§247e. Hansen's disease program

(a) Care and treatment

The Secretary-

(1) shall provide care and treatment (including outpatient care) without charge at the Gillis W. Long Hansen's Disease Center in Carville, Louisiana, to any person suffering from Hansen's disease who needs and requests care and treatment for that disease; and

(2) may provide for the care and treatment (including outpatient care) of Hansen's disease without charge for any person who requests such care and treatment.

(b) Payments to Board of Health of Hawaii

The Secretary shall make payments to the Board of Health of Hawaii for the care and treatment (including outpatient care) in its facilities of persons suffering from Hansen's disease at a rate, determined from time to time by the Secretary, which shall, subject to the availability of appropriations, be approximately equal to the operating cost per patient of those facilities, except that the rate determined by the Secretary shall not be greater than the comparable operating cost per Hansen's disease patient at the Gillis W. Long Hansen's Disease Center in Carville, Louisiana.

(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title III, §320, formerly §331, 58 Stat. 698 ; June 25, 1948, ch. 654, §4, 62 Stat. 1018 ; June 25, 1952, ch. 460, 66 Stat. 157 ; July 12, 1960, Pub. L. 86–624, §29(b), 74 Stat. 419 ; renumbered §339, Oct. 12, 1976, Pub. L. 94–484, title IV, §407(b)(2), 90 Stat. 2268 ; renumbered §320, and amended Nov. 10, 1978, Pub. L. 95–626, title I, §105(a), 92 Stat. 3560 ; July 10, 1979, Pub. L. 96–32, §7(b), 93 Stat. 84 ; Oct. 7, 1985, Pub. L. 99–117, §2(a), 99 Stat. 491 .)

Codification

Section was classified to section 255 of this title prior to its renumbering by Pub. L. 95–626.

Amendments

1985-Pub. L. 99–117 substituted "Hansen's disease program" for "Receipt, apprehension, detention, treatment, and release of lepers" in section catchline.

Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 99–117 amended subsec. (a) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (a) read as follows: "The Service shall, in accordance with regulations, receive into any hospital of the Service suitable for his accommodation any person afflicted with leprosy who presents himself for care, detention, or treatment, or who may be apprehended under subsection (b) of this section or section 264 of this title, and any person afflicted with leprosy duly consigned to the care of the Service by the proper health authority of any State. The Surgeon General is authorized, upon the request of any health authority, to send for any person within the jurisdiction of such authority who is afflicted with leprosy and to convey such person to the appropriate hospital for detention and treatment. When the transportation of any such person is undertaken for the protection of the public health the expense of such removal shall be met from funds available for the maintenance of hospitals of the Service. Such funds shall also be available, subject to regulations, for transportation of recovered indigent leper patients to their homes, including subsistence allowance while traveling. When so provided in appropriations available for any fiscal year for the maintenance of hospitals of the Service, the Surgeon General is authorized and directed to make payments to the Board of Health of Hawaii for the care and treatment in its facilities of persons afflicted with leprosy at a per diem rate, determined from time to time by the Surgeon General, which shall, subject to the availability of appropriations, be approximately equal to the per diem operating cost per patient of such facilities, except that such per diem rate shall not be greater than the comparable per diem operating cost per patient at the National Leprosarium, Carville, Louisiana."

Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 99–117 amended subsec. (b) generally. Prior to amendment, subsec. (b) read as follows: "The Surgeon General may provide by regulation for the apprehension, detention, treatment, and release of persons being treated by the Service for leprosy."

1979-Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 96–32 substituted "apprehended under subsection (b) of this section or section 264 of this title" for "apprehended under section 256 or 264 of this title".

1978-Pub. L. 95–626 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsec. (b).

1960-Pub. L. 86–624 struck out ", Territory, or the District of Columbia" after "proper health authority of any State", and substituted "Board of Health of Hawaii" for "Board of Health of the Territory of Hawaii".

1952-Act June 25, 1952, provided for payments to Hawaiian Board of Health for expenditures made by them in care and treatment of patients.

1948-Act June 25, 1948, authorized payment of travel expenses of indigent leper patients.

Effective Date of 1960 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 86–624 effective Aug. 21, 1959, see section 47(f) of Pub. L. 86–624, set out as a note under section 201 of this title.

Section Referred to in Other Sections

This section is referred to in section 254e of this title.