Transcripts For CSPAN2 CDC Director Redfield Testifies On Co

[inaudible conversations] the cdc before the subcommittee this morning and has been several years march of 2016 since our last hearing on the budget of the nations leading Public Health agency. Before i do a formal welcome, i was made aware of this issue which is very troubling. And that is, that the administration is ordered the immigration courts to immediately remove coronavirus posters and it just says the immigration courts have been ordered nationwide by the administration to takedm down coronavirus posters from courtrooms and waiting areas. The executive office for immigration review under the department of justice mandated allex posters which explain in english and spanish how to prevent catching and spreading the virus had to be removed immediately. I just want to say that whatever your point of view on any issue that we face in this nation whatever your personal views are or your ideology , that we canno cannot, we cannot in this Public Health crisis play fast and loose with Peoples Health no matter what we believe it is a moral responsibility for us to make sure that everyone is protected. This just came to my attention. Doctor redfield we welcome you to have you here with your colleagues who are with you and the associated Deputy Director from science and surveillance, director of National Center for injury prevention and control, the chief Strategy Officer and chief operating officer. I might say i also want to acknowledge our doctor who is not here but did provide us with bipartisan briefing that we had for the subcommittee in february. In fact before we proceed, the cdc fy 21 budget request, let me start where we are all probably starting today with covid19 first i want to commend the thousands of Public Health experts at the state and federal level who are working so hard to keep us safe during the outbrea outbreak. That includes you doctor as well as all the cdc staff. We are in a crisis. There are questions about our preparedness and ongoing responses. I am very concerned about the nations testing capabilities other countries have been testing thousands of people per week but the us is behind the curve the low numbers of tests is likely a byproduct of under testing but the prevalence of coronavirus in the United States. Testing kits are now being distributed across the country and commercial firms are involved as well. But the delay was unacceptable while cdc properly developed a new test for the covid19 the majority of the initial test kit sat in laboratories and they were faulty with weeks of delays before the replacement kits went out. During this time cdc meantime on maintains a narrow testingin criteria if the health of the country was put at risk because of these actions. I suspect there will be a lot of questions today with those delays another concern is Emergency Funding. Congress came together last week with eight. 3 billiondollar emergency supplemental on the bicameral basis including two. 2 billion dollars for the cdc this funding will support cdc as well as state and local Health Departments who are critical to responding to this outbreak and saving lives. But when the crisis arose, the cdc only had 105 million available through the Infectious Disease Rapid Response. Upthe supplemental had 300 million. I have been a leader for years on the Public Health Emergency Fund and have repeatedly introduce legislation for Public Health emergency to provide 5 billion in Emergency Funding for Public Health Emergency Fund so you can act with alacrity and flexibility. We can only imagine where we would be if we had 5 million at the outset instead of 105 million and the Rapid Response fund the former Health Minister of south africa, global Public Health expert has set up Public Health infrastructure why do we lurch from crisis to ceisis and lapse into complacency between . And this is the reminder of the importance of a well trained, well trusted, wellfunded Public Health system. Beyond covid19 professionals at cdc day in and day out are working to combat foodborne illnesses and influenza and promote a Healthy Lifestyle to reduce the Tobacco Products and on and on it is important work and why we are proud of what we were able to do is an increasing the funding by li 636 million. 9 percent above the 2019 level on a bipartisan basis. Some of those highlights include for the first time in more than 20 years funding to specifically Mortality Prevention Research in the first year of a multiyear effort to support modernization the publicly held datas surveillance that local Health Departments in the first year a Multiyear Initiative of hiv 90 percent over the next ten years the establishment of the Suicide Prevention program and tobacco prevention given the ecigarette and vaping epidemic among the young people. Increases for global Disease Detection and Global Health security as you outlined in your remarksoutl, the Global Health security is critical to our National Security and the Infectious Disease Rapid Response reserve fund. Sp unfortunately the president 2021 Budget Proposal reverses the progress and the budget proposes to cut cdc by 693 million, 9 percent below the 2020 appropriation. Despite the presentation of the president s budget which claimed Infectious Disease, Global Health and preparedness and priorities of the cdc request key programs would be quite one cut Infectious Disease Rapid Responsere fund to allow cdc to quickly respond to covid19 this committee will not pursue icthe proposed cut during the outbreak is beyond consideration that we together intend to invest in the cdc in the nations Public Health. We will not lurch from crisis to crisis and lapse into complacency in between. Wenot. Cannot the coronavirus outbreak make that clear. I will stop here we look forward to your discussionson and other policy areas in your jurisdiction. The cbc and strategic stockpile and later on we added the Rapid Response Infectious Disease fund idea that the chair had been championing for many years and i think they are all good decisions if we are seeing the benefit of it now and i expect we will stay on that course. What you do and i think all of you for doing it and splendid professions believe are absolutely indefensible or excuse me, indispensable in defending the people of the United States. Wevee had this discussion before. I think of you as a biomedical equivalent of the pentagon and what we do protect the American People make these investments Going Forward. Good morning and thank you for coming to be with us this morning. Im going to do what i did with france is calling, how is your weekend, i think about you a lot. We know that this has been an extra in a stressful time for you and you are doing great work for the American People. Y i know the coronavirus is at the forefront of everyones mind this morning. Ththe publichealththe public hd cdc are front and center defending people and in addition to hearing about coronavirus this morning im hoping we can discuss other priority is. I know we all share which is producing opioid abuse and deaths addressing the threat of antibiotic resistance in preventing thein growing probles associated with chronic diseases, all critical Public Health issues foror the country. As the United States continues to monitor and respond to the virus i am encouraged to Work Together across party lines on resources with the days and weeks ahead. Ol such a highly polarized environment and i am encouraged we could set aside our differences and quickly deliver on such a high priority item for the health and safety of the American People. It