Sec. 101. Office of Health Security

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The Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( 6 U.S.C. 101 et seq. ) is amended— in section 103 ( 6 U.S.C. 113 )— in subsection (a)(2), by striking Assistant Secretary for Health Affairs, the Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs, and inserting Assistant Secretary for Legislative Affairs ; and in subsection (d), by adding at the end the following new paragraph: A Chief Medical Officer. ; by adding at the end the following new title: ; by redesignating section 1931 ( 6 U.S.C. 597 ) as section 2301 and transferring such section, as so redesignated, to appear after the heading for title XXIII, as added by paragraph (2); in section 2301, as so redesignated and transferred— by amending the section heading to read as follows: ;

Office of Health Security by amending subsection

(a)to read as follows: There is in the Department an Office of Health Security. ; by amending subsection

(b)to read as follows: The Office of Health Security shall be headed by a Chief Medical Officer (in this title referred to as the Chief Medical Officer ), who shall be at the level of Assistant Secretary within the Department. The Chief Medical Officer shall— be appointed by the President pursuant to section 103(d); be a licensed physician possessing a demonstrated ability in and knowledge of medicine and public health; and report directly to the Secretary. ; in subsection (c)— in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking medical issues related to natural disasters, acts of terrorism, and other man-made disasters, including— and inserting medical, public health, and workforce health and safety matters, including issues related to— ; in paragraph (1), by striking the Secretary, the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Assistant Secretary, and other Department officials and inserting the Secretary and all other Department officials ; in paragraph (4), by striking and after the semicolon; by redesignating paragraph

(5)as paragraph (11); and by inserting after paragraph

(4)the following new paragraphs: delivering, advising, and supporting— direct patient care; and the organization, management, and staffing of component operations that deliver direct patient care; advising the Secretary and the head of each component of the Department that delivers direct patient care regarding— knowledge and skill standards for medical personnel and the assessment of such knowledge and skill; the collection, storage, and oversight of medical records; and contracts for the delivery of direct patient care, other medical services, and medical supplies; advising the head of each component of the Department that delivers direct patient care regarding the recruitment and appointment of a component chief medical officer, or, as the case may be, the employee who functions in the capacity of a component chief medical officer; with respect to preparation and response for pandemics, ensuring the protection of the workforce of the Department, with an emphasis on front line workers most at risk, through— health security planning; and provision of subject matter and planning expertise to the Chief Readiness Support Officer of the Department regarding stockpiling and distribution of supplies, including adequate personal protective equipment; with respect to any psychological health counseling or assistance program of the Department, including such a program of a law enforcement, operational, or support component of the Department, advising the head of each such component with such a program regarding— ensuring such program includes safeguards against adverse action, including automatic referrals for a fitness for duty examination, by such component with respect to any employee solely because such employee self-identifies a need for psychological health counseling or assistance or receives such counseling or assistance; increasing the availability and number of local psychological health professionals with experience providing psychological support services to personnel; establishing a behavioral health curriculum for employees at the beginning of their careers to provide resources early regarding the importance of psychological health; establishing periodic management training on crisis intervention and such component’s psychological health counseling or assistance program; improving any associated existing employee peer support programs, including by making additional training and resources available for peer support personnel in the workplace across such component; developing and implementing a voluntary alcohol treatment program that includes a safe harbor for employees who seek treatment; prioritizing, as appropriate, expertise in the provision of psychological health counseling and assistance for certain populations of the workforce, such as employees serving in positions within law enforcement, to help improve outcomes for such employees receiving such counseling or assistance; and including collaborating and partnering with key employee stakeholders and, for those components with employees with an exclusive representative, the exclusive representative with respect to such a program; in consultation with the Chief Information Officer of the Department— identifying methods and technologies for managing, updating, and overseeing patient records; and setting standards for technology used by components of the Department regarding the collection, storage, and oversight of medical records; and ; and by adding at the end the following new subsections: In furtherance of this section, the Chief Medical Officer, at the direction of the Secretary, may— provide technical assistance, training, information, and distribute funds through grants and cooperative agreements to State, local, Tribal, and territorial governments, and nongovernmental organizations; enter into agreements with appropriate Federal departments and other executive agencies; and accept services from personnel of components of the Department and appropriate Federal departments and other executive agencies on a reimbursable or nonreimbursable basis. There shall be a Privacy Officer of the Office of Health Security, designated by the Chief Medical Officer in consultation with the Privacy Officer of the Department, with primary responsibility for privacy policy and compliance within the Office and with respect to the carrying out of responsibilities described in subsection (c). The Privacy Officer of the Office of Health Security shall— report directly to the Chief Medical Officer; coordinate with and, as requested, support the activities of the Privacy Officer appointed under section 222; and ensure privacy protections are integrated into all activities of the Office of Health Security, subject to the review and approval of the Privacy Officer of the Department. Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this subsection and annually thereafter, the Chief Medical Officer shall submit to Congress a report on the activities of the Office of Health Security for the immediately preceding year. ; by redesignating section 710 ( 6 U.S.C. 350 ) as section 2302 and transferring such section to appear after section 2301 (as redesignated and transferred pursuant to paragraph (3)); in section 2302, as so redesignated and transferred— in subsection (a), by striking Under Secretary for Management each place such term appears and inserting Chief Medical Officer ; and in subsection (b)— in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking Under Secretary for Management, in coordination with the Chief Medical Officer, and inserting Chief Medical Officer ; and in paragraph (3), by striking as deemed appropriate by the Under Secretary, ; by redesignating section 528 ( 6 U.S.C. 321q ) as section 2303 and transferring such section to appear after section 2302, as so redesignated and transferred; and in subsection

