[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1448 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]
H.R.1448
One Hundred Seventeenth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE FIRST SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Sunday,
the third day of January, two thousand and twenty-one
An Act
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to carry out a pilot program
on dog training therapy, and to amend title 38, United States Code, to
authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide service dogs to
veterans with mental illnesses who do not have mobility impairments.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Puppies Assisting Wounded
Servicemembers for Veterans Therapy Act'' or the ``PAWS for Veterans
Therapy Act''.
SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS PILOT PROGRAM ON DOG TRAINING
THERAPY.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of the Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall commence
the conduct of a pilot program to provide canine training to eligible
veterans diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (in this section
referred to as ``PTSD'') as an element of a complementary and
integrative health program for such veterans.
(b) Duration; Medical Centers.--
(1) Duration.--The Secretary shall carry out the pilot program
under subsection (a) for a 5-year period beginning on the date of
the commencement of the pilot program.
(2) Medical centers.--The Secretary shall ensure that such
pilot program is carried out by not fewer than five medical centers
of the Department of Veterans Affairs located in geographically
diverse areas.
(c) Agreements With Entities.--In carrying out the pilot program
under subsection (a), the Secretary shall seek to enter into agreements
with nongovernmental entities that the Secretary determines have the
demonstrated ability to provide the canine training specified in
subsection (a).
(d) Required Conditions.--The Secretary shall include in any
agreement under subsection (c) conditions requiring that the
nongovernmental entity seeking to enter into the agreement--
(1) submits to the Secretary certification that the entity is
an accredited service dog training organization;
(2) agrees to ensure that veterans participating in the pilot
program under subsection (a) receive training from certified
service dog training instructors for a period of time determined
appropriate by the entity;
(3) agrees to ensure that veterans participating in such pilot
program are prohibited from having access to a dog under such pilot
program at any time during such participation without the
supervision of a certified service dog training instructor;
(4) agrees to ensure that veterans participating in such pilot
program receive training in skills unique to the needs of the
veteran to address or alleviate PTSD symptoms of the veteran;
(5) agrees not to use shock collars or prong collars as
training tools and to use positive reinforcement training; and
(6) agrees to provide any follow-up training support specified
in subsection (e)(2), as applicable.
(e) Adoption of Dog.--
(1) In general.--A veteran who has participated in the pilot
program under subsection (a) may adopt a dog that the veteran
assisted in training during such pilot program if the veteran and
the veteran's health provider (in consultation with the entity that
provided the canine training with respect to the dog under such
pilot program) determine that it is in the best interest of the
veteran.
(2) Follow-up training support.--If a veteran adopts a dog
under paragraph (1), the entity that provided the canine training
with respect to the dog under the pilot program shall provide
follow-up training support for the life of the dog. Such support
shall include the provision of a contact plan between the veteran
and the entity that enables the veteran to seek and receive
assistance from the entity to ensure the dog is being properly
cared for.
(f) Eligibility for Other Care and Treatment.--Participation in the
pilot program under subsection (a) may not preclude a veteran from
receiving any other medical care or treatment for PTSD furnished by the
Department, including therapy, for which the veteran is otherwise
eligible.
(g) Collection of Data.--In carrying out this section, the
Secretary shall--
(1) develop metrics and other appropriate means to measure,
with respect to veterans participating in the pilot program under
subsection (a)--
(A) the number of such veterans participating;
(B) the satisfaction of such veterans with the pilot
program;
(C) whether participation in the pilot program resulted in
any clinically relevant improvements for such veterans, as
determined by the health care provider or clinical team that
referred the veteran to participate in the pilot program; and
(D) such other factors as the Secretary may determine
appropriate; and
(2) establish processes to document and track the progress of
such veterans under the pilot program with respect to health
benefits and improvements.
(h) Report by Secretary.--Not later than 1 year before the date on
which the pilot program under subsection (a) terminates, the Secretary
shall submit to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Senate a report containing the recommendations
of the Secretary regarding--
(1) whether to extend or make permanent the pilot program; and
(2) the feasibility and advisability of expanding the pilot
program to address mental health conditions other than PTSD.
(i) GAO Briefing and Study.--
(1) Briefing.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the
commencement of the pilot program under subsection (a), the
Comptroller General of the United States shall provide to the
Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives and
the Senate a briefing on the methodology established for the pilot
program.
(2) Report.--Not later than 270 days after the date on which
the pilot program terminates, the Comptroller General shall submit
to the committees specified in paragraph (1) a report on the pilot
program. Such report shall include an evaluation of the approach
and methodology used for the pilot program with respect to--
(A) assisting veterans with PTSD; and
(B) measuring relevant metrics, such as reduction in scores
under the Clinician Administered PTSD Scale (CAPS), improvement
in psychosocial function, and therapeutic compliance.
(j) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``accredited service dog training organization''
means an organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that--
(A) provides service dogs to veterans with PTSD; and
(B) is accredited by an accrediting organization with
demonstrated experience, national scope, and recognized
leadership and expertise in the training of service dogs and
education in the use of service dogs (as determined by the
Secretary).
(2) The term ``eligible veteran'' means a veteran who--
(A) is enrolled in the patient enrollment system in the
Department of Veterans Affairs under section 1705 of title 38,
United States Code; and
(B) has been recommended for participation in the pilot
program under subsection (a) by a qualified mental health care
provider or clinical team based on medical judgment that the
veteran may benefit from such participation with respect to the
diagnosed PTSD of the veteran.
(3) The term ``service dog training instructor'' means an
instructor who provides the direct training of veterans with PTSD
in the art and science of service dog training and handling.
SEC. 3. PROVISION OF SERVICE DOGS AND VETERINARY INSURANCE BENEFITS TO
VETERANS WITH POST-TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER WHO DO NOT HAVE CERTAIN
IMPAIRMENTS.
(a) In General.--Section 1714 of title 38, United States Code, is
amended by adding at the end the following new subsections:
``(e) The Secretary may provide a service dog to a veteran under
subsection (c)(3) regardless of whether the veteran has a mobility
impairment.
``(f)(1) The Secretary shall provide to any veteran described in
paragraph (2) a commercially available veterinary insurance policy for
each dog provided to such veteran under subsection (b) or (c).
``(2) A veteran described in this paragraph is a veteran who--
``(A) is diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder or a
visual, hearing, or substantial mobility impairment;
``(B) has received a dog under subsection (b) or (c) in
connection with such disorder or impairment; and
``(C) meets such other requirements as the Secretary may
prescribe.''.
(b) Applicability.--Section 1714(f) of title 38, United States
Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply with respect to a veteran
provided a dog by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on or after the
date of the enactment of this Act.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.