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S. 999 · Where this bill is now

In committee

Introduced in the Senate, Mar 12, 2025

What this bill does

In plain words · AI-written from the official summary

Limits CDC authority over disease control

This bill would change how the Department of Health and Human Services and the CDC handle disease outbreaks and public health emergencies. It would narrow the CDC's focus to communicable diseases only, removing their current work on injuries, occupational hazards, and environmental health. It would also require Congress to approve any renewal of a public health emergency, rather than letting HHS renew it on its own.

How it affects you

This would affect how quickly and broadly health officials can respond to disease outbreaks and public health crises. The official summary doesn't detail specific impacts on individuals or communities, but the changes would reshape the authority and focus of major federal health agencies during emergencies.

Read the official summary (Introduced in Senate, Mar 12, 2025)

Public Health Improvement Act

This bill narrows the authority of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with respect to the control of communicable diseases and renewals of public health emergencies. It also limits the priorities of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to solely communicable diseases.

Specifically, the bill removes HHS' discretion to take measures it deems necessary to prevent the spread of communicable diseases. It also narrows the objectives and priorities of the CDC by removing noncommunicable diseases, injuries, occupational and environmental hazards, and discretionary priorities from its strategic plan.

Also, the bill removes the authority of HHS to renew a declaration of a public health emergency and instead requires Congress to issue a renewal.

The bill also limits the terms of the directors of the CDC and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to 12 years and requires members of the Advisory Committee to the Director of the CDC to be appointed by members of Congress and other officials (currently appointed by the director). Additionally, the bill transfers eight offices from the CDC to the NIH (e.g., the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health).

Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.

119th Congress
1st SessionS. 999

A BILL

Public Health Improvement Act

In the SenateNo vote yet

Sponsor: Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) · Introduced Mar 12, 2025 · Health · 1 version of the text

Read the full billOfficial record on Congress.gov ↗

Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Mar 12, 2025: “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.”

Sections

Sections · 9