[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3809 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3809

 To require electronic medical records at the Department of State for 
                       Foreign Service personnel.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           February 27, 2024

   Mr. Risch introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
             referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To require electronic medical records at the Department of State for 
                       Foreign Service personnel.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Electronic Medical Records for 
Foreign Service Personnel Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) Foreign Service personnel at the Department of State 
        often serve with distinction in austere places and under 
        challenging conditions around the world with limited healthcare 
        availability;
            (2) the Department's exclusive use of paper medical 
        records, which require Foreign Service personnel to carry their 
        protected health information from post to post, puts our 
        diplomats in danger by limiting the availability of their 
        health information to Department medical personnel during 
        critical health incidents;
            (3) electronic medical records are necessary, particularly 
        as the Department opens new embassies in the South Pacific, 
        thousands of miles from the nearest Department medical officer, 
        who may not have access to up-to-date personnel medical files;
            (4) the lack of electronic medical records is even more 
        important for mental health records, as the Department only has 
        a small number of regional medical officer psychiatrists and 
        relies heavily on telehealth for most Foreign Service 
        personnel; and
            (5) due to the critical need for electronic medical 
        records, it is imperative that the Department address the 
        situation quickly and focus on commercially available solutions 
        from contractors who have a track record of successfully 
        implementing large-scale projects of this type.

SEC. 3. ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS REQUIREMENT.

    Not later than December 31, 2027, the Secretary of State shall have 
fully implemented an electronic medical records system for all Foreign 
Service personnel that eliminates reliance on paper medical records and 
includes appropriate safeguards to protect personal privacy.

SEC. 4. REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter, the Secretary of 
State shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
on the progress made towards meeting the requirement under section 3.
    (b) Elements.--The report required under subsection (a) shall 
include the following elements:
            (1) An updated timeline for implementation.
            (2) An estimated completion date.
            (3) The amounts expended to date on the required electronic 
        medical records system.
            (4) The estimated amount needed to complete the system.
    (c) Termination of Requirement.--The reporting requirement under 
subsection (a) shall cease upon notification to the appropriate 
congressional committees that electronic medical records have been 
completely implemented for all Foreign Service personnel.
    (d) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this section, 
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
            (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the Senate; and
            (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on 
        Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
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