I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4182 To improve the efforts of the Department of Veterans Affairs to prevent suicide by women veterans, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AUGUST 9, 2019 Ms. WATERS (for herself, Mr. GRIJALVA, Ms. NORTON, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. CUELLAR, and Ms. GABBARD) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs A BILL To improve the efforts of the Department of Veterans Affairs to prevent suicide by women veterans, 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 ‘‘Women Veterans Sup- 4 port Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. STUDY ON SUICIDE BY WOMEN VETERANS. 6 (a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 7 enter into an agreement with an independent entity to 8 conduct a study on suicide by women veterans. 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 4182 IH (b) MATTERS INCLUDED.—The study conducted 1 under subsection (a) shall— 2 (1) determine whether experiences with the 3 medical facilities of the Department of Veterans Af- 4 fairs vary by gender and, if so, the causes of such 5 variation; and 6 (2) include recommendations to— 7 (A) improve preventing women veterans 8 from attempting or committing suicide; and 9 (B) address any variations described in 10 paragraph (1). 11 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 12 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 13 to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of 14 Representatives and the Senate, and make publicly avail- 15 able, a report on the results of the study conducted under 16 subsection (a), which shall include recommendations to 17 improve the care provided to women veterans by the De- 18 partment of Veterans Affairs. 19 SEC. 3. OUTREACH BY CENTER FOR WOMEN VETERANS. 20 (a) CENTER FOR WOMEN VETERANS.—Section 318 21 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at 22 the end the following new subsections: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 4182 IH ‘‘(g) OUTREACH ACTIVITIES.—(1) The Center shall 1 carry out outreach activities on a national scale under sub- 2 section (d) to prevent suicide by women veterans. 3 ‘‘(2) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall develop 4 metrics to track the effectiveness of the outreach activities 5 carried out pursuant to paragraph (1). Such metrics shall 6 include measures of both performance and effectiveness. 7 ‘‘(3)(A) Not later than October 1, 2020, and annually 8 thereafter through 2024, the Secretary shall submit to the 9 Committees on Veterans’ Affairs and the Committees on 10 Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Represent- 11 atives a report on the effectiveness of the outreach activi- 12 ties carried out pursuant to paragraph (1), including a 13 description of the metrics developed under paragraph (2). 14 ‘‘(B) The report submitted under subparagraph (A) 15 shall include the following: 16 ‘‘(i) An assessment of the effectiveness of the 17 outreach activities carried out pursuant to para- 18 graph (1). 19 ‘‘(ii) An explanation of why the metrics devel- 20 oped under paragraph (2) were chosen. 21 ‘‘(iii) An assessment of how accurately those 22 metrics will reflect the goals and objectives specified 23 in such paragraph. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 4182 IH ‘‘(h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 1 is authorized to be appropriated for the Center $2,800,000 2 for fiscal year 2021. Of such amounts, not less than 50 3 percent shall be expended on outreach activities conducted 4 by the Center under subsection (g).’’. 5 (b) OFFICE OF WOMEN’S HEALTH SERVICES.— 6 (1) OUTREACH.—The Secretary of Veterans Af- 7 fairs, acting through the Office of Women’s Health 8 Services, shall carry out outreach activities on a 9 local and regional scale to prevent suicide by women 10 veterans. 11 (2) METRICS.—The Secretary shall develop 12 metrics to track the effectiveness of the outreach ac- 13 tivities carried out pursuant to paragraph (1). Such 14 metrics shall include measures of both performance 15 and effectiveness. 16 (3) REPORT.— 17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than October 18 1, 2020, and annually thereafter through 2024, 19 the Secretary shall submit to the Committees 20 on Veterans’ Affairs and the Committees on 21 Appropriations of the Senate and the House of 22 Representatives a report on the effectiveness of 23 the outreach activities carried out pursuant to 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 4182 IH paragraph (1), including a description of the 1 metrics developed under paragraph (2). 2 (B) MATTERS INCLUDED.—The report 3 submitted under subparagraph (A) shall include 4 the following: 5 (i) An assessment of the effectiveness 6 of the outreach activities carried out pur- 7 suant to paragraph (1). 8 (ii) An explanation of why the metrics 9 developed under paragraph (2) were cho- 10 sen. 11 (iii) An assessment of how accurately 12 those metrics will reflect the goals and ob- 13 jectives specified in such paragraph. 14 (4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 15 There is authorized to be appropriated to the Sec- 16 retary of Veterans Affairs for the Office of Women’s 17 Health Services $27,800,000 for fiscal year 2021. 18 Of such amounts, not less than 50 percent shall be 19 expended on outreach activities conducted by the Of- 20 fice under paragraph (1). 21 SEC. 4. GRANTS FOR WOMEN VETERANS. 22 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—Commencing not later 23 than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 24 the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall establish a grant 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 4182 IH program to provide services described in subsection (f) to 1 women veterans. 2 (b) DURATION OF PROGRAM.—The Secretary shall 3 carry out the program during the five-year period begin- 4 ning on the date of the commencement of the program. 5 (c) GRANTS.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall carry 7 out the program through the award of grants to eli- 8 gible organizations for the provision of assistance de- 9 scribed in subsection (a). 10 (2) MATCHING FUNDS REQUIRED.—A grant 11 under this section shall be in an amount that does 12 not exceed 50 percent of the amount required by the 13 organization to provide the services described in sub- 14 section (f). 15 (d) ELIGIBLE ORGANIZATIONS.—For purposes of 16 this section, an eligible organization is any nonprofit orga- 17 nization that the Secretary determines, in consultation 18 with State entities that serve veterans, is suitable for re- 19 ceipt of a grant under the program. 20 (e) SELECTION OF GRANT RECIPIENTS.— 21 (1) APPLICATIONS.—An organization seeking a 22 grant under the program shall submit to the Sec- 23 retary an application therefor at such time, in such 24 manner, and containing such information and assur- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 4182 IH ances as the Secretary, in consultation with State 1 entities that serve veterans, may require. 