Agency, the National Institutes of Health, the Department of
Homeland Security, the Department of the Interior, and other
departments and agencies, as appropriate, the President, acting through
the One Health Program shall establish a One Health Initiative to
coordinate and implement research and field activities of the Federal
Government related to the role of animals and the environment in human
health, as described in subsection (b).
(b) Activities.--Under the One Health Initiative established under
subsection (a), members of the One Health Program shall provide support
for activities in furtherance of the goals and priorities under the One
Health Framework described in section 2(b), including through--
(1) entering into cooperative agreements with, and awarding
grants to, public or private entities, including States,
nongovernmental entities, academic institutions, nonprofit
organizations, and privately funded philanthropic organizations
in order to cover all or part of the costs associated with
establishing or strengthening efforts described in the One
Health Initiative; and
(2) awarding grants to States for the purpose of
establishing One Health national centers of excellence, with
preference given to States that match Federal grant funds with
State funds or funds obtained through State partnerships with
private entities, academic institutions, or nonprofit
organizations.
(c) One Health National Centers of Excellence.--Centers of
excellence established under subsection (b)(2) shall carry out
activities of the type described in the One Health Framework under
section 2(b), including supporting One Health workforce training and
bringing together the animal, environmental, and human health workforce
to coordinate disease surveillance and prevention efforts.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--
(1) In general.--To carry out the One Health Initiative
under this section, there are authorized to be appropriated
$50,000,000 for the period of fiscal years 2016 through 2020.
(2) Allocation of funds.--Of the amounts appropriated under
paragraph (1), not less than 50 percent shall be allocated to
supporting the national centers of excellence under subsection
(b)(2).
SEC. 4. LEVERAGING INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT.
In carrying out section 2, the President shall direct
representatives of the United States to appropriate international
bodies, including the multilateral development banks, the World Health
Organization, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United
Nations, and the World Organization for Animal Health, to use the
influence of the United States, consistent with the broad development
goals of the United States, to advocate that each such body--
(1) commit to adopting approaches consistent with the One
Health Initiative under section 3 to address animal and
environmental sources of public health threats prior to their
introduction into human populations, including increased
coordination and collaboration between human, animal, and
environmental health officials;
(2) provide technical assistance to the regulatory
authorities of governments to remove unnecessary barriers to
investment in programs similar to the One Health Initiative
programs under section 3; and
(3) utilize clear, accountable, and metric-based targets,
consistent with the Global Health Security Agenda, to measure
the effectiveness of such initiatives.
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