Reopen America Act of 2020

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 6525 To provide the necessary Federal financial and logistical support so States can reopen their economies once periods of isolation have sufficiently reduced coronavirus infection and transmission rates, and with adequate testing and other safeguards to ensure infection rates do not exceed medical resources, and virus transmission rates are maintained below 1 and thereby steadily reduce the number of infected, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 17, 2020 Mr. RASKIN (for himself, Ms. SHALALA, Mr. JEFFRIES, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. WELCH, Mr. ALLRED, Mr. NEGUSE, Mr. TED LIEU of California, Mr. CICILLINE, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. MALINOWSKI, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. CISNEROS, Mr. DANNY K. DAVIS of Illinois, Mr. HASTINGS, Ms. NORTON, Mr. CA´RDENAS, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. TAKANO, Mrs. FLETCHER, Mr. LEVIN of Michigan, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, Mr. LOWENTHAL, Ms. ESCOBAR, Mr. CASTEN of Illinois, Ms. SCHRIER, Mr. GARCI´A of Illinois, Mr. SOTO, Mr. CASE, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Ms. HAALAND, Mr. CLAY, Mr. DEUTCH, Mr. MOULTON, Ms. MUCARSEL-POWELL, Mr. ROUDA, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. COX of California, Ms. PRESSLEY, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. UNDERWOOD, Mr. NADLER, Mr. RYAN, Mr. POCAN, Mrs. LAWRENCE, Mr. PETERS, and Mr. RUSH) intro- duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Armed Services, and Financial Services, 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 A BILL To provide the necessary Federal financial and logistical support so States can reopen their economies once peri- VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 6525 IH ods of isolation have sufficiently reduced coronavirus in- fection and transmission rates, and with adequate testing and other safeguards to ensure infection rates do not exceed medical resources, and virus transmission rates are maintained below 1 and thereby steadily reduce the number of infected, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; DEFINITIONS; FINDINGS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Reopen America Act of 2020’’. 5 (b) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act: 6 (1) The term ‘‘coronavirus’’ means SARS– 7 CoV–2. 8 (2) The term ‘‘Governor’’ means the chief exec- 9 utive officer of a State. 10 (3) The term ‘‘reopening plan’’ means a 11 coronavirus State economy reopening plan under 12 section 2. 13 (4) Except as otherwise specified, the term 14 ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of Health and 15 Human Services. 16 (5) The term ‘‘State’’ means any of the several 17 States, the District of Columbia, a Tribal govern- 18 ment, or a territory of the United States. 19 (c) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds the following: 20 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 6525 IH (1) The majority of States have imposed forms 1 of extreme social isolation, including strict limita- 2 tions on businesses and social behaviors, to reduce 3 coronavirus transmission rates and avoid cata- 4 strophic harms to health from infections. 5 (2) Despite the necessity of such economic and 6 social restrictions, it is critically important to the 7 economy of the United States to progressively loosen 8 these restrictions and to reopen economic and social 9 activity as soon and by as much as possible, but this 10 reopening must occur under conditions that ensure 11 infection transmission rates do not rise again, and 12 that infections do not overwhelm health services, 13 cause unnecessary deaths and illnesses, or neces- 14 sitate successive new rounds of social isolation. 15 (3) Planning and implementation of State safe- 16 guards will be critical to the achievement of success- 17 ful economic and social reopening. 18 (4) Large increases in test kits, machines, and 19 testing supplies and of protective gear and supplies 20 designed to limit disease transmission, are essential 21 to the implementation of reopening plans that do not 22 lead to unacceptable increases in transmission rates 23 and maximize the level and rate of economic reopen- 24 ing. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 6525 IH (5) Once effective treatments become proven, 1 quickly scaling up their production is also necessary 2 to save lives and to increase the capacity of the 3 country to remain open. 4 (6) Because of market uncertainties and the 5 limited time for production, the necessary level of 6 production will not occur without aggressive govern- 7 ment purchasing and market guaranties and 8 prioritization of necessary resources. 