July 17, 2020
The Honorable Alex M. Azar II, Secretary Department of Health and Human Services 200 Independence Avenue, N.W. Washington, DC 20201
Dear Secretary Azar,
We write regarding the Department of Health and Human Services July 10th document entitled “COVID-19 Guidance for Hospital Reporting and FAQs For Hospitals, Hospital Laboratory, and Acute Care Facility Data Reporting” which makes changes to how these facilities report COVID-19 data.
We’re troubled by reports that the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has been removed from the data collection process and that hospitals, hospital laboratory and acute care facilities are now required to report COVID-19 capacity and utilization data directly to the Department of Health and Human Services, and the information will no longer be available to the public. We respectfully request additional information regarding your agency’s current data reporting requirements and the changes reflected in the July 10th guidance.
The CDC remains our nation’s preeminent public health agency and is home to our nation’s best experts and expertise on public health data collection and analysis. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 public health emergency, CDC has been responsible for collecting data from health care facilities on COVID-19 hospitalizations, cases and availability of medical supplies. This information was previously collected through the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) which prior to the COVID-19 pandemic was the United States’ most widely used healthcare-associated infection tracking system. Hospitals had extensive experience using this reporting system, which was quickly adapted to the current public health emergency, and providers have indicated that transitioning to a new data reporting system amid the ongoing pandemic will be burdensome. We’re concerned that changing reporting requirements for facilities as COVID-19 cases increase across the country is a poor use of our health care workers time and resources and we want to better understand the current data reporting burden on health care providers and why the decision was made to transition from reporting to NHSN to reporting to the new TeleTracking and HHS Protect systems at this time.
In addition, NHSN data was publicly available, and to date, you have not guaranteed that data collected through this new reporting system will be made publicly available. This lack of transparency raises serious concerns about the accountability of your department at a time when the American people are seeking trustworthy information about the ongoing pandemic. We urge you to make the data collected, regardless of the reporting system, available publicly to aid in our understanding and response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Please respond to the following questions by July 31, 2020:
1. What agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services (i.e. Centers for Disease Control, Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) currently require hospitals, hospital laboratory and acute care facilities to report COVID-19 data?
2. What data, including the source and type of data and the frequency of reporting, is the Department of Health and Human Services currently collecting from hospitals, hospital laboratory, and acute care facilities?
3. Do any other Administration initiatives, such as the Coronavirus Task Force, currently require data reporting from hospitals, hospital laboratory and acute care Facilities? If so, what is the type and frequency of this reporting?
4. What arrangements are currently in place to allow the CDC to access and analyze the data now reported to TeleTracking and HHS Protect?
5. Will TeleTracking and HHS Protect data be shared with the public, including medical researchers, the press, and state and local partners, and if not, why?
6. Why is NHSN currently insufficient and what additional resources or Congressional authorization does CDC need to more effectively and efficiently carry out COVID-19 data reporting?
We encourage you to communicate proactively and directly with Members of Congress when your agency makes decisions of this nature during the ongoing public health emergency. It is imperative that your agency remain transparent and accountable as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to devastate our nation. We appreciate your attention to these questions and look forward to your prompt response.
Sincerely,
______Anna G. Eshoo Scott H. Peters Member of Congress Member of Congress
Donald S. Beyer Jr. Gilbert R. Cisneros, Jr. Member of Congress Member of Congress
Ami Bera, M.D. Lisa Blunt Rochester Member of Congress Member of Congress Jimmy Panetta André Carson Member of Congress Member of Congress
Tony Cárdenas Madeleine Dean Member of Congress Member of Congress
Jamie Raskin Robin L. Kelly Member of Congress Member of Congress
Lauren Underwood Susan Wild Member of Congress Member of Congress
Joe Courtney Doris Matsui Member of Congress Member of Congress
David Trone Nanette Diaz Barragán Member of Congress Member of Congress
Ann Kuster Sheila Jackson Lee Member of Congress Member of Congress
Sanford D. Bishop, Jr. Denny Heck Member of Congress Member of Congress
Gwen Moore Jim Cooper Member of Congress Member of Congress
Zoe Lofgren James R. Langevin Member of Congress Member of Congress
Nydia M. Velázquez Suzan DelBene Member of Congress Member of Congress
G. K. Butterfield Bill Foster Member of Congress Member of Congress
Thomas R. Suozzi Lucille Roybal-Allard Member of Congress Member of Congress
Darren Soto Rosa L. DeLauro Member of Congress Member of Congress
Kathleen M. Rice Eliot Engel Member of Congress Member of Congress
Kim Schrier, M.D. John Garamendi Member of Congress Member of Congress
Brenda L. Lawrence Mark DeSaulnier Member of Congress Member of Congress
Derek Kilmer Jerry McNerney Member of Congress Member of Congress
Chrissy Houlahan Ed Case Member of Congress Member of Congress
Joseph P. Kennedy, III David E. Price Member of Congress Member of Congress
Henry C. “Hank” Johnson, Jr. Susan Davis Member of Congress Member of Congress
Eddie Bernice Johnson Colin Z. Allred Member of Congress Member of Congress
Linda T. Sánchez Katie Porter Member of Congress Member of Congress
Raul Ruiz, M.D. Grace F. Napolitano Member of Congress Member of Congress
Ted Deutch Terri A. Sewell Member of Congress Member of Congress
TJ Cox Sean Casten Member of Congress Member of Congress
Veronica Escobar Abigail D. Spanberger Member of Congress Member of Congress
Alma S. Adams, Ph.D. Suzanne Bonamici Member of Congress Member of Congress
Al Lawson John P. Sarbanes Member of Congress Member of Congress
Stephen F. Lynch Gerald E. Connolly Member of Congress Member of Congress
James P. McGovern Peter A. DeFazio Member of Congress Member of Congress
Marcia L. Fudge Jackie Speier Member of Congress Member of Congress
Paul Tonko Bobby L. Rush Member of Congress Member of Congress
Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan Debbie Dingell Member of Congress Member of Congress
Mark Takano Brian Higgins Member of Congress Member of Congress
Tulsi Gabbard Angie Craig Member of Congress Member of Congress
Filemon Vela Brad Sherman Member of Congress Member of Congress
Adam B. Schiff Rick Larsen Member of Congress Member of Congress
Earl Blumenauer Ted W. Lieu Member of Congress Member of Congress
Debbie Wasserman Schultz Dina Titus Member of Congress Member of Congress