Anti-Racism in Public Health Act of 2023

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2904 To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for public health research and investment into understanding and eliminating structural racism and police violence. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 26, 2023 Ms. PRESSLEY (for herself, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. SAR- BANES, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Mr. TAKANO, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. GARCI´A of Illi- nois, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. WASSERMAN SCHULTZ, Ms. MATSUI, Ms. BUSH, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. WILSON of Flor- ida, Ms. NORTON, Ms. CROCKETT, Ms. SEWELL, Ms. VELA´ZQUEZ, Mrs. CHERFILUS-MCCORMICK, Ms. STANSBURY, Mr. BOWMAN, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. POCAN, Mrs. MCCLELLAN, Mr. NADLER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. IVEY, Mr. SOTO, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. SMITH of Washington, Ms. MENG, Mr. TORRES of New York, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. VARGAS, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Ms. BROWN, Mr. CARSON, Ms. CASTOR of Florida, and Ms. OMAR) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for public health research and investment into understanding and eliminating structural racism and police violence. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 2904 IH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Anti-Racism in Public 2 Health Act of 2023’’. 3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 4 In this Act: 5 (1) ANTIRACISM.—The term ‘‘antiracism’’ is a 6 collection of antiracist policies that lead to racial eq- 7 uity, and are substantiated by antiracist ideas. 8 (2) ANTIRACIST.—The term ‘‘antiracist’’ is any 9 measure that produces or sustains racial equity be- 10 tween racial groups. 11 SEC. 3. PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH AND INVESTMENT IN 12 DISMANTLING STRUCTURAL RACISM. 13 Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act 14 (42 U.S.C. 243 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 15 the following: 16 ‘‘SEC. 320B. NATIONAL CENTER ON ANTIRACISM AND 17 HEALTH. 18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 19 ‘‘(1) NATIONAL CENTER.—There is established 20 within the Centers for Disease Control and Preven- 21 tion a center to be known as the ‘National Center 22 on Antiracism and Health’ (referred to in this sec- 23 tion as the ‘Center’). The Director of the Centers for 24 Disease Control and Prevention shall appoint a di- 25 rector to head the Center who has experience living 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 3 •HR 2904 IH in and working with racial and ethnic minority com- 1 munities. The Center shall promote public health 2 by— 3 ‘‘(A) declaring racism a public health crisis 4 and naming racism as an historical and present 5 threat to the physical and mental health and 6 well-being of the United States and world; 7 ‘‘(B) aiming to develop new knowledge in 8 the science and practice of antiracism, including 9 by identifying the mechanisms by which racism 10 operates in the provision of health care and in 11 systems that impact health and well-being; 12 ‘‘(C) transferring that knowledge into 13 practice, including by developing interventions 14 that dismantle the mechanisms of racism and 15 replace such mechanisms with equitable struc- 16 tures, policies, practices, norms, and values so 17 that a healthy society can be realized; and 18 ‘‘(D) contributing to a national and global 19 conversation regarding the impacts of racism on 20 the health and well-being of the United States 21 and world. 22 ‘‘(2) GENERAL DUTIES.—The Secretary, acting 23 through the Center, shall undertake activities to 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 4 •HR 2904 IH carry out the mission of the Center as described in 1 paragraph (1), such as the following: 2 ‘‘(A) Conduct research into, collect, ana- 3 lyze and make publicly available data on, and 4 provide leadership and coordination for the 5 science and practice of antiracism, the public 6 health impacts of structural racism, and the ef- 7 fectiveness of intervention strategies to address 8 these impacts. Topics of research and data col- 9 lection under this subparagraph may include 10 identifying and understanding— 11 ‘‘(i) policies and practices that have a 12 disparate impact on the health and well- 13 being of communities of color; 14 ‘‘(ii) the public health impacts of im- 15 plicit racial bias, White supremacy, weath- 16 ering, xenophobia, discrimination, and 17 prejudice; 18 ‘‘(iii) the social determinants of health 19 resulting from structural racism, including 20 poverty, housing, employment, political 21 participation, and environmental factors; 22 and 23 ‘‘(iv) the intersection of racism and 24 other systems of oppression, including as 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 5 •HR 2904 IH related to age, sexual orientation, gender 1 identity, and disability status. 