took just nine days for the administration to submit information regarding a supplementalio appropriation ned and bipartisan bicameral congressional action. I suspect you can continue to count on bipartisan robust support in your efforts to keep the community i communities pred able to respond. Long before the Coronavirus Congress was already prepared for the Public Health emergency in a bipartisan way. Five years ago congress began shaping policies and prioritizing estimate including boosting funding year after year for the National Institutes of health and centers for Disease Control and prevention and Strategic National stockpile. Perhaps the greatest wife like these past few weeks as the prior establishment of an investment in the Infectious Diseased Rapid Response. Because congress had the tools in place the administration has been able to direct us with a response from day one. I want to associate myself with the chai chairman and i would le the phone to the larger. We proposed 300 million those in the budget realities we would have liked to do more. Im pleased that congress did te 300 million a supplemental and i hopebu that we can build on that given what we have towe work wih but again the outcome because was our creation of the reserve fund and while itsd unfortunae im glad that a the resources we available. I hope more available in the yfuture. Theres still a long road ahead and i am encouraged one of those is not whether the funding will be there for the publichealth defenders to continue their response. Along with providing the funding for the resources we need to prepare for and respond to the coronavirus the supplemental replenishes the disease Rapid Reserve fund 300 million to help us respond quickly to future threats. We are seeing and continuing to witness a deadly new disease is just a plain right away. Thats why the Global Health security is also such a critical component of preparedness and Public Health experts deployed all around the world an idea he first raised with me a number of years ago. To respond to new publichealth where they exist in the country of origin before they reach the shore is a good idea. They are likely to never know where the next threat may appear so ensuring the strategy for the region is necessary. I look forward to hearing more about the Global Health security. There are other topics i would like to address today addressing influenza, combating the opioid problem and they threaten the most vulnerable populations and reducing antibiotic resistance. A but as our time is limited i will make my statement and look forward to continuing our conversation and will yield back my time, not on the chair. Doctor redfield and distinguished panelists, thank you for joining us. I want to thank you for making withee us last week. We spent more than an hour together and i appreciate your commitment and expertise. Two weeks ago i planned to raise the budget continued neglect of the cbc. Its cutting Chronic Health resources an into the harsh impt on Health Outcome of america. After working for more than two decades to restart federal investment in gun violence Prevention Research, i was eager to discuss the type of research that may be funded. We would like to hear about progress on other important investments in the fiscal Year Spending bill including the Data Modernization Initiative Prevention Research and combating the epidemic. By the way thats an issue that is pervasive and i first learned about it from my 15yearold grandchil15 year oldgrandchild s was vaping and its not getting better, its getting worse. Today we have a new epidemic on our hands. One week ago my home county of westchester new york and its first confirmed coronavirus case today we have 98. Thertheres 26 deaths. The stunning increase requires every level of government to Work Together and aggressively to contain and stop the spread of covid19. With the recently enacted 3. 8 billion emergency supplemental, the federal government can aid state and locato state andlocal departmeng patients and medicaid the virus, however due to the administrations failure to treat thisri threat seriously, initial faulty test kits, slow distribution of working kids more people are likely to be infected and its fancy we are hearing those statistics. It is imperative that the federal government have a multiagency approach to am sure the tests are available for all who need one without delay. Cant goo backward. Unfortunately there was a real delay and that is why it was spreading. Earlier this week i sent a letter to secretary azar and your self urging you to urge powers at your disposal to quickly approve qualified labs in new york. Had a conversation with the governor of new york if they are ready to move. They need you to approve these including hospitals, private pe labs anclubs, other state facils and to permit both automated and manual. I want to stress that again if it is taking more time for the federal government to catch up state level, is Solid Movement and we need youyo to approve all these labs have facilities they could expand Testing Capacity by thousands per day. I dont know why they are waiting approval. Maybe you can address that in your comments that could expand capacity by thousands per day as may be throughout the country if only the federal government would get off the sidelines and approved the facilities. So in your remarks i would be most appreciated if you could tell me why its taking so long. Are there not enough people to check at the facilities . Are the facilities not adequate for up to your standard, we need to know. If the word im getting from i e governor is the people involved in this issue that they are ready to move, why arent they being approved. As covid19 comes closer to the pandemic status, we must do all we can to protect the public. I look forward to the discussion and again i thank you for the personal interaction we have and i appreciated the opportunity and i look forward to hearing from all of youou today. We look forward to the facts so that we can move as quickly as possible. This is an emergency. Thank you. Just a while ago the miami herald published a story right now the department of justice contacted the herald to say, and i quote, the signs shouldnt have been removed and its now been rectified. So the outcry against that really moves things around in. Your full testimony will be entered into the hearing and you are recognized for five minutes. Thank you very much, chairwoman and Ranking Member and obviously chairwoman thank you very much for letting us hear the distinguished members of the committee. The first thank you for your support inin the cbc. Your investment enables them to protect the health and safety of the American People and as we are seeing right now with covid19 and Infectious Diseases can emerge anywhere in the spread everywhere. We have slowed the spread of covid19 to the United States as a consequence of the impact of the investment in Public Health that has been there at the federal,an state, tribal level. Cdc has identified securing Global Health and ensuring domestic preparedness to eliminating the disease and ending epidemics as the top strategic priority is. We also identified the capabilities that support the entire agencyst programmatic efforts including the modern modernization, analytic systems and a stateoftheart laboratories. As well as building a Solid Foundation around the globe to address the Global Health security threats. Cdc has leveraged every one of these capabilities so far in the response to the covid19 outbreak. The president s fiscal year 21 budget provides 7 million to the c