[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5516 Referred in Senate (RFS)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5516
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
November 17, 2021
Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
AN ACT
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to submit to Congress a
report on the Veterans Integration to Academic Leadership program of
the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
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 ``VITAL Assessment Act''.
SEC. 2. VETERANS INTEGRATION TO ACADEMIC LEADERSHIP PROGRAM OF THE
DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.
(a) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit
to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives
and the Senate a report on the Veterans Integration to Academic
Leadership program of the Department of Veterans Affairs. The report
shall include the following:
(1) The number of medical centers of the Department,
institutions of higher learning, non-college degree programs,
and student veterans supported by the program, and relevant
trends since the program began.
(2) The staff and resources allocated to the program, and
relevant trends since the program began.
(3) An assessment of the outcomes and effectiveness of the
program in--
(A) supporting student veterans;
(B) connecting student veterans to needed services
of the Department or services provided by non-
Department entities;
(C) addressing the mental health needs of student
veterans;
(D) lowering the suicide risk of student veterans;
and
(E) helping student veterans achieve educational
goals.
(4) An assessment of barriers to expanding the program and
how the Secretary intends to address such barriers.
(5) An assessment of whether the program should be expanded
outside of the Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention
to support students veterans with needs unrelated to mental
health or suicide.
(b) Uniform Best Practices, Goals, and Measures.--The Secretary
shall establish best practices, goals, and measures for the Veterans
Integration to Academic Leadership program of the Department that are
uniform among the medical centers of the Department.
(c) Outreach.--The Secretary shall conduct outreach among the Armed
Forces, veterans service organizations, institutions of higher
learning, and non-college degree programs with respect to the Veterans
Integration to Academic Leadership program of the Department.
(d) Assessment.--The Secretary shall assess the feasibility and
advisability of including the suicide rate for student veterans in the
National Veteran Suicide Prevention Annual Report of the Office of
Mental Health and Suicide Prevention of the Department.
(e) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) The term ``institution of higher learning'' has the
meaning given that term in section 3452 of title 38, United
States Code.
(2) The term ``student veteran'' means the following:
(A) A veteran or member of the Armed Forces using
educational assistance under any of the following
provisions of law:
(i) Chapter 30, 31, 32, or 33 of title 38,
United States Code, or chapter 1606 or 1607 of
title 10, United States Code.
(ii) Section 116 of the Harry W. Colmery
Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017
(Public Law 115-48; 38 U.S.C. 3001 note).
(iii) Section 8006 of the American Rescue
Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2; 38 U.S.C.
3001 note prec.).
(B) A veteran who is enrolled in an institution of
higher learning or other training program, without
regard to whether the veteran is using educational
assistance specified in subparagraph (A).
Passed the House of Representatives November 16, 2021.
Attest:
CHERYL L. JOHNSON,
Clerk.