Federal

Public Safety Officer Concussion and Traumatic Brain Injury Health Act of 2023

Source: Congress.gov · 857 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to collect and make public information about concussions and traumatic brain injuries (injuries to the brain from impact or force) that happen to public safety officers. The Secretary will share this information with doctors, employers, mental health professionals, patients and families, and researchers to help improve care and prevention.

Who It Affects

Medical professionals and public health professionals. Public safety employers and employee representatives. Mental health professionals. Patients with concussions or traumatic brain injuries and their families. Institutions of higher education including medical schools and public health schools. Researchers. Nonprofit organizations, labor organizations and employee representatives. Other government organizations. The media.

Key Provisions

- The Secretary, working through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (a federal health agency), must collect and make publicly available information on concussions and traumatic brain injuries in public safety officers. This includes research on evidence-based practices (treatments proven to work), protective equipment recommendations, and medical information about diagnosing and treating these injuries. (Sec. 393E(a)) - The Secretary must update the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website about traumatic brain injuries. (Sec. 393E(b)(1)(A)) - The Secretary must develop ways to share this information with medical professionals, public safety employers, mental health professionals, patients and families, and researchers through various methods beyond just a website. (Sec. 393E(b)(1)(B)) - The Secretary must consult with doctors, employers, mental health professionals, patients and families, and researchers when developing the website to make sure the information meets the public safety community's needs. (Sec. 393E(b)(2)) - The Secretary may share information through partnerships with nonprofits, labor organizations, other government agencies, and media outlets. (Sec. 393E(b)(3)) - The Secretary may support public and private efforts to create guidelines, protocols, and evidence-based practices to treat concussions and traumatic brain injuries in public safety officers through grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements (formal partnerships between organizations). (Sec. 393E(c))

What Changes

Public safety officers will have access to compiled federal information about concussions and traumatic brain injuries through an updated Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website and other public sources. Medical professionals, employers, researchers, and patients will receive information tailored to their specific needs about diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of these injuries in public safety workers.

Important Definitions

The bill does not define "concussion" or "traumatic brain injury." The bill states that "public safety officer" has the meaning given in section 1204 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968, but that definition is not included in this bill text.

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 894 To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to collect and disseminate information on concussion and traumatic brain injury among public safety officers. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 21, 2023 Mr. CORNYN (for himself, Ms. CORTEZ MASTO, Mr. BRAUN, Mr. CASEY, and Mr. COONS) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and re- ferred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to collect and disseminate information on concussion and traumatic brain injury among public safety officers. 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 ‘‘Public Safety Officer 4 Concussion and Traumatic Brain Injury Health Act of 5 2023’’. 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S894.IS S894 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 894 IS SEC. 2. INFORMATION ON CONCUSSION AND TRAUMATIC 1 BRAIN INJURY AMONG PUBLIC SAFETY OFFI- 2 CERS. 3 Part J of title III of the Public Health Service Act 4 (42 U.S.C. 280b et seq.) is amended by inserting after 5 section 393D of such Act the following: 6 ‘‘SEC. 393E. INFORMATION ON CONCUSSION AND TRAU- 7 MATIC BRAIN INJURY AMONG PUBLIC SAFE- 8 TY OFFICERS. 9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 10 the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Pre- 11 vention, shall collect and make publicly available informa- 12 tion on concussion and traumatic brain injury among pub- 13 lic safety officers, including research related to evidence- 14 based practices and personal protective equipment rec- 15 ommendations, and medical information related to diag- 16 nosing, protocols for identifying and treating, and meas- 17 ures for reducing the incidence of concussion and trau- 18 matic brain injury among public safety officers. 19 ‘‘(b) DISSEMINATION OF INFORMATION.— 20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of making in- 21 formation available under subsection (a), the Sec- 22 retary shall— 23 ‘‘(A) update the website of the Centers for 24 Disease Control and Prevention with respect to 25 traumatic brain injury; and 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S894.IS S894 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 894 IS ‘‘(B) develop other means to disseminate 1 such information to— 2 ‘‘(i) medical professionals and public 3 health professionals, to improve care and 4 treatment services provided to public safety 5 officers suffering from concussion or trau- 6 matic brain injury; 7 ‘‘(ii) public safety employers and em- 8 ployee representatives, to improve strate- 9 gies and practices to reduce the incidence 10 of concussion and traumatic brain injury 11 resulting from firefighting, fire protection, 12 law enforcement, and other public safety 13 activities; 14 ‘‘(iii) mental health professionals, to 15 develop a better understanding of the link 16 between concussion and traumatic brain 17 injury and conditions such as trauma and 18 stress related disorders, mood disorders, 19 and suicidal ideations; 20 ‘‘(iv) patients and their families, to 21 improve awareness of health care special- 22 ists in the area of concussion and trau- 23 matic brain injury, and to improve patient 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S894.IS S894 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 894 IS understanding of the effects of concussion 1 and traumatic brain injury; and 2 ‘‘(v) institutions of higher education, 3 including medical schools and schools of 4 public health, and other researchers. 5 ‘‘(2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the 6 website under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 7 consult with the individuals and entities described in 8 clauses (i) through (v) of paragraph (1)(B) to en- 9 sure that information collected and disseminated 10 best meets the needs of the public safety community 11 in terms of content, quality, and utility. 12 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL DISSEMINATION ACTIVI- 13 TIES.—The Secretary may disseminate information 14 described in subsection (a) through arrangements 15 with nonprofit organizations, labor organizations 16 and employee representatives, other governmental 17 organizations or entities, and the media. 18 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZED ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out this 19 section, the Secretary may support public and private ef- 20 forts to identify and create model guidelines, protocols, 21 and evidence-based practices to treat concussion and trau- 22 matic brain injury in public safety officers, including 23 through grants, contracts, or cooperative agreements. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S894.IS S894 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 894 IS ‘‘(d) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘public 1 safety officer’ has the meaning given such term in section 2 1204 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act 3 of 1968.’’. 4 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:56 Mar 30, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S894.IS S894 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS

Important: This plain English summary was generated by AI and is provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice. Always consult the official bill text on Congress.gov or a qualified attorney for legal matters.