(a)of section 2303, as so redesigned and transferred, by striking Assistant Secretary for the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office and inserting Chief Medical Officer . The Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( 6 U.S.C. 101 et seq. ) is amended by redesignating section 1932 ( 6 U.S.C. 597a ) as section 2304 and transferring such section, as so redesignated, to appear after section 2303 (as redesignated and transferred pursuant to subsection (a)(7)) of title XXIII. The individual appointed pursuant to section 1931(a) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 ( 6 U.S.C. 597 ) (as such section appeared on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act) of the Department of Homeland Security and serving as the Chief Medical Officer of the Department of Homeland Security on the day before such date of enactment, shall continue to serve as the Chief Medical Officer of the Department after such date without the need for reappointment. The rule of construction set forth in section 2(hh) of the Presidential Appointment Efficiency and Streamlining Act of 2011 ( Public Law 112–166 , 5 U.S.C. 3132 note) shall not apply to the Chief Medical Officer of the Department of Homeland Security (including the incumbent who holds the position on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act), and such officer shall be a Senior Executive Service position (as that term is defined in section 3132(a) of title 5, United States Code) and receive the rate of basic pay for level IV of the Executive Schedule (in accordance with section 5315 of such title). The Secretary of Homeland Security shall transfer to the Chief Medical Officer all functions, personnel, budget authority, and assets of— the Under Secretary for Management, relating to workforce health and medical support, the Assistant Secretary for the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office, relating to the Chief Medical Officer (including the Medical Operations Directorate of the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office), and the Assistant Secretary for the Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Office, with respect to food, agriculture, and veterinary defense programs of such Office, as in existence on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended— by redesignating section 529 ( 6 U.S.C. 321r ) as section 528; in section 704(e)(4) ( 6 U.S.C. 344(e)(4) ), by striking section 711(a) and inserting section 710(a) ; by redesignating sections 711 ( 6 U.S.C. 351 ), 712 ( 6 U.S.C. 352 ), and 713 ( 6 U.S.C. 353 ) as sections 710, 711, and 712, respectively; and in title XIX, by striking the enumerator and heading of subtitle C. The table of contents in section 1(b) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 is amended— by striking the item relating to section 528 (as in existence on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act); by redesignating the item relating to section 529 as the item relating to section 528; by striking the item relating to section 710 (as in existence on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act); by redesignating the items relating to sections 711, 712, and 713 as the items relating to sections 710, 711, and 712, respectively; by inserting after the item relating to section 1900 the following new item: Sec. 1900A. Rule of construction. ; by inserting after the item relating to section 1928 the following new item: Sec. 1929. Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction Advisory Committee. ; by striking the items relating to subtitle C of title XIX (as in existence on the day before the date of the enactment of this Act); and by adding at the end the following new items: Title XXIII—Office of Health Security Sec. 2301. Office of Health Security. Sec. 2302. Workforce health and medical support. Sec. 2303. Coordination of Department of Homeland Security efforts related to food, agriculture, and veterinary defense against terrorism. Sec. 2304. Medical countermeasures. .

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