U.S. Congress

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Related Agencies

U.S. Congress

Congressional Budget Office (CBO)
The Congressional Budget Office provides Congress with nonpartisan research and analysis needed for economic and budget decisions and with the information and estimates required for Congressional budget process.  Budget documents and supplements or amendments are available on this site.  The CBO has recently established a Panel of Health Advisers to examine the frontier research in health policy and to advise the agency on its analyses of health care issues.

General Accountability Office (GAO)
The GAO is an independent, nonpartisan agency that works for Congress investigating how the federal government spends taxpayers’ dollars.  GAO issues numerous reports and staff are often called before Congress to report on findings. GAO reports are catalogued and available online.

United States House of Representatives
This is the homepage for information about the House of Representatives.  Resources include a a directory of members, information on congressional committees, a calendar of hearings in the House, and links to other governmental pages.  The committees listed below all have Congressional oversight on key areas of health policy.  Individual committee sites provide access to transcripts and relevant reports from hearings.

House Committee on Appropriations
The Appropriations Committee makes recommendations for allocations of funding to federal agencies and programs that receive federal support.  

House Committee on the Budget
The Budget Committee is responsible for preparing the House of Representatives’ version of the Federal budget plan each year.  Once the Committee approves a budget, it is presented to the full House for a vote.   Following approval by the full House, the Committee is responsible for negotiating with the Senate Budget Committee to prepare a reconciliation bill with the Senate budget proposal.

House Committee on Energy and Commerce
The Committee on Energy and Commerce maintains principal legislative oversight on issues relating to telecommunications, consumer protection, food and drug safety, public health, air quality and environmental health, the supply and delivery of energy, and interstate and foreign commerce in general.    Among its areas of oversight are the Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP health insurance programs.

House Committee on Ways and Means
This Committee prepares legislation related to federal fiscal policy as well as many federal health programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, and the Title X family planning program.

Office of the Clerk: U.S. House of Representatives
The Office of the Clerk site makes available to the public copies of House documents, including public disclosure forms, and historical information about the House of Representatives and its Members and Committees. 

United States Senate
This is the homepage for information about the U.S. Senate.  It provides access to senate calendar, member directory, information on Senate committees and subcommittees, and links to other government pages.

Senate Committee on Appropriations
The Appropriations Committee writes the Senate legislation that allocates federal funds to government agencies, departments, and organizations on an annual basis.  
 
Senate Committee on Budget
The Budget Committee is responsible for first drafting Congress' annual budget plan and monitoring action on the budget for the Federal Government.  Following approval by the full Senate, the Committee is responsible for negotiating a reconciliation bill with the House Budget Committee.

Senate Committee on Finance
This committee oversees health programs authorized under the Social Security Act and health programs financed by a specific tax or trust fund, including Medicaid, Medicare, SCHIP, welfare, SSI, maternal and child health, and ERISA.

Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs
The Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee has jurisdiction over archives of the US, budget and accounting measures, and census collection and statistics. 

Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
The Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee is the primary point of legislation related to health care in the Senate.  The Committee’s jurisdiction extends to measures relating to education, labor, health, and public welfare, aging, child labor, occupational safety and health, private pension plans, and wages and hours of labor.

Thomas: Legislative Information on the Internet
The Library of Congress operates Thomas, a public, online catalog of Federal legislation, records of Congressional votes, the Congressional record, and several other Congressional materials.  Visitors can search for specific pieces of legislation by subject matter, bill number, committee, or member of Congress.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services   Back to Top

United States Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS)
DHHS is the federal department responsible for protecting the health, safety and well-being of the U.S. population and providing several vital human services. DHHS activities span a broad range with some departments delivering services and assistance programs and others coordinating and leading public health research.  DHHS departments and agencies oversee many programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, and TANF, the federal welfare program.   Below are some of the key divisions and offices within DHHS:

Administration on Aging (AOA)
AoA is one of the nation's largest providers of home- and community-based care for older persons and their caregivers.  AoA operates satellites across the country that serve as contact centers for providers and agencies involved in caregiving.  AoA produces statistics on aging and historical population estimates from questionnaires and other original research.

Administration for Children and Families (ACF)
ACF is responsible for federal programs that promote the economic and social well-being of families, children, individuals, and communities, including the federal welfare program (TANF), Head Start, and the Center for Faith-Based Initiatives.  ACF prepares many data and statistical reports in the areas of children’s health and  welfare policy.

Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ)
AHRQ supports research designed to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans.  In addition to providing research grants, AHRQ houses several important datasets including Medical Expenditure Panel Survey (MEPS), Healthcare Cost & Utilization Project (HCUP), and the HIV Cost and Services Utilization Study.

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ASTDR)
ATSDR monitors the impact of hazardous environmental factors on public health.  ATSDR supports research and dissemination of information, and provides trainings on the effects of hazardous substances.  ATSDR operates a hazardous substances surveillance site, and national exposure registry.

AIDS.gov
This website is a gateway to federal government information on HIV/AIDS programs and resources, such as statistics, prevention and education, testing, research, and funding opportunities.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS)
Formerly known as the Health Care Financing Administration (HCFA), CMS administers several public health programs, including Medicare, Medicaid, State Children’s Health Insurance (SCHIP), Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA).  CMS produces a broad range of quantitative information, including data on Medicare and Medicaid spending, enrollment, and claims data, and estimates of future spending and program growth.  CMS also prepares the annual Health Accounts, which are estimates and projections of national health expenditures.

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
FDA is charged with monitoring the safety and efficacy of foods and cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, biological products, and medical devices.  FDA is responsible for approval of new products as well as ongoing monitoring of products already on the market.  In addition to its regulatory functions, FDA provides has a number of research tools and raw databases related to pharmaceutical, biomedical, and food products.

