Guthrie Introduces Coronavirus Public Health Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman Brett Guthrie (KY-02), top Republican on the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, along with fellow committee leaders U.S. Reps. Diana DeGette (D-CO), Michael Burgess (R-TX), and Anna Eshoo (D-CA), this week introduced the Ensuring Understanding of COVID-19 to Protect Public Health Act (H.R. 6701).
 
This legislation would direct the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to conduct a longitudinal study on mild, moderate, and severe cases of COVID-19 to ensure we gain a full understanding of both the short and long-term health impacts of the novel coronavirus.
 
Identical companion legislation was introduced by U.S. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) earlier this week.
 
“Our country is battling an invisible enemy, and we must ensure we examine all aspects of this terrible virus,” said Rep. Guthrie. “Because COVID-19 is so new to us, we have many unanswered questions on how it affects patients long-term. By understanding the short- and long-term health ramifications of COVID-19, we can work to provide better treatment of this virus. As the Republican leader of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, I was proud to join Senators Rosen and Rubio and Reps. Burgess, DeGette, and Eshoo to introduce the Ensuring Understanding of COVID-19 to Protect Public Health.”
 
“As our nation continues to battle the coronavirus pandemic, it is critical that our health care experts at the NIH conduct a comprehensive study to help guide physicians caring for patients with COVID-19,” said Senator Rubio. “There are still numerous unknowns about COVID-19, including its potential long-term health impacts, and this bipartisan bill provides the NIH with important guidelines to study this virus.”
 
The bipartisan Ensuring Understanding of COVID-19 to Protect Public Health Act would direct the NIH to:

• Conduct a nationwide COVID-19 study of health outcomes and symptoms, including long-term impact on lung function and immune response, and the impact of treatments.
  • The study would include a wide variety of patients, to ensure diversity among race, ethnicity, geography, age, gender, and underlying health conditions; and
  • Monitor mental health outcomes.
• The goal of the study is to gain a full understanding of both the short-term and long-term health impacts of COVID-19.
• The findings would be released publicly every 3 months for the first two years, and every 6 months thereafter.