,i #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #ddgc ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,july #af1 #bjbe,mr4 ,weber of ,texas 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,pappas1 and ,ms4 ,tenney7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,energy and ,commerce ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services to establish a bilateral research and innovation program to facilitate and coordinate efforts between the ,united ,states and ,israel in certain health-related areas1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,united ,states-,israel ,bilateral ,innovation for ,research and ,development in ,health ,act of #bjbe or the ,,bird ,health ,act of #bjbe4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,binational ,industrial ,research and ,development ,foundation 7in this ,act referred to as the ,,bird ,foundation7 was established in #aigg as a joint initiative between the ,united ,states and ,israel and has become a model for successful bilateral research and development collaboration4 7#b7 ,since its inception1 the ,,bird ,foundation has approved over #a1jjj projects with a total investment exceeding #ejj million1 generating over #aj billion in sales4 7#c7 ,in the past decade1 approximately #cj percent of the projects approved by the ,,bird ,foundation have been related to health1 biotechnology1 life sciences1 medical devices1 diagnostics1 and telemedicine4 7#d7 ,the ,united ,states and ,israel have successfully expanded the activities of the ,bird ,foundation into dedicated programs targeting specific industrial needs1 including energy1 cyber1 and homeland security4 7#e7 ,the ,united ,states and ,israel signed a health1 medical1 and scientific cooperation agreement on ,january #d1 #bjaf1 which is designed to foster collaboration in various health-related areas4 7#f7 ,in #bjbj1 ,congress allocated #b million to establish a bilateral collaboration program with the ,israel for the development of health-related technologies4 #c4 ,establishment of ,,bird ,health ,program 7a7 ,establishment 7#a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall enter into a cooperative agreement to establish a bilateral research and innovation program 7in this ,act referred to as the ,,bird ,health ,program7 to facilitate and coordinate efforts between the ,united ,states and ,israel to expand and enhance collaboration on-- 7,a7 the development of healthcare products and services2 and 7,b7 the delivery of such products and services to individuals in need4 7#b7 ,coordination ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall carry out this subsection in coordination with the ,secretary of ,commerce and the ,executive ,director of the ,,bird ,foundation4 7#c7 ,applicability of requirements ,the authority provided by this subsection shall be subject to any applicable requirements of law and any applicable agreements or understandings between the ,united ,states and ,israel4 7b7 ,program administration1 goals1 and components ,the cooperation agreement referred to in subsection 7a7 shall provide for the following3 7#a7 ,implementation partner ,the ,,bird ,health ,program shall be administered by the ,,bird ,foundation1 following the same model used for ,united ,states-,israel collaborations in energy1 cyber1 and homeland security4 7#b7 ,governance ,the program shall be jointly governed by representatives from the ,department of ,health and ,human ,services and the ,ministry of ,health of ,israel1 who shall actively participate in defining focus areas and selecting projects to receive funding4 7#c7 ,program goals ,the goals of the ,,bird ,health ,program shall be-- 7,a7 to facilitate joint research and development projects between ,united ,states and ,israeli institutions1 companies1 and academic organizations in the field of health technologies2 7,b7 to support the commercialization and deployment of innovative healthcare products and services1 including-- 7i7 medical devices and diagnostics2 7ii7 pharmaceuticals and biological products2 7iii7 genomics and personalized medicine2 7iv7 telemedicine and digital health technologies2 7v7 artificial intelligence for healthcare applications2 7vi7 infectious disease prevention2 7vii7 vaccine development2 and 7viii7 epidemiological research2 and 7,c7 to strengthen health-related ecosystems by fostering ,united ,states-,israel partnerships in healthcare technology development4 7#d7 ,program components 7,a7 ,in general ,the ,,bird ,health ,program shall provide funding for the following3 7i7 ,research and development ,programs and activities for research and development1 including-- 7,i7 joint research projects between ,united ,states and ,israeli institutions and companies2 7,,ii7 promoting collaboration in areas such as medical device technology1 pharmaceuticals 7including biological products1 genomics1 and innovative digital health care solutions7 and health care systems management 7including a special focus on early-stage clinical trials72 7,,iii7 