2 ‘‘(B) Award noncompetitive grants and co- 3 operative agreements to eligible public and non- 4 profit private entities, including State, local, 5 territorial, and Tribal health agencies and orga- 6 nizations, for the research and collection, anal- 7 ysis, and reporting of data on the topics de- 8 scribed in subparagraph (A). 9 ‘‘(C) Establish, through grants or coopera- 10 tive agreements, at least 3 regional centers of 11 excellence, located in racial and ethnic minority 12 communities, in antiracism for the purpose of 13 developing new knowledge in the science and 14 practice of antiracism in health by researching, 15 understanding, and identifying the mechanisms 16 by which racism operates in the health space, 17 racial and ethnic inequities in health care ac- 18 cess and outcomes, the history of successful 19 antiracist movements in health, and other 20 antiracist public health work. 21 ‘‘(D) Establish a clearinghouse within the 22 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 23 the collection and storage of data generated 24 under the programs implemented under this 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 6 •HR 2904 IH section for which there is not an otherwise ex- 1 isting surveillance system at the Centers for 2 Disease Control and Prevention. Such data 3 shall— 4 ‘‘(i) be comprehensive and disaggre- 5 gated, to the extent practicable, by includ- 6 ing racial, ethnic, primary language, sex, 7 gender identity, sexual orientation, age, so- 8 cioeconomic status, and disability dispari- 9 ties; 10 ‘‘(ii) be made publicly available; 11 ‘‘(iii) protect the privacy of individuals 12 whose information is included in such data; 13 and 14 ‘‘(iv) comply with privacy protections 15 under the regulations promulgated under 16 section 264(c) of the Health Insurance 17 Portability and Accountability Act of 1996. 18 ‘‘(E) Provide information and education to 19 the public on the public health impacts of struc- 20 tural racism and on antiracist public health 21 interventions. 22 ‘‘(F) Consult with other Centers and Na- 23 tional Institutes within the Centers for Disease 24 Control and Prevention, including the Office of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 7 •HR 2904 IH Minority Health and Health Equity and the 1 Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial 2 Support, to ensure that scientific and pro- 3 grammatic activities initiated by the agency 4 consider structural racism in their designs, 5 conceptualizations, and executions, which shall 6 include— 7 ‘‘(i) putting measures of racism in 8 population-based surveys; 9 ‘‘(ii) establishing a Federal Advisory 10 Committee on racism and health for the 11 Centers for Disease Control and Preven- 12 tion; 13 ‘‘(iii) developing training programs, 14 curricula, and seminars for the purposes of 15 training public health professionals and re- 16 searchers around issues of race, racism, 17 and antiracism; 18 ‘‘(iv) providing standards and best 19 practices for programming and grant re- 20 cipient compliance with Federal data col- 21 lection standards, including section 4302 22 of the Patient Protection and Affordable 23 Care Act; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 8 •HR 2904 IH ‘‘(v) establishing leadership and stake- 1 holder councils with experts and leaders in 2 racism and public health disparities. 3 ‘‘(G) Coordinate with the Indian Health 4 Service and with the Centers for Disease Con- 5 trol and Prevention’s Tribal Advisory Com- 6 mittee to ensure meaningful Tribal consulta- 7 tion, the gathering of information from Tribal 8 authorities, and respect for Tribal data sov- 9 ereignty. 10 ‘‘(H) Engage in government to government 11 consultation with Indian Tribes and Tribal or- 12 ganizations. 13 ‘‘(I) At least every 2 years, produce and 14 publicly post on the Centers for Disease Control 15 and Prevention’s website a report on antiracist 16 activities completed by the Center, which may 17 include newly identified antiracist public health 18 practices. 19 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 20 is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec- 21 essary to carry out this section.’’. