Title 42, The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-110
§242c Appointment and Authority of the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Title 42 › CHAPTER 6A — PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICE › SUBCHAPTER II — GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES › Part A — Research and Investigations › § 242c
Summary
The President must pick the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Senate must approve that person. That Director also must lead the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry. The Director runs and sets policy for the CDC, coordinates its centers, institutes, and offices, and works to prevent, detect, identify, control, and investigate diseases, injuries, and workplace or environmental hazards at home and abroad. The Director must make and update a CDC Strategic Plan not later than 1 year after December 29, 2022, and at least every 4 years after that, post it on the CDC website, and send it to four Congressional committees (Senate HELP and Appropriations; House Energy and Commerce and Appropriations). The plan must name priorities (for example, preventing disease and injury, helping State, local, and Tribal health departments, stopping outbreaks, and improving public health capacity like data, labs, and workforce), describe needed capabilities and progress, and explain communications and partnerships. Individual CDC centers must align their plans with the CDC Strategic Plan. Each year the Director must appear at hearings before the Senate HELP Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee to report on preparedness, responses to emergencies, CDC activities, and plans for the year ahead. A committee chair can waive that requirement for a year. If national security matters are sensitive, those parts can be discussed in a closed hearing that follows the open one. For certain projects, the Director may use special agreements instead of regular contracts or grants for work on infectious disease research, biosurveillance, modeling, and preparedness. Any project expected to cost more than $40,000,000 needs a written finding from the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources saying the special agreement is essential; that finding cannot be delegated. The Director and the Secretary must also create guidelines for using these special agreements, including audit rules.
Full Legal Text
Title 42, §242c
The Public Health and Welfare, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)In general
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (referred to in this section as the “CDC”) shall be headed by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (referred to in this section as the “Director”), who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. Such individual shall also serve as the Administrator of the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry consistent with section 9604(i) of this title. The Director shall perform functions provided for in subsection (b) and such other functions as the Secretary may prescribe.
(b)Functions
The Secretary, acting through the Director, shall—
(1)implement and exercise applicable authorities and responsibilities provided for in this chapter or other applicable law related to the investigation, detection, identification, prevention, or control of diseases or conditions to preserve and improve public health domestically and globally and address injuries and occupational and environmental hazards, as appropriate;
(2)be responsible for the overall direction of the CDC and for the establishment and implementation of policies related to the management and operation of programs and activities within the CDC;
(3)coordinate and oversee the operation of centers, institutes, and offices within the CDC;
(4)support, in consultation with the heads of such centers, institutes, and offices, program coordination across such centers, institutes, and offices, including through priority setting reviews and the development of strategic plans, to reduce unnecessary duplication and encourage collaboration between programs;
(5)oversee the development, implementation, and updating of the strategic plan established pursuant to subsection (c);
(6)ensure that appropriate strategic planning, including the use of performance metrics, is conducted by such centers, institutes, and offices to facilitate and improve CDC programs and activities;
(7)communicate, including through convening annual meetings, with public and private entities regarding relevant public health programs and activities, and, as applicable, the strategic plan established pursuant to subsection (c).
(c)Strategic plan
(1)In general
Not later than 1 year after December 29, 2022, and at least every 4 years thereafter, the Director shall develop and submit to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce and the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives, and post on the website of the CDC, a coordinated strategy to provide strategic direction and facilitate collaboration across the centers, institutes, and offices within the CDC. Such strategy shall be known as the “CDC Strategic Plan”.
(2)Requirements
The CDC Strategic Plan shall—
(A)identify strategic priorities and objectives related to—
(i)preventing, reducing, and eliminating the spread of communicable and noncommunicable diseases or conditions, and addressing injuries, and occupational and environmental hazards;
(ii)supporting the efforts of State, local, and Tribal health departments to prevent and reduce the prevalence of the diseases or conditions under clause (i);
(iii)containing, mitigating, and ending disease outbreaks;
(iv)enhancing global and domestic public health capacity, capabilities, and preparedness, including public health data, surveillance, workforce, and laboratory capacity and safety; and
(v)other priorities, as established by the Director;
(B)describe the capacity and capabilities necessary to achieve the priorities and objectives under subparagraph (A), and progress towards achieving such capacity and capabilities, as appropriate; and
(C)include a description of how the CDC Strategic Plan incorporates—
(i)strategic communications;
(ii)partnerships with private sector entities, and State, local, and Tribal health departments, and other public sector entities, as appropriate; and
(iii)coordination with other agencies and offices of the Department of Health and Human Services and other Federal departments and agencies, as appropriate.
(3)Use of plans
Strategic plans developed and updated by the centers, institutes, and offices of the CDC shall be prepared regularly and in such a manner that such plans will be informed by the CDC Strategic Plan developed and updated under this subsection.
