Description:
S. 1199 would authorize $30 million each year between 2020 and 2024 for the poison control’s center toll-free number and national media campaign, and for a grant program administered by the Health Resources and Services Administration under the Public Health Service Act. The bill would clarify that the program also applies to toxic exposure and would require the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services to submit biennial reports to the Congress about the program. S. 1199 also would require the Secretary to coordinate with the Federal Communications Commission to ensure that communications with the national toll-free number are routed to the appropriate poison control center on the basis of the physical location of the contact rather than the area code of the contact device. Based on historical spending patterns for similar activities, CBO estimates that implementing S. 1199 would cost $125 million over the 2019 through 2024 period; the remaining amounts would be spent in years after 2024.