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 9 •HR 2904 IH SEC. 4. PUBLIC HEALTH RESEARCH AND INVESTMENT IN 1 POLICE VIOLENCE. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 3 Human Services shall establish within the National Center 4 for Injury Prevention and Control of the Centers for Dis- 5 ease Control and Prevention (referred to in this section 6 as the ‘‘Center’’) a law enforcement violence prevention 7 program. 8 (b) GENERAL DUTIES.—In implementing the pro- 9 gram under subsection (a), the Center shall conduct re- 10 search into, and provide leadership and coordination for— 11 (1) the understanding and promotion of knowl- 12 edge about the public health impacts of uses of force 13 by law enforcement, including police brutality and 14 violence; 15 (2) developing public health interventions and 16 perspectives for eliminating deaths, injury, trauma, 17 and negative mental health effects from police pres- 18 ence and interactions, including police brutality and 19 violence; and 20 (3) ensuring comprehensive data collection, 21 analysis, and reporting regarding police violence and 22 misconduct in consultation with the Department of 23 Justice and independent researchers. 24 (c) FUNCTIONS.—Under the program under sub- 25 section (a), the Center shall— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 10 •HR 2904 IH (1) summarize and enhance the knowledge of 1 the distribution, status, and characteristics of law 2 enforcement-related death, trauma, and injury; 3 (2) conduct research and prepare, with the as- 4 sistance of State public health departments— 5 (A) statistics on law enforcement-related 6 death, injury, and brutality; 7 (B) studies of the factors, including legal, 8 socioeconomic, discrimination, and other factors 9 that correlate with or influence police brutality; 10 (C) public information about uses of force 11 by law enforcement, including police brutality 12 and violence, for the practical use of the public 13 health community, including publications that 14 synthesize information relevant to the national 15 goal of understanding police violence and meth- 16 ods for its control; 17 (D) information to identify socioeconomic 18 groups, communities, and geographic areas in 19 need of study, and a strategic plan for research 20 necessary to comprehend the extent and nature 21 of police uses of force by law enforcement, in- 22 cluding police brutality and violence, and deter- 23 mine what options exist to reduce or eradicate 24 death and injury that result; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 11 •HR 2904 IH (E) best practices in police violence preven- 1 tion in other countries; 2 (3) award grants, contracts, and cooperative 3 agreements to provide for the conduct of epidemio- 4 logic research on uses of force by law enforcement, 5 including police brutality and violence, by Federal, 6 State, local, and private agencies, institutions, orga- 7 nizations, and individuals; 8 (4) award grants, contracts, and cooperative 9 agreements to community groups, independent re- 10 search organizations, academic institutions, and 11 other entities to support, execute, or conduct re- 12 search on interventions to reduce or eliminate uses 13 of force by law enforcement, including police bru- 14 tality and violence; 15 (5) coordinate with the Department of Justice, 16 and other Federal, State, and local agencies on the 17 standardization of data collection, storage, and re- 18 trieval necessary to collect, evaluate, analyze, and 19 disseminate information about the extent and nature 20 of uses of force by law enforcement, including police 21 brutality and violence, as well as options for the 22 eradication of such practices; 23 (6) submit an annual report to Congress on re- 24 search findings with recommendations to improve 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2904.IH H2904 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 12 •HR 2904 IH data collection and standardization and to disrupt 1 processes in policing that preserve and reinforce rac- 2 ism and racial disparities in public health; 3 (7) conduct primary research and explore uses 4 of force by law enforcement, including police bru- 5 tality and violence, and options for its control; and 6 (8) study alternatives to law enforcement re- 7 sponse as a method of reducing police violence. 8 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 9 authorized to be appropriated, such sums as may be nec- 10 essary to carry out this section. 11 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Apr 28, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 630 [Text truncated for display. 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