Sec. 3. Research On United States Health Care System’s Response To Long-Term Symptoms Of Covid–19
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The Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, shall conduct or support research related to the United States health care system’s response to long-term symptoms of COVID–19, including with respect to— the expansion and efficacy of post-infectious disease treatment, including— identifying obstacles to access for veterans, the elderly, disabled, and low-income communities; evaluating and identifying potential gaps or other weaknesses that bear on gender, geographic, racial and ethnic disparities on COVID–19 infection rates, severity and length of symptoms, and outcomes; identifying gaps in compliance with health care privacy and security rules; and evaluating whether diagnosis, access to, or treatment associated with medical providers and care delivered in different settings varied by gender, disability, geographic, racial and ethnic group; and conducting and support rapid turnaround research to— identify health care strategies that help mitigate gender, geographic, disability, racial and ethnic disparities in COVID–19 infection rates, severity and length of symptoms, secondary illnesses, and outcomes; identify health care-related factors contributing to such disparities in COVID–19 infection rates, hospitalizations, severity and length of disease, secondary illnesses, and outcomes; and provide recommendations on ensuring equity in diagnosis and access to quality post-infectious treatments that may be advanced to mitigate such disparities, going forward.
The Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, shall coordinate cross-agency engagement with leaders from communities with PASC, traditional health disparities and inequities and related post-viral illnesses overlapping with PASC— to develop protocols that ensure PASC patients have access to medical professionals educated about post-infectious disease and treatments; and to provide guidance on PASC diagnostics, treatments, and care that takes into account gender, geographic, racial and ethnic disparities.
There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2022 to carry out this section, which shall remain available until expended.