2 (2) PRIORITY FOR HUBS OF SERVICES.—In 3 awarding grants under the program, the Secretary 4 shall give priority to an organization that provides 5 multiple forms of services described in subsection 6 (f). 7 (f) USE OF GRANT FUNDS.—Each organization re- 8 ceiving a grant under the program shall use the grant to 9 provide to services to women veterans, including with re- 10 spect to— 11 (1) health care services, including to obtain 12 health insurance coverage; 13 (2) mental health support services; 14 (3) daily living services; 15 (4) income support services; 16 (5) financial counseling services; 17 (6) legal assistance; 18 (7) education supportive services; 19 (8) career advancement services; 20 (9) transportation; 21 (10) childcare; and 22 (11) housing. 23 (g) ANNUAL REPORTS.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 4182 IH (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 1 after the date of the commencement of the program 2 and not less frequently than once each year there- 3 after until the termination of the program, the Sec- 4 retary shall submit to the appropriate committees of 5 Congress a report on the program carried out under 6 this section. 7 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under 8 paragraph (1) shall include the following: 9 (A) A list of the organizations that have 10 received grants under the program, including 11 the geographic location of the organization and 12 the types of services outlined in subsection (f) 13 that each organization provides. 14 (B) The number of veterans served by each 15 organization. 16 (C) An assessment of the effectiveness of 17 the services provided under the program. 18 (D) The amount of each grant awarded to 19 each organization under the program. 20 (E) Such other matters as the Secretary 21 considers appropriate. 22 (3) APPROPRIATE COMMITTEES OF CON- 23 GRESS.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘appropriate 24 committees of Congress’’ means— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 4182 IH (A) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 1 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 2 Senate; and 3 (B) the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 4 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 5 House of Representatives. 6 SEC. 5. GRANTS FOR ORGANIZATIONS PROVIDING MENTAL 7 HEALTH WELLNESS SERVICES TO VETERANS. 8 (a) GRANTS.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 17 10 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by add- 11 ing at the end the following new section: 12 ‘‘§ 1720J. Financial assistance for mental health sup- 13 portive services for veterans seeking 14 mental health treatment 15 ‘‘(a) PLAN.—(1) The Secretary shall develop a plan 16 to carry out the financial assistance described in sub- 17 section (b). 18 ‘‘(2) Not later than one year after the date of the 19 enactment of this section, the Secretary shall submit to 20 the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of Rep- 21 resentatives and the Senate the plan developed under sub- 22 section (a), including a description of any legislative ac- 23 tions the Secretary determines necessary to carry out the 24 plan. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 4182 IH ‘‘(b) DISTRIBUTION OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.— 1 (1) Not later than 90 days after the date by which the 2 Secretary is required to submit the plan under subsection 3 (a)(2), the Secretary shall provide financial assistance to 4 eligible entities approved under this section to provide or 5 coordinate the provision of mental health supportive serv- 6 ices described in subsection (c) for a veteran with a mental 7 health condition who is seeking mental health treatment. 8 ‘‘(2) Financial assistance under paragraph (1) shall 9 consist of the award of a grant to an approved eligible 10 entity for each veteran described in paragraph (1) for 11 which the approved eligible entity is providing or coordi- 12 nating the provision of mental health supportive services. 13 ‘‘(3)(A) The Secretary shall award grants under this 14 section to each approved eligible entity that is providing 15 or coordinating the provision of mental health supportive 16 services under this section. 17 ‘‘(B) The Secretary may establish intervals of pay- 18 ment for the administration of grants under this section 19 and establish a maximum amount to be awarded, in ac- 20 cordance with the services being provided and the duration 21 of such services. 22 ‘‘(4) In providing financial assistance under para- 23 graph (1), the Secretary shall give preference to entities 24 providing or coordinating the provision of supportive men- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 4182 IH tal health services for veterans with mental health condi- 1 tions who face barriers in accessing mental health care 2 services from the Department. 3 ‘‘(5) The Secretary shall ensure that, to the extent 4 practicable, financial assistance under this subsection is 5 equitably distributed across geographic regions, including 6 rural communities and tribal lands. 7 ‘‘(6) Each entity receiving financial assistance under 8 this section to provide mental health supportive services 9 to a veteran with a mental health condition shall notify 10 that veteran that such services are being paid for, in whole 11 or in part, by the Department. 12 ‘‘(7) The Secretary shall require entities receiving fi- 13 nancial assistance under this section to submit a report 14 to the Secretary that describes the services provided or 15 coordinated with such financial assistance. 16 ‘‘(c) MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORTIVE SERVICES.— 17 The mental health supportive services described in this 18 subsection are services provided by an eligible entity or 19 a subcontractor of an eligible entity that address the needs 20 of veterans with mental health conditions, including— 21 ‘‘(1) outreach services; 22 ‘‘(2) case management services; 23 ‘‘(3) assistance in obtaining any benefits from 24 the Department that the veteran may be eligible to 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:40 Aug 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4182.IH H4182 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 4182 IH receive, including health care services, vocational and 1 rehabilitation counseling, employment and training 2 services, and educational assistance; and 3 ‘‘(4) assistance in obtaining and coordinating 4 the provision of other public benefits provided by 5 any Federal, State, or local agency, or any other eli- 6 gible entity, including— 7 ‘‘(A) health care services (including obtain- 8 ing health insurance); 9 ‘‘(B) daily living services; 10 ‘‘(C) personal financial planning services; 11 ‘‘(D) transportation services; 12 ‘‘(E) income support [Text truncated for display. 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