The publication is reproduced in full below:
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SECURING AMERICA'S VACCINES FOR EMERGENCIES ACT OF 2021
Mr. CLEAVER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3146) to amend the Defense Production Act of 1950 to ensure the supply of certain medical materials essential to national defense, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 3146
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 ``Securing America's Vaccines for Emergencies Act of 2021'' or the ``SAVE Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. SECURING ESSENTIAL MEDICAL MATERIALS.
(a) Statement of Policy.--Section 2(b) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4502) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) through (8) as paragraphs (4) through (9), respectively; and
(2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
``(3) authorities under this Act should be used when appropriate to ensure the availability of medical materials essential to national defense, including through measures designed to secure the drug supply chain, and taking into consideration the importance of United States competitiveness, scientific leadership and cooperation, and innovative capacity;''.
(b) Strengthening Domestic Capability.--Section 107 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4517) is amended--
(1) in subsection (a), by inserting ``(including medical materials)'' after ``materials''; and
(2) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting ``(including medical materials such as drugs, devices, and biological products to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent disease that are essential to national defense)'' after ``essential materials''.
(c) Strategy on Securing Supply Chains for Medical Materials.--Title I of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4511 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 109. STRATEGY ON SECURING SUPPLY CHAINS FOR MEDICAL
MATERIALS.
``(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this section, the President, in consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the Secretary of Defense, shall transmit a strategy to the appropriate Members of Congress that includes the following:
``(1) A detailed plan to use the authorities under this title and title III, or any other provision of law, to ensure the supply of medical materials (including drugs, devices, and biological products (as that term is defined in section 351 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262)) to diagnose, cure, mitigate, treat, or prevent disease) essential to national defense, to the extent necessary for the purposes of this Act.
``(2) An analysis of vulnerabilities to existing supply chains for such medical materials, and recommendations to address the vulnerabilities.
``(3) Measures to be undertaken by the President to diversify such supply chains, as appropriate and as required for national defense.
``(4) A discussion of--
``(A) any significant effects resulting from the plan and measures described in this subsection on the production, cost, or distribution of biological products (as that term is defined in section 351 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262)) or any other devices or drugs (as defined under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 301 et. seq.));
``(B) a timeline to ensure that essential components of the supply chain for medical materials are not under the exclusive control of a foreign government in a manner that the President determines could threaten the national defense of the United States; and
``(C) efforts to mitigate any risks resulting from the plan and measures described in this subsection to United States competitiveness, scientific leadership, and innovative capacity, including efforts to cooperate and proactively engage with United States allies.
``(b) Progress Report.--Following submission of the strategy under subsection (a), the President shall submit to the appropriate Members of Congress an annual progress report until September 30, 2025, evaluating the implementation of the strategy, and may include updates to the strategy as appropriate. The strategy and progress reports shall be submitted in unclassified form but may contain a classified annex.
``(c) Appropriate Members of Congress.--The term
`appropriate Members of Congress' means the Speaker, majority leader, and minority leader of the House of Representatives, the majority leader and minority leader of the Senate, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives, and the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate.''.
SEC. 3. INVESTMENT IN SUPPLY CHAIN SECURITY.
(a) In General.--Section 303 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4533) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(h) Investment in Supply Chain Security.--
``(1) In general.--In addition to other authorities in this title, the President may make available to an eligible entity described in paragraph (2) payments to increase the security of supply chains and supply chain activities, if the President certifies to Congress not less than 30 days before making such a payment that the payment is critical to meet national defense requirements of the United States.
``(2) Eligible entity.--An eligible entity described in this paragraph is an entity that--
``(A) is organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States; and
``(B) produces--
``(i) one or more critical components;
``(ii) critical technology; or
``(iii) one or more products or raw materials for the security of supply chains or supply chain activities.
``(3) Definitions.--In this subsection, the terms `supply chain' and `supply chain activities' have the meanings given those terms by the President by regulation.''.
(b) Regulations.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall prescribe regulations setting forth definitions for the terms ``supply chain'' and ``supply chain activities'' for the purposes of section 303(h) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4533(h)), as added by subsection (a).
(2) Scope of definitions.--The definitions required by paragraph (1)--
(A) shall encompass--
(i) the organization, people, activities, information, and resources involved in the delivery and operation of a product or service used by the Government; or
(ii) critical infrastructure as defined in Presidential Policy Directive 21 (February 12, 2013; relating to critical infrastructure security and resilience); and
(B) may include variations as determined necessary and appropriate by the President for purposes of national defense.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Cleaver) and the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Hill) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Missouri.
General Leave
Mr. CLEAVER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on this legislation and to insert extraneous material thereon.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Missouri?
There was no objection.
Mr. CLEAVER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3146, the Securing America's Vaccines for Emergencies Act of 2021, introduced by my colleague, Mr. French Hill.
The COVID-19 pandemic has clearly demonstrated that ensuring the availability of the essential medical supplies, articles, and equipment to fight disease is essential to our national defense. This bill would better equip us to respond to the current pandemic, as well as future public health emergencies, by amending the Defense Production Act of 1950, to ensure that the definition of national defense includes the availability of medical articles.
H.R. 3146 strengthens our ability to respond to public health emergencies through measures designed to secure the drug supply chain. Specifically, the bill requires the development of a strategy on securing supply chains for medical articles. This includes reporting to Congress on an analysis of existing supply chain vulnerabilities for medical articles and recommendations to address these vulnerabilities, including measures to diversify supply chains and other efforts to mitigate risk, while promoting American competitiveness, scientific leadership, and industrial innovation in this area.
