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H.R. 7801 116th Congress House

Pandemic Community Reserve and Public Health Response Act

Official title: To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to State, local, and Tribal public health departments to train and equip Federal public he… Show full official titleShow less

Official title: To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to State, local, and Tribal public health departments to train and equip Federal public health reserve corps personnel to assist with testing, contact tracing, and treatment of COVID-19, and for other purposes.

Introduced: August 7, 2020 See on congress.gov
Health Allied health servicesCardiovascular and respiratory healthCommunity life and organizationCongressional oversight
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Department of Homeland SecurityEducation programs fundingEmergency medical services and trauma careEmployment and training programsFederal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)Government employee pay, benefits, personnel managementHealth personnelHealth programs administration and fundingHealth promotion and preventive careHigher educationHospital careIndian social and development programsInfectious and parasitic diseasesMedical educationMedical tests and diagnostic methodsMilitary personnel and dependentsMinority employmentMinority healthNational Guard and reservesNursingSocial work, volunteer service, charitable organizationsUnemploymentVeterans' education, employment, rehabilitationYouth employment and child labor
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This bill died when the 116th Congress ended
It never became law before the 116th Congress (2019–2020) adjourned, and bills don't carry over to the next Congress. It would have to be reintroduced. You can still save it for reference, but it won't receive updates.
 Everywhere this bill has been 3 steps
Introduced
In committee
Reported out
Passed House
Passed Senate
To President
Became law
Jul 28, 2020
Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.
Jul 27, 2020
Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Education and Labor, Armed Services, and Transportation and Infrastructure, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Jul 27, 2020
Introduced in House
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 Latest action July 28, 2020

Referred to the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management.

 Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

Pandemic Community Reserve and Public Health Response Act

This bill directs the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to award grants and otherwise expand the federal public health reserve corps, including by reactivating retired personnel, to assist with COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) response efforts. This corps includes, among others, the Commissioned Corps of the U.S. Public Health Service, the Medical Reserve Corps, and certain personnel of the Federal Emergency Management Agency appointed to respond to disasters and emergencies.

Specifically, HHS must award grants to governmental health departments to recruit and train personnel to serve in the federal public health reserve corps and assist with COVID-19 testing, contact tracing, and treatment. To carry out these grants, health departments may establish partnerships with institutions that offer medical training and public health programs, giving priority to partnerships with historically Black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions. HHS must also develop a training program, in consultation with the Department of Defense, that addresses activation and surge capacity of the reserve corps to respond to COVID-19.

In addition, HHS must award grants, in consultation with the Department of Labor, to local workforce development boards to develop career plans and other activities to facilitate the transition of reserve corps personnel to other health-related occupations.

 Bill text 1 version

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

 Committees of jurisdiction 5
 Cosponsors 3
All 3 Democratic 2
D
Carson, André
Indiana · Aug 7, 2020
 D
Thompson, Bennie G.
Mississippi · Aug 7, 2020
ROYBAL-ALLARD, LUCILLE
· Jul 30, 2020
Cite this page click to expand
APA
U.S. Congress. (2026). H.R. 7801: Pandemic Community Reserve and Public Health Response Act. 116th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7801/
MLA
"H.R. 7801: Pandemic Community Reserve and Public Health Response Act." 116th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7801/.
Bluebook (legal)
H.R. 7801, 116th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7801/.
Markdown link
[H.R. 7801: Pandemic Community Reserve and Public Health Response Act](https://openamerica.io/bill/116-HR-7801/)
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