Authorizing Legislation

42 USC 247b-14: Oral health promotion and disease prevention
Text contains those laws in effect on April 18, 2018
From Title 42-THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
CHAPTER 6A-PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE
SUBCHAPTER II-GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES
Part B-Federal-State Cooperation
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§247b–14. Oral health promotion and disease prevention
(a) Grants to increase resources for community water fluoridation
(1) In general
The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, may make grants to
States and Indian tribes for the purpose of increasing the resources available for community water fluoridation.
(2) Use of funds
A State shall use amounts provided under a grant under paragraph (1)(A) to purchase fluoridation equipment;
(B) to train fluoridation engineers;
(C) to develop educational materials on the benefits of fluoridation; or
(D) to support the infrastructure necessary to monitor and maintain the quality of water fluoridation.
(b) Community water fluoridation
(1) In general
The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in collaboration with
the Director of the Indian Health Service, shall establish a demonstration project that is designed to assist rural water
systems in successfully implementing the water fluoridation guidelines of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
that are entitled "Engineering and Administrative Recommendations for Water Fluoridation, 1995" (referred to in this
subsection as the "EARWF").
(2) Requirements
(A) Collaboration
In collaborating under paragraph (1), the Directors referred to in such paragraph shall ensure that technical
assistance and training are provided to tribal programs located in each of the 12 areas of the Indian Health Service.
The Director of the Indian Health Service shall provide coordination and administrative support to tribes under this
section.
(B) General use of funds
Amounts made available under paragraph (1) shall be used to assist small water systems in improving the
effectiveness of water fluoridation and to meet the recommendations of the EARWF.
(C) Fluoridation specialists
(i) In general
In carrying out this subsection, the Secretary shall provide for the establishment of fluoridation specialist

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engineering positions in each of the Dental Clinical and Preventive Support Centers through which technical
assistance and training will be provided to tribal water operators, tribal utility operators and other Indian Health
Service personnel working directly with fluoridation projects.
(ii) Liaison
A fluoridation specialist shall serve as the principal technical liaison between the Indian Health Service and the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with respect to engineering and fluoridation issues.
(iii) CDC
The Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shall appoint individuals to serve as the
fluoridation specialists.
(D) Implementation
The project established under this subsection shall be planned, implemented and evaluated over the 5-year period
beginning on the date on which funds are appropriated under this section and shall be designed to serve as a model
for improving the effectiveness of water fluoridation systems of small rural communities.
(3) Evaluation
In conducting the ongoing evaluation as provided for in paragraph (2)(D), the Secretary shall ensure that such
evaluation includes(A) the measurement of changes in water fluoridation compliance levels resulting from assistance provided under
this section;
(B) the identification of the administrative, technical and operational challenges that are unique to the fluoridation of
small water systems;
(C) the development of a practical model that may be easily utilized by other tribal, State, county or local
governments in improving the quality of water fluoridation with emphasis on small water systems; and
(D) the measurement of any increased percentage of Native Americans or Alaskan Natives who receive the benefits
of optimally fluoridated water.
(c) School-based dental sealant program
(1) In general
The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and in collaboration with
the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, shall award a grant to each of the 50 States and
territories and to Indians, Indian tribes, tribal organizations and urban Indian organizations (as such terms are defined in
section 1603 of title 25) to provide for the development of school-based dental sealant programs to improve the access of
children to sealants.
(2) Use of funds
A State shall use amounts received under a grant under paragraph (1) to provide funds to eligible school-based
entities or to public elementary or secondary schools to enable such entities or schools to provide children with access to
dental care and dental sealant services. Such services shall be provided by licensed dental health professionals in
accordance with State practice licensing laws.
(3) Eligibility
To be eligible to receive funds under paragraph (1), an entity shall(A) prepare and submit to the State an application at such time, in such manner and containing such information as
the State may require; and
(B) be a public elementary or secondary school(i) that is located in an urban area in which and 1 more than 50 percent of the student population is participating in
Federal or State free or reduced meal programs; or
(ii) that is located in a rural area and, with respect to the school district in which the school is located, the district
involved has a median income that is at or below 235 percent of the poverty line, as defined in section 9902(2) of
this title.
(d) Oral health infrastructure
(1) Cooperative agreements
The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, shall enter into
cooperative agreements with State, territorial, and Indian tribes or tribal organizations (as those terms are defined in
section 1603 of title 25) to establish oral health leadership and program guidance, oral health data collection and