with respect to biological products1 supporting-- 7aa7 innovation2 7bb7 process optimization2 and 7cc7 the development of advanced manufacturing techniques that can enhance productivity1 reduce costs1 and improve product quality2 and 7,,iv7 work toward developing a framework for sharing health data for research purposes with the ,ministry of ,health of ,israel4 7ii7 ,innovation and startup ecosystem ,programs and activities for health-related ecosystems1 including-- 7,i7 fostering collaboration between ,united ,states and ,israeli startup companies and other companies in the healthcare sector2 7,,ii7 facilitating innovative technology acceptance by the marketplace2 7,,iii7 facilitating mechanisms for technology transfer and joint venture opportunities2 and 7,,iv7 supporting innovation hubs to accelerate the development and commercialization of ,united ,states healthcare technologies in the ,israeli market1 including encouraging cybersecurity standards for sharing data1 promoting patient privacy1 and encouraging research4 7iii7 ,health care system strengthening ,programs and activities for health care system strengthening1 including facilitating sharing best practices1 knowledge1 and skills in areas such as clinical care and health care management4 7,b7 ,telemedicine and digital health cooperation ,the ,,bird ,health ,program shall provide funding for programs and activities for telemedicine and digital health cooperation for establishing initiatives-- 7i7 to enhance telemedicine infrastructure2 7ii7 to promote interoperability between ,united ,states and ,israeli health care systems2 and 7iii7 to facilitate collaboration on digital health technologies1 data analytics1 and cybersecurity4 7,c7 ,disease prevention initiatives ,the ,,bird ,health ,program shall provide funding for collaborating in disease prevention1 including joint efforts to combat infectious diseases1 develop vaccines1 and share epidemiological data4 7,d7 ,biological product manufacturing ,the ,,bird ,health ,program shall provide funding for-- 7i7 promoting biological product manufacturing2 7ii7 establishing joint manufacturing facilities for biological products in facilities in the ,united ,states that leverage the strengths and expertise of both countries2 7iii7 pursuing accelerated development of life-saving treatments and new sources of nutrition that are both healthier and more available at an affordable cost2 and 7iv7 supply chain resilience through strategic collaboration to identify and develop contingency plans to mitigate biological product supply disruptions4 7#e7 ,project selection criteria ,projects selected for funding under the ,,bird ,health program shall be evaluated based on-- 7,a7 technical merit and innovation2 7,b7 commercial potential and economic impact2 7,c7 relevance to health priorities identified by both governments2 7,d7 strength of the ,united ,states-,israel partnership2 and 7,e7 potential to address unmet medical needs4 #d4 ,funding and implementation 7a7 ,funding 7#a7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated to the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services to carry out this ,act #aj1jjj1jjj for each of fiscal years #bjbf through #bjcb4 7#b7 ,administration of funds ,subject to the terms and conditions of the cooperative agreement referred to in section #c7;a77#a71 funds made available under this section shall be administered through the ,,bird ,foundation1 with oversight from ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services and the ,secretary of ,commerce4 7b7 ,implementation timeline 7#a7 ,program framework ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall submit to ,congress a report on the progress made in establishing the program framework4 7#b7 ,proposals ,not later than one year after the date of establishment of the program framework1 the ,,bird ,health ,program shall begin accepting proposals and allocating funds for eligible projects4 #e4 ,reporting and evaluation 7a7 ,annual report to ,congress ,not later than one year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 and annually thereafter1 the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall submit to ,congress an annual report detailing the establishment and implementation of the ,,bird ,health ,program1 including-- 7#a7 the progress of funded projects and their impact on healthcare innovation2 7#b7 the economic and scientific benefits resulting from ,united ,states-,israel collaborations2 and 7#c7 any policy recommendations to enhance the effectiveness of the ,,bird ,health ,program4 7b7 ,program ,review ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall conduct1 and submit to ,congress1 a comprehensive review of the success of the ,,bird ,health ,program every three years1 with recommendations for renewal or expansion4 #f4 ,health technology defined ,in this ,act1 the term health technology includes a medical device1 pharmaceutical1 digital health solution1 diagnostic driven by artificial intelligence1 and biologic4