[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2072 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2072
To establish a pilot program to provide mental health check-ups for
students at schools operated by the Department of Defense Education
Activity, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 21, 2023
Mr. Padilla introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Armed Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a pilot program to provide mental health check-ups for
students at schools operated by the Department of Defense Education
Activity, 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 ``Supporting Mental Health for
Military Children Act''.
SEC. 2. PILOT PROGRAM FOR ROUTINE MENTAL HEALTH CHECK-UPS IN SCHOOLS
OPERATED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE EDUCATION ACTIVITY.
(a) In General.--Beginning not later than one year after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall establish
and implement a pilot program to provide routine metal health check-ups
for students in covered DODEA schools.
(b) Program Activities.--Under the pilot program established under
subsection (a), the Secretary shall--
(1) subject to subsection (d), ensure that students at
covered DODEA schools receive routine mental health check-ups,
conducted by military medical treatment facility behavioral
health providers assigned to such schools, and which may
include the use of mental health screening tools, such as the
Patient Health Questionnaire-2 or the Patient Health
Questionnaire-9;
(2) ensure that such mental health check-ups--
(A) consist of biannual or semesterly mental and
behavioral health screenings for disorders common in
children aged 3 to 17, including--
(i) an initial virtual screening test for
all students; and
(ii) a follow-up screening carried out by a
school psychologist or school nurse for
students with specific needs identified through
the initial screening; and
(B) include questions about a student's mood,
emotional state, habits, and behaviors to help diagnose
conditions such as--
(i) depression;
(ii) suicidal ideation;
(iii) anxiety;
(iv) attention-deficit/hyperactivity
disorder (ADHD);
(v) eating disorders;
(vi) substance abuse; and
(vii) dual diagnosis conditions;
(3) train licensed mental and behavioral health
professionals to conduct mental health check-ups, including
training in--
(A) recognizing the signs and symptoms of mental
illnesses; and
(B) safely de-escalating crises involving
individuals with a mental illness;
(4) establish a streamlined diagnosis-to-treatment process,
including a comprehensive process through which a student with
needs identified through a mental health check-up--
(A) may be referred to a certified community
behavioral health clinic in the community in which the
school is located; and
(B) may receive additional care or treatment
through comprehensive school-based services;
(5) mobilize school nurses and counselors to facilitate
screening in collaboration with administrators and teachers;
(6) conduct awareness-building educational efforts in
conjunction with the screening process;
(7) implement a robust school-based and telehealth support
system (including options for individual or group therapy) for
students seeking support after diagnosis; and
(8) make resources available to the communities surrounding
schools for individuals with a mental illness through a
coordinated referral process with local community-based health
clinics and school-based mental health clinics if such school-
based mental health clinics are available and have the capacity
and expertise to handle complex mental health situations.
(c) Selection of Schools.--
(1) Initial selection.--For the one-year period beginning
on the date on which the pilot program established under
subsection (a) commences, the Secretary shall select 10 covered
DODEA schools at which to carry out the pilot program.
(2) Subsequent years.--For the one-year period beginning
after the end of the one-year period described in paragraph
(1), and each one-year period thereafter until the termination
of the pilot program under subsection (h), the Secretary shall
select an additional 10 covered DODEA schools at which to carry
out the pilot program relative to the number of schools at
which the pilot program is carried out in the preceding one-
year period.
(3) Selection of schools overseas.--In selecting covered
DODEA schools under paragraph (1) or (2) for any one-year
period, the Secretary shall select not fewer than 2 such
schools located outside the United States.
(d) Referral Process Requirements.--
(1) Agreements with behavioral health clinics.--For
purposes of the comprehensive referral process described in
subsection (b)(4), the Secretary of Defense shall seek to enter
into memoranda of understanding or other agreements with
federally funded community behavioral health clinics in
communities in which covered DODEA schools are located pursuant
to which a school may refer students to such a clinic and make
appointments for students at the clinic. The requirement to
establish such a referral process may not be satisfied solely
by providing a list of nearby community behavioral health
clinics to parents of students at covered DODEA schools.
(2) Exception.--In a case in which the Secretary of Defense
is unable to meet the requirements of paragraph (1) because
there is no federally funded community behavioral health clinic
in a community in which a covered DODEA school is located, the
Secretary of Defense shall develop and make available a
comprehensive guide to the mental health resources that are
available to students and parents in that community.
(e) Student Privacy Protections.--In carrying out the pilot program
established under subsection (a), the Secretary shall ensure that a
parent or guardian of a student at a covered DODEA school--
(1) is provided with--
(A) notice that a student may receive a mental
health check-up under the pilot program; and
(B) an opportunity to opt the student out of any
such mental health check-up before it is administered;
and
(2) gives informed consent before--
(A) the referral of a student to a community-based
health clinic as described in subsection (b)(4)(A); or
(B) the disclosure of any information concerning
such student to such a clinic.
(f) Evaluations.--Not later than 180 days after commencing the
pilot program under subsection (a), and not less frequently than every
180 days thereafter, the Secretary of Defense shall conduct an
evaluation of the pilot program, which shall include evaluation of--
(1) processes under the pilot program; and
(2) student outcomes under the pilot program.
(g) Report.--Not later than one year before the pilot program
terminates under subsection (h), the Secretary of Defense shall submit
to the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and the House of
Representatives a report on the progress of the pilot program. The
report shall include--
(1) the results of the evaluations conducted under
subsection (f);
(2) an assessment of whether the pilot program should be
continued;
(3) a strategy for expanding the pilot program to all DODEA
schools; and
(4) such other information as the Secretary determines
appropriate.
(h) Termination.--The pilot program established under subsection
(a) shall terminate on the date that is 4 years after the commencement
of the pilot program.
(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this Act such sums as may be necessary for
fiscal years 2024 through 2029.
(j) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Certified community behavioral health clinic.--The term
``certified community behavioral health clinic'' means a
certified community behavioral health clinic as such term is
used in section 223 of the Protecting Access to Medicare Act of
2014 (42 U.S.C. 1396a note).
(2) Covered dodea school.--The term ``covered DODEA
school'' means an elementary school or secondary school--
(A) operated by the Department of Defense Education
Activity within or outside the United States; and
(B) that the Secretary determines has adequate
mental health infrastructure in place to provide mental
health check-ups under the pilot program established
under subsection (a).
(3) Elementary school; secondary school.--The terms
``elementary school'' and ``secondary school'' have the
meanings given those terms in section 8101 of the Elementary
and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(4) Military medical treatment facility.--The term
``military medical treatment facility'' means a facility
described in subsection (b), (c), or (d) of section 1073d of
title 10, United States Code.
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