HERO Act of 2020

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 3244 To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to improve the detection, prevention, and treatment of mental health issues among public safety officers, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JANUARY 28, 2020 Ms. ROSEN (for herself and Mrs. FISCHER) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Edu- cation, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to improve the detection, prevention, and treatment of mental health issues among public safety officers, 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 ‘‘Helping Emergency 4 Responders Overcome Act of 2020’’ or the ‘‘HERO Act 5 of 2020’’. 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 3244 IS SEC. 2. DATA SYSTEM TO CAPTURE NATIONAL PUBLIC 1 SAFETY OFFICER SUICIDE INCIDENCE. 2 The Public Health Service Act is amended by insert- 3 ing after section 317T of such Act (42 U.S.C. 247b–22) 4 the following: 5 ‘‘SEC. 317U. DATA SYSTEM TO CAPTURE NATIONAL PUBLIC 6 SAFETY OFFICER SUICIDE INCIDENCE. 7 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting primarily 8 through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control 9 and Prevention and in coordination with other agencies 10 as the Secretary determines appropriate, shall— 11 ‘‘(1) develop and maintain a data system, to be 12 known as the Public Safety Officer Suicide Report- 13 ing System, for the purposes of— 14 ‘‘(A) collecting data on the suicide inci- 15 dence among public safety officers; and 16 ‘‘(B) facilitating the study of successful 17 interventions to reduce suicide among public 18 safety officers; and 19 ‘‘(2) integrate such system into the National 20 Violent Death Reporting System, so long as the Sec- 21 retary determines such integration to be consistent 22 with the purposes described in paragraph (1). 23 ‘‘(b) DATA COLLECTION.—In collecting data for the 24 Public Safety Officer Suicide Reporting System, the Sec- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 3244 IS retary shall, at a minimum, collect the following informa- 1 tion: 2 ‘‘(1) The total number of suicides in the United 3 States among all public safety officers in a given cal- 4 endar year. 5 ‘‘(2) Suicide rates for public safety officers in 6 a given calendar year, disaggregated by— 7 ‘‘(A) age and gender of the public safety 8 officer; 9 ‘‘(B) State; 10 ‘‘(C) occupation; including both the indi- 11 vidual’s role in their public safety agency and 12 their primary occupation in the case of volun- 13 teer public safety officers; 14 ‘‘(D) status of the public safety officer as 15 volunteer, paid-on-call, or career; and 16 ‘‘(E) status of the public safety officer as 17 active or retired. 18 ‘‘(c) CONSULTATION DURING DEVELOPMENT.—In 19 developing the Public Safety Officer Suicide Reporting 20 System, the Secretary shall consult with non-Federal ex- 21 perts to determine the best means to collect data regard- 22 ing suicide incidence in a safe, sensitive, anonymous, and 23 effective manner. Such non-Federal experts shall include 24 the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 3244 IS ‘‘(1) Public health experts with experience in 1 developing and maintaining suicide registries. 2 ‘‘(2) Organizations that track suicide among 3 public safety officers. 4 ‘‘(3) Mental health experts with experience in 5 studying suicide and other profession-related trau- 6 matic stress. 7 ‘‘(4) Clinicians with experience in diagnosing 8 and treating mental health issues. 9 ‘‘(5) Active and retired volunteer, paid-on-call, 10 and career public safety officers. 11 ‘‘(6) Relevant national police, and fire and 12 emergency medical services, organizations. 13 ‘‘(d) DATA PRIVACY AND SECURITY.—In developing 14 and maintaining the Public Safety Officer Suicide Report- 15 ing System, the Secretary shall ensure that all applicable 16 Federal and State privacy and security protections are fol- 17 lowed to ensure that— 18 ‘‘(1) the confidentiality and anonymity of sui- 19 cide victims and their families are protected, includ- 20 ing so as to ensure that data cannot be used to deny 21 benefits; and 22 ‘‘(2) data is sufficiently secure to prevent unau- 23 thorized access. 24 ‘‘(e) REPORTING.