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
HRSA is the federal agency charged with providing access to essential health care services for underserved populations, including people who are low-income, uninsured or who live in rural areas or urban neighborhoods where health care is scarce.  HRSA operates several important safety net programs, including the Bureau of Primary Care and Federally Qualified Community Health Centers, the Ryan White Care Act and AIDS Drug Assistance Program (ADAP), and the Maternal and Child Health Bureau.  HRSA provides grants to communities across the countries to operate local safety-net services.  HRSA also collects data and statistics in the areas of HIV/AIDS, primary health care, maternal and child health, rural health services, and health workforce.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) serves as the national agency for protecting public health. CDC is responsible for core public health functions, including disease prevention and control, securing environmental health, and health promotion and education activities designed to improve the health of the people of the United States.  Key divisions within CDC include:

Division of Sexually Transmitted Diseases
The Division of Sexually Transmitted Diseases assists health departments, health-care providers, and non-governmental organizations in monitoring and tracking STDs and serves as the national center for disseminating surveillance data.

HIV/AIDS
CDC works with community, state, national and international partners in surveillance, research, prevention and evaluation activities.  This site is the national clearinghouse for HIV/AIDS reports, statistics and trial results on domestic and international levels.  Many data are stratified for different subpopulations/ ethnicities and data for states and communities are also available.

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report
The MMWR is a weekly journal that contains data on specific diseases as reported by state and territorial health departments and reports on infectious and chronic diseases, environmental hazards, natural or human-generated disasters, occupational diseases and injuries, and intentional and unintentional injuries.    The journal is available at no cost online.

National Center for Health Statistics
NCHS is the national repository for a broad range of vital and health statistics including on abortion, death/ mortality rate, aging health trends, injury data, alcoholism, and asthma & allergies.  In addition to statistics, NCHS sponsors a number of population-based surveys on health and the health care system, and also provides information about special activities and initiatives to improve access to-- and the quality of--health statistics information.

Office on Women’s Health (OWH)
OWH is the government's champion and focal point for women's health issues, and works to redress inequities in research, health care services, and education that have historically placed the health of women at risk.  OWH conducts public education activities about a range of women’s health topics and has several outreach centers and sites across the country to help disseminate information broadly.  OWH outlines policy priorities in women’s health that it uses to guide its activities and that it presents to DHHS.

Office of Minority Health (OMH)
OMH aims to improve and protect the health of racial and ethnic minority populations through the development of health policies and programs that will eliminate health disparities.  OMH provides funding and grants for minority health research/ initiatives, collects data and statistics on racial and ethnic disparities, and houses a database of key policy organizations.

Office of Rural Health Policy (ORHP)
The ORHP promotes better healthcare for Americans living in rural areas.  The ORHP runs a series of research centers around the country that conduct research and collect data.  The research can be accessed at the Rural Health Research Gateway.

Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
OCR’s mission is to ensure that people receive services from HHS programs without facing unlawful discrimination.  OCR develops standards and regulations for delivery of DHHS services and programs and serves as a liaison between consumers and the agency for any problems with unlawful discrimination.

Office of Inspector General (OIG)
OIG is the internal auditing agency for DHHS.  OIG conducts internal investigations and inspections and reports annually on the Department’s performance in meeting its goals.

Indian Health Service (IHS)
IHS provides health services to 1.6 million American Indians and Alaska Natives of more than 550 federally recognized tribes.  In addition to provision of services, IHS collects information on the populations it serves and manages several databases on health status of Native Americans.

Office of Population Affairs (OPA)
OPA administers the federal family planning program, which operates the Title X family planning clinics that provide publicly-supported family planning services to millions of low-income people.

Office of the Surgeon General (OSG)
The Surgeon General serves as an advisor to the President and the Secretary of DHHS on a wide range of public health, medical, and health system issues.  In this capacity, the Surgeon General researches critical public health issues and often issues reports that serve as a springboard for greater awareness and action.  Among the Surgeon General’s official duties is direction of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps, a division of DHHS that responds to disease outbreaks around the world and helps train personnel for the U.S. public health infrastructure.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
SAMHSA works to improve the quality and availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment and mental health services.  SAMHSA is a grant-making organization as well as a clearinghouse of treatment and preventions guidelines, reports and databases on mental health and substance abuse topics.

Related Agencies     Back to Top

These government offices provide a broad range of information that is used in health policy analysis.

Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA)
The BEA is a division of the Department of Commerce that issues economic analyses on a range of health financing and coverage measures.

Department of Justice (DOJ)
The DOJ is the federal department in charge of law enforcement.  DOJ produces information, reports and data on violence, including youth violence, domestic violence, and gun violence.

Department of Labor (DOL)
The DOL oversees the working conditions of the U.S. labor force.  DOL monitors a number of health policy issues, including employer-sponsored health insurance, occupational illness and injury, and workplace standards for people with disabilities.

Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
The Office of Management and Budget is the executive branch agency that oversees the federal budget.  OMB prepares the President’s annual budget proposal, supervises its administration in executive branch departments, and analyzes the budgetary impact of proposed federal legislation.  OMB produces summaries of agency budgets as well as data on the overall federal budget.

Regulation.gov
Regulations.gov is the U.S. Government web site that accepts public participation in Federal rulemaking.  Through this site, the public can find, review, and submit comments on Federal documents that are open for comment and published in the Federal Register, the Government’s legal newspaper.

U.S. Census Bureau
The Census Bureau collects and maintains population statistics on a host of topics, including health insurance coverage through the annual Current Population Survey and the  monthly Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP).  The surveys differ in length and detail of the questionnaire, methodology, and, research focus..  The Census Bureau also prepares report briefs on specific health policy topics.