(d)Appearances before Congress
(1)In general
Each fiscal year, the Director shall appear before the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives at hearings on topics such as—
(A)support for State, local, and Tribal public health preparedness and responses to any recent or ongoing public health emergency, including—
(i)any objectives, activities, or initiatives that have been carried out, or are planned, by the Director to prepare for, or respond to, the public health emergency, including relevant strategic communications or partnerships and any gaps or challenges identified in such objectives, activities, or initiatives;
(ii)any objectives and planned activities for the upcoming fiscal year to address gaps in, or otherwise improve, State, local, and Tribal public health preparedness; and
(iii)other potential all-hazard threats that the Director is preparing to address;
(B)activities related to public health and functions of the Director described in subsection (b); and
(C)updates on other relevant activities supported or conducted by the CDC, or in collaboration or coordination with the heads of other Federal departments, agencies, or stakeholders, as appropriate.
(2)Clarifications
(A)Waiver authority
The Chair of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate or the Chair of the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives may waive the requirements of paragraph (1) for the applicable fiscal year with respect to the applicable Committee.
(B)Scope of requirements
The requirements of this subsection shall not be construed to impact the appearance of other Federal officials or the Director at hearings of either Committee described in paragraph (1) at other times and for purposes other than the times and purposes described in paragraph (1).
(3)Closed hearings
Information that is not appropriate for disclosure during an open hearing under paragraph (1) in order to protect national security may instead be discussed in a closed hearing that immediately follows the open hearing.
(e)Other transactions
(1)In general
In carrying out activities of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Director may enter into transactions other than a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement for purposes of infectious disease research, biosurveillance, infectious disease modeling, and public health preparedness and response.
(2)Written determination
With respect to a project that is expected to cost the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention more than $40,000,000, the Director may exercise the authority under paragraph (1) only upon a written determination by the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources of the Department of Health and Human Services, that the use of such authority is essential to promoting the success of the project. The authority of the Assistant Secretary for Financial Resources under this paragraph may not be delegated.
(3)Guidelines
The Director, in consultation with the Secretary, shall establish guidelines regarding the use of the authority under paragraph (1). Such guidelines shall include auditing requirements.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
References in Text
section 9604(i) of this title, referred to in subsec. (a), was in the original “section 104(i) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act”, and was translated as reading “section 104(i) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980”, meaning section 104(i) of Pub. L. 96–510, to reflect the probable intent of Congress.
Prior Provisions
A prior section 242c, act
July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title III, § 305, as added
July 3, 1956, ch. 510, § 3, 70 Stat. 490; amended Oct. 30, 1970, Pub. L. 91–515, title II, § 210, 84 Stat. 1303;
June 18, 1973, Pub. L. 93–45, title I, § 103, 87 Stat. 91;
July 23, 1974, Pub. L. 93–353, title I, § 104, 88 Stat. 363; Oct. 8, 1976, Pub. L. 94–460, title III, § 301, 90 Stat. 1960; Nov. 9, 1978, Pub. L. 95–623, § 4, 92 Stat. 3445; Aug. 13, 1981, Pub. L. 97–35, title IX, § 919(a)(1), (2)(A), (3), (b)(1), (c), (d), 95 Stat. 565, 566; Oct. 30, 1984, Pub. L. 98–551, §§ 5(a), (b), 6, 98 Stat. 2817, 2819, 2820; Oct. 7, 1985, Pub. L. 99–117, § 6, 99 Stat. 492; Nov. 14, 1986, Pub. L. 99–660, title III, § 311(b)(2), 100 Stat. 3779; Dec. 1, 1987, Pub. L. 100–177, title I, §§ 101, 102, 101 Stat. 987; Nov. 4, 1988, Pub. L. 100–607, title II, § 204(1), 102 Stat. 3079; Nov. 18, 1988, Pub. L. 100–690, title II, § 2620(b)(3), 102 Stat. 4244; Aug. 16, 1989, Pub. L. 101–93, § 5(e)(3), 103 Stat. 612, related to National Center for Health Services Research and Health Care Technology Assessment, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 101–239, title VI, § 6103(d)(1)(A), Dec. 19, 1989, 103 Stat. 2205.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Effective Date
Pub. L. 117–328, div. FF, title II, § 2101(b), Dec. 29, 2022, 136 Stat. 5709, provided that: “The first sentence of section 305(a) of the Public Health Service Act [42 U.S.C. 242c(a)], as added by subsection (a), shall take effect on January 20, 2025.”
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
42 U.S.C. § 242c
Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare
Last Updated
Sep 23, 2026
Release point: 119-110