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 3244 IS ‘‘(1) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than one 1 year after the date of enactment of the Helping 2 Emergency Responders Overcome Act of 2020, and 3 annually thereafter, the Secretary shall submit a re- 4 port to the Congress on the suicide incidence among 5 public safety officers. Each such report shall— 6 ‘‘(A) include such suicide incidence 7 disaggregated by age, gender, and State of em- 8 ployment; 9 ‘‘(B) identify risk factors for suicide 10 among public safety officers; 11 ‘‘(C) disaggregate rates of suicide by— 12 ‘‘(i) occupation; 13 ‘‘(ii) status as volunteer, paid-on-call, 14 or career; and 15 ‘‘(iii) status as active or retired; 16 ‘‘(D) include recommendations for further 17 study regarding the suicide incidence among 18 public safety officers; 19 ‘‘(E) specify in detail, if found, any obsta- 20 cles in collecting suicide rates for volunteers 21 and include recommended improvements to 22 overcome such obstacles; 23 ‘‘(F) identify options for interventions to 24 reduce suicide among public safety officers; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 3244 IS ‘‘(G) ensure the confidentiality and ano- 1 nymity of suicide victims and their families, as 2 described in subsection (d)(1). 3 ‘‘(2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Upon the submis- 4 sion of each report to the Congress under paragraph 5 (1), the Secretary shall make the full report publicly 6 available on the website of the Centers for Disease 7 Control and Prevention. 8 ‘‘(f) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘public 9 safety officer’ means— 10 ‘‘(1) a public safety officer as defined in section 11 1204 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 12 Streets Act of 1968; or 13 ‘‘(2) a public safety telecommunicator as de- 14 scribed in detailed occupation 43–5031 in the Stand- 15 ard Occupational Classification Manual of the Office 16 of Management and Budget (2018). 17 ‘‘(g) PROHIBITED USE OF INFORMATION.—Notwith- 18 standing any other provision of law, if an individual is 19 identified as deceased based on information contained in 20 the Public Safety Officer Suicide Reporting System, such 21 information may not be used to deny or rescind life insur- 22 ance payments or other benefits to a survivor of the de- 23 ceased individual.’’. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 3244 IS SEC. 3. PEER-SUPPORT BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND 1 WELLNESS PROGRAMS WITHIN FIRE DEPART- 2 MENTS AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE 3 AGENCIES. 4 Part B of title III of the Public Health Service Act 5 (42 U.S.C. 243 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 6 the following: 7 ‘‘SEC. 320B. PEER-SUPPORT BEHAVIORAL HEALTH AND 8 WELLNESS PROGRAMS WITHIN FIRE DEPART- 9 MENTS AND EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE 10 AGENCIES. 11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall award 12 grants to eligible entities for the purpose of establishing 13 or enhancing peer-support behavioral health and wellness 14 programs within fire departments and emergency medical 15 services agencies. 16 ‘‘(b) PROGRAM DESCRIPTION.—A peer-support be- 17 havioral health and wellness program funded under this 18 section shall— 19 ‘‘(1) use career and volunteer members of fire 20 departments or emergency medical services agencies 21 to serve as peer counselors; 22 ‘‘(2) provide training to members of career, vol- 23 unteer, and combination fire departments or emer- 24 gency medical service agencies to serve as such peer 25 counselors; 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 3244 IS ‘‘(3) purchase materials to be used exclusively 1 to provide such training; and 2 ‘‘(4) disseminate such information and mate- 3 rials as are necessary to conduct the program. 4 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—In this section: 5 ‘‘(1) The term ‘eligible entity’ means a non- 6 profit organization with expertise and experience 7 with respect to the health and life safety of members 8 of fire and emergency medical services agencies. 9 ‘‘(2) The term ‘member’— 10 ‘‘(A) with respect to an emergency medical 11 services agency, means an employee, regardless 12 of rank or whether they receive compensation 13 (as defined in section 1204(7) of the Omnibus 14 Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 15 (34 U.S.C. 10284(7)); and 16 ‘‘(B) with respect to a fire department, 17 means a firefighter (any employee, regardless of 18 rank or whether they receive compensation, of 19 a Federal, State, Tribal, or local fire depart- 20 ment who is responsible for responding to calls 21 for emergency service).’’. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 3244 IS SEC. 4. DEVELOPMENT OF RESOURCES FOR EDUCATING 1 MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS ABOUT 2 TREATING FIRE FIGHTERS AND EMERGENCY 3 MEDICAL SERVICES PERSONNEL. 