119-hr2044

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2044 Introduced in House

    (IH) ]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 2044

To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a grant program to 
 provide self-harm and suicide prevention services in primary care 
 offices, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

 March 11, 2025

Mr. DeSaulnier introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

 A BILL

To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish a grant program to 
 provide self-harm and suicide prevention services in primary care 
 offices, 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 ``Suicide Prevention Assistance Act''.

SEC. 2. GRANTS TO PROVIDE SELF-HARM AND SUICIDE PREVENTION SERVICES.

 Subpart 3 of part B of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 290bb-31 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``

SEC. 520O. GRANTS TO PROVIDE SELF-HARM AND SUICIDE PREVENTION 
 SERVICES.

 ``

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services, 
acting through the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance 
Use (referred to in this section as the `Secretary'), shall award 
grants to primary care offices to provide self-harm and suicide 
prevention services.
 ``

    (b) Activities Supported.--A primary care office awarded a grant 
under subsection

    (a) shall use amounts under the grant to carry out the 
following:
 ``

    (1) The primary care office shall hire 1 or more clinical 
 social workers to carry out the activities described in 
 paragraphs

    (2) through

    (4) .
 ``

    (2) A primary care physician at the primary care office 
 shall screen patients for self-harm and suicide in accordance 
 with the standards of practice described in subsection

    (f)

    (1) and shall, as appropriate, notify a clinical social worker 
 hired under paragraph

    (1) of screenings that yield an indicator 
 of self-harm or suicide.
 ``

    (3) A clinical social worker hired under paragraph

    (1) shall provide patients short-term self-harm and suicide 
 prevention services in accordance with the results of the 
 screenings described in paragraph

    (2) .
 ``

    (4) A clinical social worker hired under paragraph

    (1) shall, as appropriate, refer patients to a health care facility 
 for purposes of receiving long-term self-harm and suicide 
 prevention services.
 ``
            (c) Maximum Number of Grants.--
 ``

    (1) In general.--The Secretary may not award more than 10 
 grants under subsection

    (a) .
 ``

    (2) With respect to a primary care office.--A primary 
 care office may not be awarded more than 1 grant under 
 subsection

    (a) .
 ``

    (3) With respect to a state.--Not more than 1 primary 
 care office in any State may be awarded a grant under 
 subsection

    (a) .
 ``
            (d) Grant Terms.--A grant awarded under subsection

    (a) --
 ``

    (1) may not exceed $500,000;
 ``

    (2) shall be for a period of 2 years; and
 ``

    (3) may be renewed subject to the requirements of this 
 section.
 ``

    (e) Applications.--A primary care office seeking a grant under 
subsection

    (a) shall submit an application to the Secretary at such 
time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the 
Secretary may require.
 ``

    (f) Standards of Practice.--
 ``

    (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
 of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall develop 
 standards of practice for screening patients for self-harm and 
 suicide for purposes of carrying out subsection

    (b)

    (2) .
 ``

    (2) Consultation.--The Secretary shall develop the 
 standards of practice described in paragraph

    (1) in 
 consultation with stakeholder groups with expertise in self-
 harm and suicide prevention, including public, private, and 
 non-profit entities.
 ``

    (g) Reporting.--
 ``

    (1) Reports to the secretary.--
 ``
        (A) In general.--A primary care office awarded a 
 grant under subsection

    (a) shall, at least quarterly 
 for the duration of the grant, submit to the Secretary 
 a report evaluating the activities supported by the 
 grant.
 ``
        (B) Matters to be included.--The report required 
 under subparagraph
        (A) shall include--
 ``
            (i) the number of patients receiving--
 ``
            (I) screenings carried out at the 
 primary care office;
 ``
            (II) short-term self-harm and 
 suicide prevention services at the 
 primary care office; and
 ``
            (III) referrals to health care 
 facilities for the purposes of 
 receiving long-term self-harm and 
 suicide prevention;
 ``
            (ii) information on the adherence of the 
 primary care office to the standards of 
 practice described in subsection

    (f)

    (1) ; and
 ``
            (iii) other information as the Secretary 
 determines appropriate to evaluate the use of 
 grant funds.
 ``

    (2) Reports to congress and in the department of health 
 and human services.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
 the enactment of this section, and biennially thereafter, the 
 Secretary shall submit to the appropriate congressional 
 committees and the subcomponents of the Department of Health 
 and Human Services described in paragraph

    (3) a report on the 
 grant program under this section, including--
 ``
        (A) a summary of reports received by the 
 Secretary under paragraph

    (1) ; and
 ``
        (B) an evaluation of the program by the 
 Secretary.
 ``

    (3) Reporting in the department of health and human 
 services.--The subcomponents of the Department of Health and 
 Human Services described in this paragraph are the Centers for 
 Disease Control and Prevention and the National Institute of 
 Mental Health.
 ``

    (h) 

=== Definitions. ===
-In this section:
 ``

    (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
 `appropriate congressional committees' means--
 ``
        (A) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
 House of Representatives; and
 ``
        (B) the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 
 and Pensions of the Senate.
 ``

    (2) Primary care office.--The term `primary care office' 
 means a health care facility that provides primary care 
 services.
 ``

    (3) State.--The term `State' means--
 ``
        (A) a State;
 ``
        (B) the District of Columbia;
 ``
            (C) the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico; or
 ``
            (D) any other territory or possession of the 
 United States.''.
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