Pursuing Equity in Mental Health Act

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1795 To address mental health issues for youth, particularly youth of color, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 24, 2021 Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. CARPER, Ms. SMITH, Mr. BENNET, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. PADILLA, Ms. WAR- REN, Mr. LUJA´N, Mr. MURPHY, and Ms. ROSEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Edu- cation, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To address mental health issues for youth, particularly youth of color, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Pursuing Equity in 4 Mental Health Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 6 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 7 Sec. 1. Short title. Sec. 2. Table of contents. TITLE I—HEALTH EQUITY AND ACCOUNTABILITY VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6211 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1795 IS Sec. 101. Integrated Health Care Demonstration Program. Sec. 102. Addressing racial and ethnic minority mental health disparities re- search gaps. Sec. 103. Health professions competencies to address racial and ethnic minority mental health disparities. Sec. 104. Racial and ethnic minority behavioral and mental health outreach and education strategy. Sec. 105. Additional funds for National Institutes of Health. Sec. 106. Additional funds for National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. TITLE II—OTHER PROVISIONS Sec. 201. Reauthorization of Minority Fellowship Program. Sec. 202. Study on the Effects of Smartphone and Social Media Use on Adoles- cents. Sec. 203. Technical correction. TITLE I—HEALTH EQUITY AND 1 ACCOUNTABILITY 2 SEC. 101. INTEGRATED HEALTH CARE DEMONSTRATION 3 PROGRAM. 4 Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act 5 (42 U.S.C. 290dd et seq.) is amended by inserting after 6 section 553 of such Act (as redesignated and moved by 7 section 203 of this Act) the following: 8 ‘‘SEC. 554. INTERPROFESSIONAL HEALTH CARE TEAMS FOR 9 PROVISION OF BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CARE 10 IN PRIMARY CARE SETTINGS. 11 ‘‘(a) GRANTS.—The Secretary shall award grants to 12 eligible entities for the purpose of establishing interprofes- 13 sional health care teams that provide behavioral health 14 care. 15 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to receive 16 a grant under this section, an entity shall be a Federally 17 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1795 IS qualified health center (as defined in section 1861(aa) of 1 the Social Security Act), rural health clinic, or behavioral 2 health program, serving a high proportion of individuals 3 from racial and ethnic minority groups (as defined in sec- 4 tion 1707(g)). 5 ‘‘(c) SCIENTIFICALLY BASED.—Integrated health 6 care funded through this section shall be scientifically 7 based, taking into consideration the results of the most 8 recent peer-reviewed research available. 9 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To 10 carry out this section, there is authorized to be appro- 11 priated $20,000,000 for each of the first 5 fiscal years 12 following the date of enactment of the Pursuing Equity 13 in Mental Health Act.’’. 14 SEC. 102. ADDRESSING RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY 15 MENTAL HEALTH DISPARITIES RESEARCH 16 GAPS. 17 Not later than 6 months after the date of the enact- 18 ment of this Act, the Director of the National Institutes 19 of Health shall enter into an arrangement with the Na- 20 tional Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine 21 (or, if the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, 22 and Medicine decline to enter into such an arrangement, 23 the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, the 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1795 IS Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, or another 1 appropriate entity)— 2 (1) to conduct a study with respect to mental 3 health disparities in racial and ethnic minority 4 groups (as defined in section 1707(g) of the Public 5 Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u–6(g))); and 6 (2) to submit to the Congress a report on the 7 results of such study, including— 8 (A) a compilation of information on the dy- 9 namics of mental disorders in such racial and 10 ethnic minority groups; and 11 (B) a compilation of information on the 12 impact of exposure to community violence, ad- 13 verse childhood experiences, structural racism, 14 and other psychological traumas on mental dis- 15 orders in such racial and minority groups. 16 SEC. 103. HEALTH PROFESSIONS COMPETENCIES TO AD- 17 DRESS RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY MEN- 18 TAL HEALTH DISPARITIES. 19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health and 20 Human Services may award grants to qualified national 21 organizations for the purposes of— 22 (1) developing, and disseminating to health pro- 23 fessional educational programs best practices or core 24 competencies addressing mental health disparities 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1795 IS among racial and ethnic minority groups for use in 1 the training of students in the professions of social 2 work, psychology, psychiatry, marriage and family 3 therapy, mental health counseling, and substance 4 misuse counseling; and 5 (2) certifying community health workers and 6 peer wellness specialists with respect to such best 7 practices and core competencies and integrating and 8 expanding the use of such workers and specialists 9 into health care to address mental health disparities 10 among racial and ethnic minority groups. 11 (b) BEST PRACTICES; CORE COMPETENCIES.—Orga- 12 nizations receiving funds under subsection (a) may use the 13 funds to engage in the following activities related to the 14 development and dissemination of best practices or core 15 competencies described in subsection (a)(1): 16 (1) Formation of committees or working groups 17 comprised of experts from accredited health profes- 18 sions schools to identify best practices and core com- 19 petencies relating to mental health disparities among 20 racial and ethnic minority groups. 21 (2) Planning of workshops in national fora to 22 allow for public input into the educational needs as- 23 sociated with mental health disparities among racial 24 and ethnic minority groups. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1795 IS (3) Dissemination and promotion of the use of 1 best practices or core competencies in undergraduate 2 and graduate health professions training programs 3 nationwide. 