H.R. 7879

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7879 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7879

To require the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services and other relevant departments and 
agencies, as appropriate, to formulate a strategy for the Federal 
Government to secure support from foreign countries, multilateral 
organizations, and other appropriate entities to facilitate the 
development and commercialization of qualified pandemic or epidemic 
products, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

March 9, 2026

Mr. Levin (for himself and Mr. Valadao) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To require the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary 
of Health and Human Services and other relevant departments and 
agencies, as appropriate, to formulate a strategy for the Federal 
Government to secure support from foreign countries, multilateral 
organizations, and other appropriate entities to facilitate the 
development and commercialization of qualified pandemic or epidemic 
products, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLES.

This Act may be cited as the ``Saving Us from Pandemic Era 
Resistance by Building a Unified Global Strategy Act of 2026'' or the 
``SUPER BUGS Act of 2026''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:
(1) Emerging infectious diseases, including antimicrobial-
resistant pathogens, pose a significant threat to United States 
national security by--
(A) increasing the risk of outbreaks reaching the 
United States;
(B) disrupting critical infrastructure;
(C) undermining economic stability and public 
health; and
(D) undermining the readiness of the United States 
Armed Forces abroad.
(2) Strengthening international collaboration to develop, 
commercialize, and deploy qualified pandemic and epidemic 
products is essential to preventing, detecting, and containing 
infectious disease threats before they reach the borders of the 
United States.
(3) Enhancing partner countries' public health capabilities 
and pandemic and epidemic response mechanisms directly 
contributes to United States homeland security by reducing the 
likelihood of global outbreaks affecting the United States.
(4) Coordinated strategies that leverage United States 
leadership, technology, and medical countermeasures, while 
ensuring equitable access for international partners, promote 
global resilience and reduce threats to United States citizens, 
infrastructure, and national interests.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:
(1) Appropriate committees of congress.--The term 
``appropriate committees of Congress'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
Senate;
(B) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and 
Pensions of the Senate;
(C) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 
of Representatives; and
(D) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
House of Representatives.
(2) Priority pathogens.--The term ``priority pathogens'' 
means pathogens identified in--
(A) the latest ``Antibiotic Resistance Threats 
Report'' of the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention (or any successor report); or
(B) the current list of qualifying pathogens 
maintained by the Secretary of Health and Human 
Services under section 505E(f)(2) of the Federal Food, 
Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 355f(f)(2)) (or any 
successor list).
(3) Qualified pandemic or epidemic product.--The term 
``qualified pandemic or epidemic product'' has the meaning 
given such term in section 319F-3(i) of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 247d-6d(i)).

SEC. 4. INTERNATIONAL STRATEGY FOR DEVELOPMENT OF QUALIFIED PANDEMIC OR 
EPIDEMIC PRODUCTS.

(a) Strategy.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in 
consultation with the Secretary of Health and Human Services, 
and such other heads of departments and agencies as the 
Secretary of State considers appropriate, shall--
(A) formulate a strategy for the Federal Government 
to secure support from foreign countries, multilateral 
organizations, and other appropriate entities to 
facilitate the development and commercialization of 
qualified pandemic or epidemic products, including 
products to address antimicrobial resistant pathogens--
(i) with pandemic potential; or
(ii) that are priority pathogens; and
(B) submit such strategy to the appropriate 
committees of Congress.
(2) Contents.--The strategy required under paragraph (1) 
shall--
(A) provide for processes the Federal Government is 
using and would use to enter into arrangements with 
foreign countries, multilateral organizations, and 
other appropriate entities in certain circumstances to 
implement the strategy;
(B) strive to ensure that the arrangements 
described in subparagraph (A) promote equitable 
contributions based on the budgets and technical 
expertise of participating countries, organizations, 
and other entities, as appropriate;
(C) focus the arrangements described in 
subparagraph (A) on global priorities, while enabling 
participating countries, organizations, and other 
entities to emphasize national or regional issues of 
importance;
(D) support efforts to strengthen partner country 
public health capabilities by promoting sustainable 
improvements in their ability to prevent, detect, and 
contain infectious disease threats;
(E) seek to ensure that new and existing 
arrangements described in subparagraph (A) are 
harmonized with each other and with other relevant 
existing or planned efforts to amplify impact, address 
gaps, prevent duplication of effort, and efficiently 
distribute funds;
(F) provide for collaboration to ensure the 
arrangements described in subparagraph (A) allocate 
joint or individual responsibility across participating 
countries, organizations, and other entities for the 
development and commercialization of particular 
qualified pandemic or epidemic products, where such 
collaboration is clearly described in such arrangement;
(G) provide for the stewardship of qualified 
pandemic or epidemic products developed pursuant to the 
strategy;
(H) identify priority actions in the arrangements 
described in subparagraph (A) so that scarce domestic 
and international funds are allocated to develop and 
commercialize qualified pandemic or epidemic products 
that can achieve the greatest positive impact on human 
health, including unprecedented approaches to 
preventing, treating, and diagnosing infectious 
diseases;
(I) consider securing contracts with United States 
companies and the broader private sector, entering into 
public-private partnerships, implementing alternative 
payment models, creating coverage and reimbursement 
pathways, and streamlining regulatory approval 
processes; and
(J) be synchronized with United States pandemic 
preparedness priorities, such as those articulated in--
(i) the National Strategy for Combating 
Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria (dated September 
2014); and
(ii) the National Biodefense Strategy and 
Implementation Plan (dated October 2022) and 
the associated Action Plan (dated October 
2022).
(b) Arrangements With Foreign Countries and Multilateral 
Organizations.--The Secretary of State, in consultation with the 
Secretary of Health and Human Services, and the heads of other relevant 
departments and agencies, as appropriate, shall seek to enter into 
arrangements with foreign countries, multilateral organizations, and 
other appropriate entities to implement the strategy required under 
subsection (a).
<all>