9 (7) It is in the public interest for the Federal 10 Government to assume the added costs of State re- 11 opening plans and to support such plans with nec- 12 essary technical support and coordinated procure- 13 ment and distribution of necessary supplies. 14 (8) Because extensive testing for coronavirus 15 protection will be a critical component of reopening 16 strategies, it is necessary for the Federal Govern- 17 ment to advance understanding of the capacities and 18 potential uses of different, and rapidly emerging, 19 tests. 20 SEC. 2. CORONAVIRUS STATE REOPENING PLANS AND 21 STATE PARTNERSHIP PROCUREMENT PLANS. 22 (a) SUBMISSION OF PLAN.—Any Governor of a State 23 may submit a reopening plan to the Secretary for the pur- 24 pose of allowing the maximum level of economic and social 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 6525 IH activity in the State while simultaneously achieving the 1 public health goals specified in subsection (c). 2 (b) FEDERAL REIMBURSEMENT.—Once per month, 3 or on a more frequent schedule as specified by the Sec- 4 retary— 5 (1) the Governor of a State with a reopening 6 plan with an approval in effect under subsection (d) 7 may submit for reimbursement the sum of covered 8 expenses of the State with appropriate documenta- 9 tion as specified by the Secretary; and 10 (2) the Secretary shall reimburse the State for 11 such covered expenses so long as the State is making 12 reasonable efforts to implement the plan. 13 (c) PUBLIC HEALTH GOALS.— 14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), a 15 reopening plan achieves the public health goals spec- 16 ified in this subsection if the plan provides reason- 17 able assurance that— 18 (A) infection and transmission rates at the 19 time of the commencement of reopening will not 20 exceed the capacity of local hospitals to safely 21 treat all patients using available treatment 22 methods without resorting to crisis standards of 23 care; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 6525 IH (B) sufficient safeguards will be imple- 1 mented— 2 (i) to keep transmission rates of 3 coronavirus below 1 within the State; and 4 (ii) to identify and take effective ac- 5 tions to curb local infection outbreaks be- 6 fore they lead to hospitalization rates that 7 exceed the capacity of local hospital serv- 8 ices to safely treat all patients without re- 9 sorting to crisis standards of care. 10 (2) SPECIAL RULE.—A reopening plan may 11 allow for some limited initial relaxation of social iso- 12 lation requirements even while infection rates are 13 above those specified in paragraph (1)(A) so long 14 as— 15 (A) the plan will keep transmission rates 16 below 1; and 17 (B) the limited initial relaxation will not 18 appreciably increase infection rates. 19 (d) PLAN APPROVAL.— 20 (1) IN GENERAL.—In consultation with the Sec- 21 retary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Health and 22 Human Services shall approve or disapprove any re- 23 opening plan submitted under subsection (a) within 24 5 business days of submission if— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 6525 IH (A) the plan provides reasonable assur- 1 ances of achieving the public health goals speci- 2 fied in subsection (c); 3 (B) the plan includes appropriate docu- 4 mentation as specified by the Secretary, includ- 5 ing the contents required by subsection (e); and 6 (C) the actions identified in the plan are 7 not clearly excessive for achieving the public 8 health goals specified in subsection (c). 9 (2) RESUBMISSION.—If the Secretary dis- 10 approves a reopening plan, or any revision of a re- 11 opening plan— 12 (A) the Secretary shall provide an expla- 13 nation of the disapproval to the Governor sub- 14 mitting the plan or revision; and 15 (B) the Governor of the State involved 16 may— 17 (i) consult the Secretary concerning 18 the changes to the plan or revision needed 19 for approval; and 20 (ii) revise and resubmit as many times 21 as needed to obtain approval. 22 (3) REVISIONS.—A Governor may submit revi- 23 sions to the reopening plan of the respective State 24 as circumstances evolve, and the Secretary shall ap- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 6525 IH prove or disapprove each such revision within 5 busi- 1 ness days of submission. 2 (4) DEEMED APPROVED.—A reopening plan or 3 a revision to a reopening plan shall be deemed to be 4 approved if the Secretary fails to approve or dis- 5 approve the plan or revision within 5 business days 6 of submission. 