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[USC03] 42 USC 247b-14: Oral health promotion and disease prevention

interpretation,2 (including determinants of poor oral health among vulnerable populations), a multi-dimensional delivery
system for oral health, and to implement science-based programs (including dental sealants and community water
fluoridation) to improve oral health.
(2) Authorization of appropriations
There is authorized to be appropriated such sums as necessary to carry out this subsection for fiscal years 2010
through 2014.
(e) Definitions
For purposes of this section, the term "Indian tribe" means an Indian tribe or tribal organization as defined in section
5304(b) and section 5304(c) 3 of title 25.
(f) Authorization of appropriations
For the purpose of carrying out this section, there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary for
each of the fiscal years 2001 through 2005.
(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title III, §317M, as added Pub. L. 106–310, div. A, title XVI, §1602, Oct. 17, 2000, 114 Stat. 1148
;
amended Pub. L. 111–148, title IV, §4102(b), (c), Mar. 23, 2010, 124 Stat. 551
, 552.)

References in TeXt
Section 5304 of title 25, referred to in subsec. (e), has been amended, and subsecs. (b) and (c) of section 5304
no longer define the terms "Indian tribe" and "tribal organization". However, such terms are defined elsewhere in
that section.
AMendMents
2010-Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 111–148, §4102(b), substituted "shall award a grant to each of the 50 States and
territories and to Indians, Indian tribes, tribal organizations and urban Indian organizations (as such terms are
defined in section 1603 of title 25)" for "may award grants to States and Indian tribes".
Subsecs. (d) to (f). Pub. L. 111–148, §4102(c), added subsec. (d) and redesignated former subsecs. (d) and (e)
as (e) and (f), respectively.
1 So in original. The word "and" probably should not appear.
2 So in original. The comma probably should not appear.
3 See References in Text note below.

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TITLE III—GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES OF PUBLIC
HEALTH SERVICE
PART A—RESEARCH

