H.R. 8644: Secure America’s Medicine Act of 2020

116th Congress · introduced 2020-10-20 · Health · Latest: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2020-10-20 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Smith, Jason [R-MO-8] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Secure America’s Medicine Act of 2020

Plain summary

Secure America's Medicine Act of 2020 This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop and annually update, in collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security and others, a list of critical medications that the federal government should ensure are available in the event of a public health emergency. HHS must develop an initial list and report to Congress on its rationale for including or excluding certain medications. For annual updates, HHS must solicit public input on the contents of the list by consulting with relevant stakeholders and through the Federal Register. In addition, HHS must evaluate the factors that impact the supply of each medication on the list and identify any that may not be available in sufficient quantities in the event of a public health emergency. For any medications with insufficient availability, HHS must take certain actions to include them in the Strategic National Stockpile, and the bill makes changes to the administration of the stockpile to allow HHS to enter into additional types of contracts to acquire these medicines. The bill also requires the Public Health Emergency Medical Countermeasures Enterprise (which coordinates federal preparedness efforts with respect to medical countermeasures) and the Government Accountability Office to address these contracts in their activities and reports related to the stockpile. HHS must also report to Congress on barriers to, and make recommendations to promote, domestic production of critical medications.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Secure America’s Medicine Act of 2020

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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The strongest published arguments

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Smith, Jason [R-MO-8] · 1 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

Bradley Scott Schneider (D-IL)

Sponsor's campaign money: Rep. Smith, Jason [R-MO-8] reported raising $6.3 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Federal Register: The official daily publication of the U.S. government for agency rules, proposed rules, public notices and presidential documents.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-116hr8644.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/116/hr>

Record fed-us-cong116-hr8644 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116