This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to designate one week per year as Battle Buddy Check Week for the purposes of organizing outreach events and educating veterans on how to conduct peer wellness checks. The VA shall ensure that the Veterans Crisis Line has a plan for handling the potential increase in calls that may occur during such week.
Protecting Students From Racial Hostility Act This bill prohibits school curriculums or teachings that promote certain concepts based on race. Specifically, the bill prohibits schools from promoting concepts that result in a racially hostile environment , which the bill defines as an environment in which (1) racial discrimination has created an adverse setting, (2) an individual is fearful due to a racially intimidating or offensive environment, or (3) an individual is restricted from participating in or benefiting from a program or activity on the basis of race. Prohibited concepts include the idea that (1) one race is inherently superior to another, (2) the United States is fundamentally racist, and (3) an individual bears responsibility for the past actions of others of the same race. The bill makes the use of such curriculums or teachings a violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in federally funded programs or activities. Any intimidation, threat, or other interference with respect to an individual's rights or participation in related proceedings (e.g., the ability to file complaints about the use of prohibited curriculums) shall also be considered a violation of Title VI. The bill applies to elementary and secondary schools and to colleges and universities.
International Pandemic Preparedness and COVID-19 Response Act of 2021 This bill outlines U.S. foreign policy to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and to future pandemics and disasters. With respect to COVID-19, the Department of State must develop a strategy to expand and expedite access to COVID-19 vaccines in other countries. The bill also allows for the use of any foreign assistance for activities to combat COVID-19, regardless of the original purpose of the funding. Additionally, the State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development must protect and support humanitarian actors responding to secondary effects of the pandemic (e.g., food insecurity). Furthermore, the State Department must report on, and take other steps to address, restrictions and violations of human rights in the COVID-19 response measures of other countries, and the U.S. Agency for Global Media must focus its communication programs on combating propaganda and providing accurate information related to COVID-19. With respect to future pandemics and disasters, the bill (1) designates agencies responsible for carrying out preparedness and response activities, and (2) authorizes a committee within the National Security Council to coordinate government-wide response efforts. Additionally, the President must establish a strategy for advancing U.S. global health security; the bill creates a position in the State Department to promote this strategy. Moreover, the State Department must work with other international actors to establish a financing mechanism and otherwise promote global health security, including by strengthening health systems and disease surveillance in developing countries. Additionally, funding authorized by this bill may not be made available to China.
Medical Device Nonvisual Accessibility Act of 2021 This bill requires certain medical devices with a digital interface to meet nonvisual accessibility standards established by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Specifically, the FDA must establish regulations to require a Class II or Class III medical device with a digital interface to provide a blind or low-vision user access to the same services and information, and generally the same ease of use, as provided to a user who is not low-vision or blind. (The FDA classifies medical devices in three classes. Class I devices are low-risk, Class II devices are moderate-risk, and Class III devices are high-risk.) A Class II or Class III medical device that does not meet the nonvisual accessibility standards established under this bill may not be sold.
Nuclear Power Purchase Agreements Act This bill requires the Department of Energy to develop and carry out a program under which it will enter into one or more long-term (i.e., 10 to 40 years) nuclear power purchase agreements with nuclear reactors that received initial licenses after January 1, 2020.
Protecting Renters from Evictions Act of 2021 This bill extends through December 31, 2021, the order issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention titled Temporary Halt in Residential Evictions To Prevent the Further Spread of COVID–19 and published on September 4, 2020.
Fiscal State of the Nation Resolution This concurrent resolution requires the congressional budget committees to conduct an annual joint hearing to receive a presentation from the Comptroller General regarding (1) the Government Accountability Office's audit of the financial statement of the executive branch, and (2) the financial position and condition of the federal government.
This resolution condemns acts of violence against Afghan women and girls and any effort to limit the ability of women and girls to participate in the civic affairs of Afghanistan. It also urges the President to ensure that Afghan women, youth, and other marginalized groups are meaningfully participating and engaging in all peace talks.
This bill requires the President to report to Congress on the national security risks associated with any plans by China's government to create an official digital currency.
Medicare Orthotics and Prosthetics Patient-Centered Care Act This bill revises payment rules and establishes several requirements relating to coverage of orthotics and prosthetics under Medicare. Specifically, the bill requires suppliers of orthotics and prosthetics to meet certain standards with respect to licensure and accreditation, physical facilities, and liability insurance. Orthotists and prosthetists may also issue written orders for commercial purposes that meet specified standards; such orders must be signed by the treating physician. The bill also prohibits payment under Medicare for certain prosthetics and orthotics that are delivered via drop shipment (i.e., direct shipment to a beneficiary who has not received corresponding patient care from a health care practitioner).
Navigable Waters Protection Act of 2021 This bill enacts definitions that determine which bodies of water fall under the scope of the Clean Water Act and are thereby under federal jurisdiction. Specifically, the bill provides statutory authority for the definitions related to the waters of the United States, commonly known as WOTUS, in regulations when the bill is enacted.
Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act of 2021 This bill prohibits product hopping by drug manufacturers, authorizes the Federal Trade Commission to enforce this prohibition, and imposes limits on patent litigation involving biological products. Generally, product-hopping describes a situation where, when the patents on a reference drug (or biological product) expire, the manufacturer switches to a follow-on product that is covered by a later-expiring patent. Under this bill, a follow-on product is a modified version of the reference drug that shares an indication (what the drug is used for) with the reference drug. The bill presumes product hopping has occurred when a reference drug manufacturer, after receiving notice that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received an application to market a competing generic (or biosimilar) version, takes certain actions such as withdrawing the reference drug from the market and selling a follow-on product. A drug manufacturer may rebut these presumptions by demonstrating that its conduct was not intended to limit competition. The bill also limits in certain instances the number of patents that a reference biological product manufacturer can assert in a patent infringement lawsuit against a company seeking to sell a biosimilar version. Specifically, if the biosimilar manufacturer completes certain actions as part of an abbreviated pathway to get FDA market approval, the bill limits, subject to exceptions and waivers, the number of certain types of patents that the reference product manufacturer may assert, such as patents filed more than four years after the reference product received market approval.