This bill will also provide for investment in supply chain security for eligible entities if the President certifies to Congress that such an investment is important to meet the national defense needs of the United States.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Hill for his work in ensuring that we, as a country, learn the lessons from this COVID-19 pandemic and are better prepared to respond to the next public health emergency because of this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3146, the Securing America's Vaccines for Emergencies Act, the SAVE Act. I want to thank my friend from California, Juan Vargas, a colleague on the House Financial Services Committee, for our collaboration on looking at the Defense Production Act--we are going to talk about it today--and how we could improve it for better preparing the United States for a global pandemic.
The SAVE Act amends that Defense Production Act to protect medical supplies for Americans by bolstering our supply chain during times of crisis. The Defense Production Act, as my friend, Mr. Cleaver, noted, was first signed into law by President Truman in 1950 in response to a shortage of materials during the Korean conflict.
Designed to incentivize production, avoid inflation, and, as I say, boost goods critical for the national defense, the DPA successfully brought American manufacturing to the forefront at the battle at hand at that time.
Initially, the Defense Production Act, as you can tell by its name, was used in response for military needs, but over time the United States Congress has expanded it to other areas considered essential to national defense, and those include critical responses to national emergencies.
When President Truman signed the DPA, he shared: It is your fight, the fight of all of us, and it can be won only if all of us in the fight can fight it together. At that time, he was saying that in response to the Korean conflict, but this quote still resonates with us now the same way as it did so long ago.
A little over a year ago, our country faced another nationwide crisis that called on the need for the Defense Production Act to be placed in the American spotlight. In response to a global health crisis, America experienced shortages of necessary medical supplies, basically overnight.
Supply chains were tested like never before, and it became increasingly clear that America needed to do something different in order to respond to the alarming increase in demand for medical gloves, N95 masks, and ventilators.
In my home State of Arkansas, our hospitals had medical materials stacked from floor to ceiling stamped ``Made in China.'' And much of those supplies, Mr. Speaker, in the PPE category ended up rejected and put in a dumpster because they did not meet the quality standards; they were out of compliance.
Our national and State emergency stockpiles were prepared for a localized outbreak, not a national 50-State pandemic. Fortunately, President Trump invoked the Defense Production Act, which allowed for greater domestic manufacturing of these necessary medical supplies. And while that was taking effect, the hospitals and our great Arkansas business, academic, and medical community banded together to be able to coordinate critical supply purchases, and even locally, manufacture badly needed face shields to protect patients and health professionals alike.
Even more alarming than the lack of supplies might be our reliance on countries, particularly China, for basic pharmaceutical components. Our Nation must develop a strategy to diversify our supply chain to ensure that we are not in that same short supply situation in the future. In my view, last spring, Mr. Speaker, we were caught without such critical planning.
That is why I introduced the SAVE Act in April of last year when we were first responding to these challenges, and I am pleased to have reintroduced it this year with my friend and colleague, Congressman Vargas. This bill amends the DPA to ensure that medical materials are within that Defense Production Act scope.
While all of us hope that we are nearing the finish line of COVID-19, we cannot forget about the shortages that we once faced, because the reality is, unfortunately, perhaps likely, this country will face the same situation again.
This bill allows us to be better prepared for that future, whether it be in the short, medium, or long run. It will allow us to diversify supply chains that are required for our national defense. It will permit the United States to be less reliant on foreign countries like China for critical PPE or, most importantly, pharmaceutical ingredients or other medical products.
The SAVE Act requires a national strategy and progress reports on the diversification of that essential medical supply chain. At the same time, it makes explicit that our strategy needs to take into account cooperation with our allies. We must maintain a strong trading environment that fosters continued innovation. Making critical supply chains more resilient doesn't mean closing ourselves off from our friends around the world in partnership on these important items.
Just to cite one example, Mr. Speaker, the Pfizer vaccine against COVID-19 consists of 280 components sourced from 86 sites across 19 countries. International cooperation makes treatments like this possible. But we must ensure these items don't fall under the exclusive control of an adversary. My legislation will help prevent that.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support the SAVE Act, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CLEAVER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Vargas).
Mr. VARGAS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support my good friend, Representative Hill's, SAVE Act, H.R. 3146. As my good friend from Arkansas said, I am proud to be the lead cosponsor of this bill. The tailored focus on this bill on the supply chain portion of the Defense Production Act will help us in future preparedness for public health emergencies.
Among other things, it requires a detailed plan from the President to secure the medical material supply chain. Additionally, it amends the DPA, the Defense Production Act, to include medical materials among critical materials for which the supply chain must be secured.
As my good friend knows, we need to be prepared not only for this pandemic, unfortunately, for other medical emergencies that may come. We have heard that we may be entering an era of pandemics and we must be prepared.
Mr. Speaker, I thank my good friend from Arkansas for his leadership, and I urge a ``yes'' vote on this bill's passage.
Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from California, Mr. Vargas. We will be talking about this when we discuss his bill in a few minutes. We have collaborated on this, and it is about planning, it is about a strategy, it is about not being caught at low tide with no bathing suit, and that is what this country needs is a better strategy.
President Bush warned us of that after he studied this issue when he was President. The stockpiles are important. Our FEMA planning is important. But our medical supply chain and those critical components are critical to the health and safety of our country. It is critical to our ability to defend ourselves, and hence, an appropriate amendment to the Defense Production Act.
Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I urge a ``yes'' vote on both sides of the aisle, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. CLEAVER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, this time last year we watched as our brave healthcare workers struggled all over this country to respond to the mounting COVID-19 crisis, often with inadequate personal protective equipment and limited medical supplies.
This bill ensures that we can direct our significant scientific innovation and industrial capacity towards ensuring essential medical supplies are readily available, and that our supply chains are resilient in the face of threats to our collective health and well-
being.
Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank Mr. Hill for his work on this important issue, and I urge all of my colleagues to vote ``yes.'' I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Cleaver) that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3146.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________
SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 86
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