HF 4617

as introduced - 91st Legislature (2019 - 2020) Posted on 04/30/2020 09:42am

A bill for an act
relating to public health; appropriating money to be awarded as a grant to advance
research, development, and implementation of tests necessary to respond to the
COVID-19 pandemic.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1. new text begin APPROPRIATION; COVID-19 TESTING RESEARCH AND
DEVELOPMENT GRANT.
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new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Appropriation. new text end

new text begin $20,000,000 is appropriated in fiscal year 2020 from
the general fund to the commissioner of health to award as a grant for the purpose of research,
development, and implementation of tests necessary to effectively respond to the COVID-19
pandemic. This is a onetime appropriation.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Grant program. new text end

new text begin (a) To be eligible for a grant under this section, an applicant
must be a Minnesota-based clinical research institution that is a national referral center
engaged in providing patient care, medical research, and medical education.
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new text begin (b) A grant received under this section must be used to research, develop, and implement
SARS-CoV-2 testing, including but not limited to:
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new text begin (1) rapid response testing;
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new text begin (2) quantitative droplet digital diagnostic testing;
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new text begin (3) serologic and neutralizing antibody testing;
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new text begin (4) viral antigen testing with mass spectrometry;
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new text begin (5) immune response and stratification testing;
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new text begin (6) SARS-CoV-2 point-of-care testing;
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new text begin (7) SARS-CoV-2 tissue testing; and
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new text begin (8) next-generation sequencing of COVID-19 patients.
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new text begin (c) An eligible grantee must have the ability to establish a team comprised of clinicians,
pathologists, clinical laboratory scientists, and business development professionals to interact
with experts in infectious disease, virology, microbiology, research, and other clinical
laboratories to provide the most efficient response through research, development, and
implementation of SARS-CoV-2 tests necessary to diagnose and effectively treat patients,
identify individuals who may be able to return to work, and aid in the development of a
usable vaccine.
new text end

new text begin (d) A grantee that receives funds under this section must agree to provide:
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new text begin (1) priority processing of tests received from Minnesota providers;
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new text begin (2) free testing and support to all tribal nations within Minnesota; and
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new text begin (3) support to statewide access to serologic testing as testing becomes available.
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new text begin (e) If the commissioner determines that the grantee has used grant funds for purposes
that are not authorized under this section, the commissioner may recover from the grantee
any money previously paid and used by the grantee for the unauthorized purpose.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 3. new text end

new text begin Assistance from nonstate sources. new text end

new text begin If a grantee receives funds from a nonstate
source for the research, development, or implementation of testing described in this section,
the grantee must notify the commissioner of the amount received from the nonstate source.
If the commissioner determines that the total amount the grantee received under this section
and from the nonstate source exceeds the costs of the research, development, and
implementation of the testing, the grantee must pay the commissioner the amount that
exceeds the cost up to the amount of funding provided under this section. Any money paid
to the commissioner under this subdivision must be deposited into the general fund.
new text end

new text begin EFFECTIVE DATE. new text end

new text begin This section is effective the day following final enactment.
new text end