4 (4) Establishing external stakeholder advisory 5 boards to provide meaningful input into policy and 6 program development and best practices to reduce 7 mental health disparities among racial and ethnic 8 minority groups. 9 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 10 (1) QUALIFIED NATIONAL ORGANIZATION.—The 11 term ‘‘qualified national organization’’ means a na- 12 tional organization that focuses on the education of 13 students in one or more of the professions of social 14 work, psychology, psychiatry, marriage and family 15 therapy, mental health counseling, and substance 16 misuse counseling. 17 (2) RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY GROUP.— 18 The term ‘‘racial and ethnic minority group’’ has the 19 meaning given to such term in section 1707(g) of 20 the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u– 21 6(g)). 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1795 IS SEC. 104. RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY BEHAVIORAL 1 AND MENTAL HEALTH OUTREACH AND EDU- 2 CATION STRATEGY. 3 Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act 4 (42 U.S.C. 290dd et seq.) is amended by inserting after 5 section 554 of such Act, as added by section 101 of this 6 Act, the following: 7 ‘‘SEC. 555. BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL HEALTH OUTREACH 8 AND EDUCATION STRATEGY. 9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall, in consulta- 10 tion with advocacy and behavioral and mental health orga- 11 nizations serving racial and ethnic minority groups, de- 12 velop and implement an outreach and education strategy 13 to promote behavioral and mental health and reduce stig- 14 ma associated with mental health conditions and sub- 15 stance abuse among racial and ethnic minority groups. 16 Such strategy shall— 17 ‘‘(1) be designed to— 18 ‘‘(A) meet the diverse cultural and lan- 19 guage needs of the various racial and ethnic mi- 20 nority groups; and 21 ‘‘(B) be developmentally and age-appro- 22 priate; 23 ‘‘(2) increase awareness of symptoms of mental 24 illnesses common among such groups, taking into 25 account differences within at-risk subgroups; 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1795 IS ‘‘(3) provide information on evidence-based, cul- 1 turally and linguistically appropriate and adapted 2 interventions and treatments; 3 ‘‘(4) ensure full participation of, and engage, 4 both consumers and community members in the de- 5 velopment and implementation of materials; and 6 ‘‘(5) seek to broaden the perspective among 7 both individuals in these groups and stakeholders 8 serving these groups to use a comprehensive public 9 health approach to promoting behavioral health that 10 addresses a holistic view of health by focusing on the 11 intersection between behavioral and physical health. 12 ‘‘(b) REPORTS.—Beginning not later than 1 year 13 after the date of the enactment of this section and annu- 14 ally thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to Congress, 15 and make publicly available, a report on the extent to 16 which the strategy developed and implemented under sub- 17 section (a) increased behavioral and mental health out- 18 comes associated with mental health conditions and sub- 19 stance abuse among racial and ethnic minority groups. 20 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘racial 21 and ethnic minority group’ has the meaning given to that 22 term in section 1707(g). 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1795 IS ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 1 is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 2 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.’’. 3 SEC. 105. ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR NATIONAL INSTITUTES 4 OF HEALTH. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to amounts otherwise 6 authorized to be appropriated to the National Institutes 7 of Health, there is authorized to be appropriated to such 8 Institutes $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 9 through 2026 to build relations with communities and con- 10 duct or support clinical research, including clinical re- 11 search on racial or ethnic disparities in physical and men- 12 tal health. 13 (b) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘clinical 14 research’’ has the meaning given to such term in section 15 409 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 284d). 16 SEC. 106. ADDITIONAL FUNDS FOR NATIONAL INSTITUTE 17 ON MINORITY HEALTH AND HEALTH DISPARI- 18 TIES. 19 In addition to amounts otherwise authorized to be ap- 20 propriated to the National Institute on Minority Health 21 and Health Disparities, there is authorized to be appro- 22 priated to such Institute $650,000,000 for each of fiscal 23 years 2022 through 2026. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1795 IS TITLE II—OTHER PROVISIONS 1 SEC. 201. REAUTHORIZATION OF MINORITY FELLOWSHIP 2 PROGRAM. 3 Section 597(c) of the Public Health Service Act (42 4 U.S.C. 297ll(c)) is amended by striking ‘‘$12,669,000 for 5 each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022’’ and inserting 6 ‘‘$25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 7 2026’’. 8 SEC. 202. STUDY ON THE EFFECTS OF SMARTPHONE AND 9 SOCIAL MEDIA USE ON ADOLESCENTS. 10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 11 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and 12 Human Services shall conduct or support research on— 13 (1) smartphone and social media use by adoles- 14 cents; and 15 (2) the effects of such use on— 16 (A) emotional, behavioral, and physical 17 health and development; and 18 (B) disparities in minority and under- 19 served populations. 20 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 5 years after the date 21 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 22 to the Congress, and make publicly available, a report on 23 the findings of research described in this section. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1795 IS SEC. 203. TECHNICAL CORRECTION. 1 Title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 2 290aa et seq.) is amended— 3 (1) by redesignating the second section 550 (42 4 U.S.C. 290ee–10) (relating to Sobriety Treatment 5 And Recovery Teams) as section 553; and 6 (2) by moving such section, as so redesignated, 7 so as to appear after section 552 (42 U.S.C. 290ee– 8 7). 9 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:31 Jun 08, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S1795.IS S1795 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS