{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://trahan.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2281", "ICYMI: Trahan, McKinley Pandemic Preparedness Legislation Featured in Health Subcommittee Hearing", "2021-10-27", "2021", "2021-10", "Democrat", "House", "MA", "Lori Trahan", "T000482", "trahan.house.gov", "trahan", "https://trahan.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27", "scraper", "LOWELL, MA \u2013 Yesterday, the House Energy and Commerce Committee\u2019s Health Subcommittee held a hearing on the Bolstering Infectious Outbreaks (BIO) Preparedness Workforce Act, legislation introduced by Congresswoman Lori Trahan (D-MA-03) and Congressman David B. McKinley (R-WV-01). The bipartisan bill would strengthen the bio-preparedness and infectious diseases workforce that has proven critical during the COVID-19 pandemic.\n\nDuring the hearing, Trahan questioned Dr. Jeanne Marrazzo, a board member of the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) and Infectious Diseases Division Chief at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, about the need for the BIO Preparedness Workforce Act. Footage of Trahan\u2019s line of questioning and Dr. Marrazzo\u2019s answers can be accessed by clicking HERE or the image below.\n\n\u201cI am concerned about the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases on underserved populations, including our communities of color,\u201d said Congresswoman Trahan. \u201cAnd it's important to increase access to culturally-competent health care, particularly during a pandemic or another public health emergency. Can you elaborate on why a more diverse infectious diseases workforce is important to advancing health equity?\u201d\n\n\u201cA more diverse workforce really addresses a need for a culturally-competent workforce...we do better, we resonate stronger with providers and people who look like us, and who understand our specific health challenges. So getting a more equitable distribution of ID (infectious diseases) professionals \u2014 not just geographically, but also across these different strata of society \u2014 is really going to be critical to reach the patients that we need to reach,\u201d Dr. Marrazzo answered.\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t think anything has illustrated the need for a team approach more than this pandemic,\u201d Dr. Marrazzo continued. \u201cWe\u2019ve all felt it very, very urgently. In addition to physicians, you need a team of health care professionals, and those include: clinical laboratory professionals, infection preventionists, ID-trained pharmacists, advanced practice nurses, and physician\u2019s assistants. All of these folks are really critical to staff the sort of workforce that we need to deal with these things \u2014 and, very importantly, all of these professionals are included in the BIO Preparedness Workforce Act.\u201d\n\nThe COVID-19 pandemic exposed glaring gaps and weaknesses in America\u2019s ability to respond to a public health emergency caused by infectious diseases, including insufficient preparedness and response workforce capacity at health care facilities. Infectious diseases physicians are key when preparing for or responding to a pandemic, as they are often tasked with leading physician teams tackling a public health crisis and caring for individual patients suffering from serious infectious diseases. However, the United States is facing a serious shortage of infectious diseases physicians, a problem that has exacerbated the spread of COVID-19 and jeopardized future pandemic preparedness.\n\nTrahan and McKinley introduced the BIO Preparedness Workforce Act to incentivize prospective physicians to choose the critically necessary infectious diseases specialty by finally making it financially feasible. Specifically, the bipartisan legislation would establish a new loan repayment program for health care professionals who spend at least half of their time engaged in bio-preparedness and response activities or providing infectious diseases care. Further, the bill aims to increase the number of underrepresented minority individuals serving as bio-preparedness or infectious diseases physicians.\n\nMore information on the BIO Preparedness Workforce Act can be accessed HERE. A digital copy of the legislation can be accessed HERE.\n\n###", 1, "2026-04-06T14:24:52Z", "2026-04-06T15:53:59Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://trahan.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=2281"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 3.3193835988640785, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}