The Public Health Service Act is a

United States federal law The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as va ...

enacted in 1944. The full act is codified in

Title 42 of the United States Code Title 42 of the United States Code is the United States Code dealing with public health, social welfare, and civil rights. Chapters * —The Public Health Service * —The Public Health Service, Supplemental Provisions * —Sanitation a ...

(The Public Health and Welfare), Chapter 6A (

Public Health Service In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

The act clearly established the

federal government A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

authority for the first time. It gave the

United States Public Health Service The United States Public Health Service (USPHS or PHS) is a collection of agencies of the Department of Health and Human Services concerned with public health, containing nine out of the department's twelve operating divisions. The Assistant S ...

responsibility for preventing the introduction, transmission and spread of communicable diseases from foreign countries into the United States. The Public Health Service Act granted the original authority for scientists and special consultants to be appointed "without regard to the civil-service laws", known as a Title 42 appointment. During

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, section has been used for

Title 42 expulsion Title 42 expulsions are removals by the U.S. government of persons who have recently been in a country where a communicable disease was present. The extent of authority for contagion-related expulsions is set out by law in . During the COVID-19 pan ...

Amendments

It has since been amended many times. Some of these amendments are: *

Family Planning Services and Population Research Act of 1970 The Title X Family Planning Program is the only federal grant program dedicated to providing individuals with comprehensive family planning and related preventive health services. It was enacted under President Richard Nixon in 1970 as part of th ...

, which established

Title X The Title X Family Planning Program is the only federal grant program dedicated to providing individuals with comprehensive family planning and related preventive health services. It was enacted under President Richard Nixon in 1970 as part of th ...

of the Public Health Service Act, dedicated to providing

family planning Family planning is the consideration of the number of children a person wishes to have, including the choice to have no children, and the age at which they wish to have them. Things that may play a role on family planning decisions include marita ...

services for those in need. *

National Cancer Act of 1971 The "war on cancer" is the effort to find a cure for cancer by increased research to improve the understanding of cancer biology and the development of more effective cancer treatments, such as targeted drug therapies. The aim of such efforts is t ...

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA or the Kennedy– Kassebaum Act) is a United States Act of Congress enacted by the 104th United States Congress and signed into law by President Bill Clinton on August 21, 1 ...

of 1996 *

Health Center Consolidation Act The Health Center Consolidation Act of 1996 in the United States is commonly also called Section 330. The Act brings together various funding mechanisms for the country's community health facilities, such as migrant/seasonal farmworker health ...

of 1996 *National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering Establishment Act of 2000 *

Muscular Dystrophy Community Assistance Research and Education Amendments of 2001 The Muscular Dystrophy Community Assistance Research and Education Amendments of 2001 ("MD CARE Act", ) amended the Public Health Service Act to provide for research with respect to various forms of muscular dystrophy, including Duchenne, Becker ...

* Hematological Cancer Research Investment and Education Act of 2001 *

Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007 President George W. Bush signed the Newborn Screening Saves Lives Act of 2007 (Pub.L.110-204) (NBSSLA) into law on April 24, 2008, a day before DNA Day. The Act amended the Public Health Service Act to establish grant programs concerning newbor ...

Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and colloquially known as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presi ...

of 2010 * Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Reauthorization Act of 2013 (H.R. 307; 113th Congress)
Suicide Training and Awareness Nationally Delivered for Universal Prevention Act of 2021 (S. 1543; 117th Congress)

Proposed amendments

Other attempted amendments to the act have bee proposed but failed: *

Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act was the name of two similar bills that both passed through the United States House of Representatives and Senate, but were both vetoed by President George W. Bush and were not enacted into law. Stem Cell Resea ...

s of 2005 and 2007 * 115TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 708 To amend title XXVII of the Public Health Service Act to change the permissible age variation in health insurance premium rates. *One proposal to amend the Public Health Service Act is the Veteran Emergency Medical Technician Support Act of 2013 (), a bill in the

113th United States Congress The 113th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, from January 3, 2013, to January 3, 2015, during the fifth and sixth years of Presidency of Barack Obama, Barack Obama's presiden ...

. The bill was introduced on January 14, 2013 by Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-IL). It passed the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

on February 12, 2013 by a

voice vote In parliamentary procedure, a voice vote (from the Latin ''viva voce'', meaning "live voice") or acclamation is a voting method in deliberative assemblies (such as legislatures) in which a group vote is taken on a topic or motion by responding vo ...

, indicating that it was generally non-controversial. The Bill would amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the

Secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

of Health and Human Services (HHS) to establish a demonstration program for states with a shortage of emergency medical technicians (EMTs) to streamline state requirements and procedures to assist

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...

s who completed military EMT training while serving in the

Armed Forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

to meet state EMT certification,

licensure Licensure means a restricted practice or a restriction on the use of an occupational title, requiring a license. A license created under a "practice act" requires a license before performing a certain activity, such as driving a car on public roa ...

, and other requirements. The bill still needs to pass in the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

and be signed by the

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

before it would become law. * The Children's Hospital GME Support Reauthorization Act of 2013 (H.R. 297; 113th Congress) is a bill in the

that would amend the Public Health Service Act to extend and reauthorize appropriations for payments to

children's hospital A children's hospital is a hospital that offers its services exclusively to infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In certain special cases, they may also treat adults. The number of children's hospitals proliferated in the 20th ...

s for expenses associated with operating approved graduate

medical residency Residency or postgraduate training is specifically a stage of graduate medical education. It refers to a qualified physician (one who holds the degree of MD, DO, MBBS, MBChB), veterinarian ( DVM or VMD) , dentist ( DDS or DMD) or podiatrist ( ...

training programs. The portion of the Public Health Service Act that would be amended is Section 340
(42 U.S.C. 256e)
The amendment would cover Fiscal Years 2013 - 2017. H.R. 297 passed the

with a vote of 352-50 on February 4, 201
(Roll no. 32)
* Emergency Medical Services for Children Reauthorization Act of 2014 (S. 2154; 113th Congress) is a bill in the

that would amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the Emergency Medical Services for Children Program through FY2019.

References

External links

Current version of the Public Health Service Act, as codified
from the

Legal Information Institute The Legal Information Institute (LII) is a non-profit, public service of Cornell Law School that provides no-cost access to current American and international legal research sources online alaw.cornell.edu The organization is a pioneer in the del ...

Original uncodified bill, as amended (8/5/2009)
* {{cite web , url=http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/exhibitions/online/exhibition-archives/april-2010-september-2011/knowledge/fostering-medical-discovery/2612-hr-4624.html , title=H.R. 4624, Public Health Service Act, May 23, 1944 , author=78th U.S. Congress , date=May 23, 1944 , work=Chapter 373, cited 58 U.S. Stats. 682 , publisher=U.S. Capitol Visitor Center , access-date=May 25, 2013 , archive-date=March 6, 2013 , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130306065627/http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/exhibitions/online/exhibition-archives/april-2010-september-2011/knowledge/fostering-medical-discovery/2612-hr-4624.html , url-status=dead 1944 in law United States federal health legislation United States Public Health Service Pharmaceutical regulation in the United States

Contents

Amendments

Proposed amendments

References

External links