Democracy Technology Partnership Act This bill establishes the International Technology Partnership Office, led by the Special Ambassador for Technology, in the Department of State. The office shall advance U.S. technology policy through the creation of an International Technology Partnership with specified foreign countries. Specifically, the office must create a partnership of democratic countries to develop technology governance regimes, with a focus on key technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning, 5G telecommunications, semiconductor chip manufacturing, biotechnology, and quantum computing. Partner countries must be democratic countries with advanced technology sectors that have a demonstrated record of trust or an expressed interest in international cooperation and coordination with the United States on defense and intelligence matters. The bill also establishes the International Technology Partnership Fund in the Department of the Treasury. The State Department may use amounts from this fund to support joint research projects from International Technology Partnership member countries and technology investments in third-country markets. The State Department must submit (1) a report on the activities of the office, including information on any cooperative activities, initiatives, or partnerships pursued with U.S. allies and partners; and (2) a national strategy for technology and national security.
Contact Lens Prescription Verification Modernization Act This bill revises the requirements for the verification of prescriptions related to the purchase of contact lenses. Specifically, online sellers of prescription contact lenses must provide consumers with a method to transmit a digital copy of their prescriptions to such sellers. Online sellers also must encrypt protected health information they send by email. Additionally, the bill prohibits any seller of prescription contact lenses from using telephone calls with an artificial or prerecorded voice (i.e., robocalls) to verify a consumer's prescription.
Helping Medicaid Offer Maternity Services Act of 2021 or the Helping MOMS Act of 2021 This bill permanently allows states to provide one year of postpartum coverage under Medicaid and temporarily increases the Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (i.e., federal matching rate) for pregnancy-related services in states that choose to do so.
Midwives for Maximizing Optimal Maternity Services Act of 2021 or the Midwives for MOMS Act of 2021 This bill establishes grants within the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) for establishing or expanding midwifery programs at institutions of higher education and nursing schools. HRSA may prioritize funding for institutions that focus on increasing the number of midwife professionals from underrepresented groups and that promote practicing in areas with limited access to professional health care.
Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act for Airports This bill makes certain airport projects eligible for funding under the transportation infrastructure finance and innovation program of the Department of Transportation (DOT), including projects for airport noise capability planning and for constructing gates and related areas at which passengers board or exit aircraft. DOT may provide funding for these projects only if all steel and manufactured goods used in the projects are produced in the United States, with specified exceptions.
Concentrating on High-value Alzheimer's Needs to Get to an End Act of 2021 or the CHANGE Act of 2021 This bill modifies the requirements under Medicare for diagnosing and treating Alzheimer's disease and other cognitive impairments in older adults. Specifically, the bill expands the cognitive impairment detection benefit during annual wellness visits to require the use of validated detection tools and documentation of the results in the patient's medical record. Further, when a cognitive impairment is detected, the patient must be referred to an appropriate diagnostic service provider and other specified supports. Additionally, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must implement Medicare policies that increase the identification and response to patients' Alzheimer's disease risk factors and incentivize providers to utilize high-quality cognitive impairment diagnosis practices. The Government Accountability Office also must conduct a study of policies that may accelerate progress in Alzheimer's disease research and enhance the quality of care for individuals diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.
Climate Risk Disclosure Act of 2021 This bill directs the Securities and Exchange Commission to require an issuer of securities to annually disclose information regarding climate change-related risks posed to the issuer, including an issuer's strategies and actions to mitigate these risks. Specifically, issuers must report their direct and indirect greenhouse-gas emissions and disclose their fossil fuel-related assets.
Fairness in Orphan Drug Exclusivity Act This bill limits which orphan drugs may be granted a market exclusivity period by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). (Generally, an orphan drug is one that is not economically viable because of the rarity of the disease that it treats. The sponsor of an FDA-designated orphan drug may be granted various incentives, such as a seven-year period in which the FDA may not grant market approval to a different sponsor for the same drug to treat the same disease.) Under this bill, if a drug is designated as an orphan drug on the basis that there is no reasonable expectation that the sponsor will recover the costs of developing and distributing the drug from U.S. sales, the drug shall be granted the seven-year exclusivity period only if the sponsor demonstrates that there is no reasonable expectation that it will recover such costs specifically within its first 12 years of U.S. sales of the drug. This requirement shall also apply retroactively to an orphan drug that was granted such an exclusivity period before this bill's enactment. When deciding whether an orphan drug meets this requirement, the FDA shall consider the sales of all drugs from the sponsor that are covered by the same orphan drug designation.
This concurrent resolution expresses the sense of Congress that all trade agreements the United States enters into with a foreign country should provide reasonable collaboration with that country for the purpose of search and recovery activities for Armed Forces members missing in action from prior wars or military conflicts.
This resolution directs the Office of the Attending Physician to update the mask-wearing guidance (consistent with public guidance released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) applicable to the Hall of the House of Representatives and committee meeting spaces for Members and staff who are vaccinated against COVID-19.
This resolution reaffirms the importance to U.S. national interests of combating corruption, strengthening democratic institutions, and supporting judicial independence in El Salvador. Further, it urges El Salvador to respect its democratic institutions, including by strengthening government transparency, and to uphold human rights.
This resolution states that the United Nations Security Council should immediately impose an arms embargo against the military of Burma (Myanmar) and hold it accountable for its ongoing violations of human rights.
