[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3641 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3641
To require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program for
evidence-based perinatal mental health prevention for pregnant and
postpartum members of the Armed Forces and dependents, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 23, 2024
Mrs. Shaheen (for herself and Mrs. Fischer) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed
Services
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program for
evidence-based perinatal mental health prevention for pregnant and
postpartum members of the Armed Forces and dependents, 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 ``Maintaining Our Obligation to Moms
Who Serve Act of 2024'' or the ``MOMS Who Serve Act of 2024''.
SEC. 2. PREVENTING PERINATAL MENTAL HEALTH CONDITIONS AMONGST PREGNANT
AND POSTPARTUM SERVICEWOMEN AND DEPENDENTS TO IMPROVE
MILITARY READINESS.
(a) Pilot Program.--
(1) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary, acting through the
Director of the Defense Health Agency, shall establish a pilot
program to assess the feasibility and impact of providing
evidence-based perinatal mental health prevention programs for
eligible members and dependents within military treatment
facilities with the goal of reducing the rates of perinatal
mental health conditions and improving the military readiness
of members of the Armed Forces and their families.
(2) Implementation.--In implementing the pilot program, the
Secretary shall--
(A) integrate evidence-based perinatal mental
health prevention programs for eligible members and
dependents within existing maternal or pediatric care
or programming, including primary care, obstetric care,
pediatric care, and family and parenting programs, when
applicable;
(B) select sites for the pilot program--
(i) in a manner that represents the
diversity of the Armed Forces, including--
(I) not fewer than 2 military
treatment facilities for each military
department; and
(II) geographically diverse sites
across the United States, excluding any
territory or possession of the United
States; and
(ii) by prioritizing of military treatment
facilities with established maternal health
programs or women's clinics;
(C) implement the prevention programs at times,
locations, and in a manner that incentivizes
participation by eligible members and dependents,
including by removing barriers to participation, such
as childcare availability, differences in military rank
and occupation, and any other factors as the Secretary
shall determine; and
(D) increase awareness of and encourage
participation in care and programming for eligible
members and dependents.
(b) Advisory Committee.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall establish an
advisory committee to assist the Secretary in implementing the
pilot program pursuant to subsection (a)(2).
(2) Composition.--Members of the advisory committee shall--
(A) be appointed by the Secretary; and
(B) include--
(i) members of the Armed Forces and
dependents, including individuals who--
(I) are or have experienced
perinatal care in the previous five
years while in the Armed Forces;
(II) represent various military
departments and ranks; and
(III) experienced a perinatal
mental health condition.
(ii) individuals with experience at
military and veteran service organizations;
(iii) experts in perinatal mental health
promotion, prevention, and intervention; and
(iv) representatives from the Federal
Maternal Mental Health Hotline and related
perinatal mental health programs.
(3) Duties.--In implementing the pilot program pursuant to
subsection (a)(2), the advisory committee shall provide
recommendations to the Secretary with respect to the following:
(A) Identification of evidence-based perinatal
prevention programs.
(B) Strategies to increase diversity in
participation of eligible members and dependents.
(C) Outreach to eligible members and dependents on
the benefits of prevention and the availability of
pilot program participation.
(D) Strategies to reduce stigma with respect to
perinatal mental health conditions and the use of
prevention programs.
(4) Termination.--Section 1013 of title 5, United States
Code, shall not apply to the advisory committee.
(c) Technical Assistance.--The Secretary shall provide technical
assistance to military treatment facilities in implementing evidence-
based perinatal prevention programs pursuant to subsection (a) and
outside of the pilot program.
(d) Study.--Not later than June 30, 2029, the Secretary shall
conduct a study of the effectiveness of the pilot program in preventing
or reducing the onset of symptoms of perinatal mental health conditions
for eligible and dependents.
(e) Reports.--
(1) Annual report.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense committees
a report on the progress of the pilot program during the
previous calendar year, including the number of eligible
members and dependents completing a prevention program,
disaggregated by type of prevention program, military
component, military occupation, rank, marital status, location
and setting of delivery, sex, age, race, and ethnicity.
(2) Final report.--
(A) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the
termination of the pilot program under subsection (g),
the Secretary shall submit to the congressional defense
committees a final report, which shall include--
(i) the progress of the pilot program
during the life of the pilot program;
(ii) the number of eligible members and
dependents who completed a prevention program
during the life of the pilot program,
disaggregated by type of prevention program,
military component, military occupation, rank,
marital status, location and setting of
delivery, sex, age, race, and ethnicity;
(iii) an assessment and findings with
respect to the study required by subsection
(e);
(iv) recommendations on whether the pilot
program should be continued or more widely
adopted by the Department of Defense; and
(v) recommendations on how to scale the
pilot program and ensure cost-effective
sustainability.
(B) Public availability.--The final report shall be
made publicly available on a website of the Department
of Defense.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section $5,000,000 for each of fiscal
years 2025 through 2029.
(g) Sunset.--The pilot program shall terminate on December 31,
2029.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Congressional defense committees.--The term
``congressional defense committees'' has the meaning given that
term in section 101(a)(16) of title 10, United States Code.
(2) Dependent.--The term ``dependent'' has the meaning
given that term in section 1072 of title 10, United States
Code.
(3) Eligible member.--The term ``eligible member'' means a
member of the Armed Forces who--
(A) is pregnant; or
(B) is not more than 1 year postpartum.
(4) Perinatal mental health condition.--The term
``perinatal mental health condition'' means a mental health
disorder that onsets during the pregnancy or within the one-
year postpartum period.
(5) Pilot program.--The term ``pilot program'' means the
pilot program established under section 2(a).
(6) Prevention program.--The term ``prevention program''
means a program or activity that averts or decreases the onset
or symptoms of a perinatal mental health condition.
(7) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Defense.
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