7 (5) EXPENSES.—In approving a reopening 8 plan, the Secretary may preapprove a proposed 9 schedule of reimbursements for covered expenses in 10 agreement with the Governor. If an expense schedule 11 is not preagreed, the Governor may carry out the 12 plan and obtain reimbursement for the reasonable 13 cost of covered expenses. No reimbursement shall 14 occur for goods and services provided directly to a 15 State or territory by the Coronavirus Health Equip- 16 ment Production Board. In the case of a dispute, a 17 Governor may seek review of the Secretary’s reim- 18 bursement decision in the United States Court of 19 Federal Claims. 20 (e) CONTENTS.— 21 (1) IN GENERAL.—A reopening plan shall speci- 22 fy— 23 (A) the level and timing of the relaxation 24 of social distancing rules adopted in 2020 in 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 6525 IH the State to reduce the risk of coronavirus in- 1 fections; 2 (B) the replacement measures the State 3 will take; and 4 (C) the reopening safeguards the State will 5 impose to limit coronavirus infections. 6 (2) REOPENING SAFEGUARDS.—A reopening 7 plan shall specify safeguards to achieve the public 8 health goals specified in subsection (c). Such safe- 9 guards may include any of the following: 10 (A) Testing, including publicly adminis- 11 tered testing, employment-based testing require- 12 ments, mobile testing programs, school-based 13 testing, or other testing requirements for social 14 activities, and group testing. 15 (B) Requirements for wearing of masks 16 and other protective gear in employment and 17 social activities, including requirements that 18 vary by type of work, by risk factors of individ- 19 uals, and by activities such as use of mass tran- 20 sit. 21 (C) Requirements for public or private 22 temperature readings or other simple screenings 23 for coronavirus infections, and follow-up re- 24 quirements for testing or isolation. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 6525 IH (D) Demonstrated public procedures, rules, 1 personnel, and other resources and capacities 2 for identifying infected individuals, tracing and 3 testing their contacts, and quarantining in- 4 fected individuals. 5 (E) The types of activities reopened, condi- 6 tions of reopening, and timing of reopening. 7 (F) Increases in medical capacities and 8 ability to shift capacities to address local out- 9 breaks. 10 (3) EVIDENCE OF ADEQUACY.—A reopening 11 plan shall include the analysis of public health and 12 other scientific experts used to assess the adequacy 13 of the plan for achieving the public health goals 14 specified in subsection (c), and such other informa- 15 tion as the Secretary shall, within 10 business days 16 of the date of enactment of this Act, require to be 17 included. 18 (f) STATE PARTNERSHIP PROCUREMENT PLANS.— 19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Prior to and in conjunction 20 with submission of a reopening plan, Governors of 21 two or more States may submit a State Partnership 22 Procurement Plan to obtain Federal financing of 23 State agreements with suppliers to increase produc- 24 tion and thereby to more reliably assure a level of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 02:09 Apr 22, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6525.IH H6525 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 6525 IH testing or other goods and services that would be 1 valuable for carrying out the reopening plans of such 2 States. 3 (2) REVIEW AND ADMINISTRATION.—A State 4 Partnership Procurement Plan shall be approved by 5 the Secretary in consultation with the Secretary of 6 the Treasury if it will reasonably contribute to the 7 implementation of the State reopening plans. In re- 8 viewing such a State Partnership Procurement Plan 9 for approval, and in reimbursing States for the costs 10 of such plans, the Secretary shall follow the proce- 11 dures set forth in paragraphs (2) through (5) of 12 subsection (d). 13 (3) FEMA.—The Administrator of the Federal 14 Emergency Management Agency shall work with 15 States, if requested, in the development and carrying 16 out of procurement plans under paragraph (1). 17 (g) REPORTING.—Every two weeks, or on such sched- 18 ule as the Secretary may specify, the Governor of a State 19 with an approved reopening plan shall provide to the Sec- 20 retary such information as necessary and as specified by 21 the Secretary to assess whether implementation of the 22 plan is achieving the public health goals speci [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]