AND INVESTIGATION

IN GENERAL

SEC. 301. ø241¿ (a) The Secretary shall conduct in the Service,
and encourage, cooperate with, and render assistance to other appropriate public authorities, scientific institutions, and scientists in
the conduct of, and promote the coordination of, research, investigations, experiments, demonstrations, and studies relating to the
causes, diagnosis, treatment, control, and prevention of physical
and mental diseases and impairments of man, including water purification, sewage treatment, and pollution of lakes and streams. In
carrying out the foregoing the Secretary is authorized to—
(1) collect and make available through publications and
other appropriate means, information as to, and the practical
application of, such research and other activities;
(2) make available research facilities of the Service to appropriate public authorities, and to health officials and scientists engaged in special study;
(3) make grants-in-aid to universities, hospitals, laboratories, and other public or private institutions, and to individuals for such research projects as are recommended by the advisory council to the entity of the Department supporting such
projects and make, upon recommendation of the advisory council to the appropriate entity of the Department, grants-in-aid
to public or nonprofit universities, hospitals, laboratories, and
other institutions for the general support of their research;
(4) secure from time to time and for such periods as he
deems advisable, the assistance and advice of experts, scholars,
and consultants from the United States or abroad;
(5) for purposes of study, admit and treat at institutions,
hospitals, and stations of the Service, persons not otherwise eligible for such treatment;
(6) make available, to health officials, scientists, and appropriate public and other nonprofit institutions and organizations, technical advice and assistance on the application of statistical methods to experiments, studies, and surveys in health
and medical fields;
(7) enter into contracts, including contracts for research in
accordance with and subject to the provisions of law applicable
to contracts entered into by the military departments under
title 10, United States Code, sections 2353 and 2354, except
that determination, approval, and certification required thereby shall be by the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare;
and
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(8) adopt, upon recommendations of the advisory councils
to the appropriate entities of the Department or, with respect
to mental health, the National Advisory Mental Health Council, such additional means as the Secretary considers necessary
or appropriate to carry out the purposes of this section.
The Secretary may make available to individuals and entities, for
biomedical and behavioral research, substances and living organisms. Such substances and organisms shall be made available
under such terms and conditions (including payment for them) as
the Secretary determines appropriate.
(b)(1) The Secretary shall conduct and may support through
grants and contracts studies and testing of substances for carcinogenicity, teratogenicity, mutagenicity, and other harmful biological
effects. In carrying out this paragraph, the Secretary shall consult
with entities of the Federal Government, outside of the Department
of Health, Education, and Welfare, engaged in comparable activities. The Secretary, upon request of such an entity and under appropriate arrangements for the payment of expenses, may conduct
for such entity studies and testing of substances for carcinogenicity,
teratogenicity, mutagenicity, and other harmful biological effects.
(2)(A) The Secretary shall establish a comprehensive program
of research into the biological effects of low-level ionizing radiation
under which program the Secretary shall conduct such research
and may support such research by others through grants and contracts.
(B) The Secretary shall conduct a comprehensive review of
Federal programs of research on the biological effects of ionizing
radiation.
(3) The Secretary shall conduct and may support through
grants and contracts research and studies on human nutrition,
with particular emphasis on the role of nutrition in the prevention
and treatment of disease and on the maintenance and promotion
of health, and programs for the dissemination of information respecting human nutrition to health professionals and the public. In
carrying out activities under this paragraph, the Secretary shall
provide for the coordination of such of these activities as are performed by the different divisions within the Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare and shall consult with entities of the Federal Government, outside of the Department of Health, Education,
and Welfare, engaged in comparable activities. The Secretary, upon
request of such an entity and under appropriate arrangements for
the payment of expenses, may conduct and support such activities
for such entity.
(4) The Secretary shall publish a biennial report which contains—
(A) a list of all substances (i) which either are known to
be carcinogens or may reasonably be anticipated to be carcinogens and (ii) to which a significant number of persons residing
in the United States are exposed;
(B) information concerning the nature of such exposure
and the estimated number of persons exposed to such substances;
(C) a statement identifying (i) each substance contained in
the list under subparagraph (A) for which no effluent, ambient,
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or exposure standard has been established by a Federal agency, and (ii) for each effluent, ambient, or exposure standard established by a Federal agency with respect to a substance contained in the list under subparagraph (A), the extent to which,
on the basis of available medical, scientific, or other data, such
standard, and the implementation of such standard by the
agency, decreases the risk to public health from exposure to
the substance; and
(D) a description of (i) each request received during the
year involved—
(I) from a Federal agency outside the Department of
Health, Education, and Welfare for the Secretary, or
(II) from an entity within the Department of Health,
Education, and Welfare to any other entity within the Department,
to conduct research into, or testing for, the carcinogenicity of
substances or to provide information described in clause (ii) of
subparagraph (C), and (ii) how the Secretary and each such
other entity, respectively, have responded to each such request.
(5) The authority of the Secretary to enter into any contract for
the conduct of any study, testing, program, research, or review, or
assessment under this subsection shall be effective for any fiscal
year only to such extent or in such amounts as are provided in advance in Appropriation Acts.
(c) The Secretary may conduct biomedical research, directly or
through grants or contracts, for the identification, control, treatment, and prevention of diseases (including tropical diseases)
which do not occur to a significant extent in the United States.
(d) The Secretary may authorize persons engaged in biomedical, behavioral, clinical, or other research (including research
on mental health, including research on the use and effect of alcohol and other psychoactive drugs) to protect the privacy of individuals who are the subject of such research by withholding from all
persons not connected with the conduct of such research the names
or other identifying characteristics of such individuals. Persons so
authorized to protect the privacy of such individuals may not be
compelled in any Federal, State, or local civil, criminal, administrative, legislative, or other proceedings to identify such individuals.
(e) The Secretary, acting through the Director of the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention, shall expand, intensify, and coordinate the activities of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with respect to preterm labor and delivery and infant mortality.

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