There is established an Office of Adolescent Health within the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health, which office [1] shall be headed by a director  appointed by the Secretary. The Secretary shall carry out this section acting through the Director of such Office.

With respect to adolescent health, the Secretary shall—

coordinate all activities within the Department of Health and Human Services that relate to disease prevention, health promotion, preventive health services, and health information and education with respect to the appropriate use of health care, including coordinating—

(A) the design of programs, support for programs, and the evaluation of programs;

(B) the monitoring of trends;

(C) projects of research (including multidisciplinary projects) on adolescent health; and

(D) the training of health providers who work with adolescents, particularly nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and social workers;

(2) coordinate the activities described in paragraph (1) with similar activities in the private sector; and

(3) support projects, conduct research, and disseminate information relating to preventive medicine, health promotion, and physical fitness and sports medicine.

In carrying out subsection (b)(3), the Secretary may make grants to carry out demonstration projects for the purpose of improving adolescent health, including proj­ects to train health care providers in providing services to adolescents and projects to reduce the incidence of violence among adolescents, particularly among minority males.

(1) In general In carrying out subsection (b)(3), the Secretary may make grants to carry out demonstration projects for the purpose of improving adolescent health, including proj­ects to train health care providers in providing services to adolescents and projects to reduce the incidence of violence among adolescents, particularly among minority males.

(2) Authorization of appropriations For the purpose of carrying out paragraph (1), there are authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 for fiscal year 1993, and such sums as may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 1994 through 1997.

In carrying out subsection (b), the Secretary shall establish and maintain a National Information Clearinghouse on Adolescent Health to collect and disseminate to health professionals and the general public information on adolescent health.

In carrying out subsection (b), the Secretary shall develop a national plan for improving adolescent health. The plan shall be consistent with the applicable objectives established by the Secretary for the health status of the people of the United States for the year 2000, and shall be periodically reviewed, and as appropriate, revised. The plan, and any revisions in the plan, shall be submitted to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Labor and Human Resources of the Senate.

For purposes of this section, the term “adolescent health”, with respect to adolescents of all ethnic and racial groups, means all diseases, disorders, and conditions (including with respect to mental health)—

(1) unique to adolescents, or more serious or more prevalent in adolescents;

(2) for which the factors of medical risk or types of medical intervention are different for adolescents, or for which it is unknown whether such factors or types are different for adolescents; or

(3) with respect to which there has been insufficient clinical research involving adolescents as subjects or insufficient clinical data on adolescents.

(July 1, 1944, ch. 373, title XVII, § 1708, as added Pub. L. 102–531, title III, § 302, Oct. 27, 1992, 106 Stat. 3483.)