4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the United 5 States Fire Administration, in coordination with the Sec- 6 retary of Health and Human Services, shall develop and 7 make publicly available resources that may be used by the 8 Federal Government and other entities to educate mental 9 health professionals about— 10 (1) the culture of Federal, State, Tribal, and 11 local career, volunteer, and combination fire depart- 12 ments and emergency medical services agencies; 13 (2) the different stressors experienced by fire- 14 fighters and emergency medical services personnel, 15 supervisory firefighters and emergency medical serv- 16 ices personnel, and chief officers of fire departments 17 and emergency medical services agencies; 18 (3) challenges encountered by retired fire- 19 fighters and emergency medical services personnel; 20 and 21 (4) evidence-based therapies for mental health 22 issues common to firefighters and emergency med- 23 ical services personnel within such departments and 24 agencies. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 3244 IS (b) CONSULTATION.—In developing resources under 1 subsection (a), the Administrator of the United States 2 Fire Administration and the Secretary of Health and 3 Human Services shall consult with national fire and emer- 4 gency medical services organizations. 5 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 6 (1) The term ‘‘firefighter’’ means any employee, 7 regardless of rank or whether they receive com- 8 pensation, of a Federal, State, Tribal, or local fire 9 department who is responsible for responding to 10 calls for emergency service. 11 (2) The term ‘‘emergency medical services per- 12 sonnel’’ means any employee, regardless of rank or 13 whether they receive compensation, as defined in 14 section 1204(7) of the Omnibus Crime Control and 15 Safe Streets Act of 1968 (34 U.S.C. 10284(7)). 16 (3) The term ‘‘chief officer’’ means any indi- 17 vidual who is responsible for the overall operation of 18 a fire department or an emergency medical services 19 agency, irrespective of whether such individual also 20 serves as a firefighter or emergency medical services 21 personnel. 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 3244 IS SEC. 5. BEST PRACTICES AND OTHER RESOURCES FOR AD- 1 DRESSING POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS DIS- 2 ORDER IN PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS. 3 (a) DEVELOPMENT; UPDATES.—The Secretary of 4 Health and Human Services shall— 5 (1) develop and assemble evidence-based best 6 practices and other resources to identify, prevent, 7 and treat posttraumatic stress disorder and co-oc- 8 curring disorders in public safety officers; and 9 (2) reassess and update, as the Secretary deter- 10 mines necessary, such best practices and resources, 11 including based upon the options for interventions to 12 reduce suicide among public safety officers identified 13 in the annual reports required by section 14 317U(e)(1)(F) of the Public Health Service Act, as 15 added by section 2 of this Act. 16 (b) CONSULTATION.—In developing, assembling, and 17 updating the best practices and resources under sub- 18 section (a), the Secretary of Health and Human Services 19 shall consult with, at a minimum, the following: 20 (1) Public health experts. 21 (2) Mental health experts with experience in 22 studying suicide and other profession-related trau- 23 matic stress. 24 (3) Clinicians with experience in diagnosing and 25 treating mental health issues. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 22:41 Jan 28, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3244.IS S3244 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •S 3244 IS (4) Relevant national police, fire, and emer- 1 gency medical services organizations. 2 (c) AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of Health and 3 Human Services shall make the best practices and re- 4 sources under subsection (a) available to Federal, State, 5 and local fire, law enforcement, and emergency medical 6 services agencies. 7 (d) FEDERAL TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT PRO- 8 GRAMS.—The Secretary of Health and Human Services 9 shall work with Federal departments and agencies, includ- 10 ing the United States Fire Administration, to incorporate 11 education and training on the best practices and resources 12 under subsection (a) into Federal training and develop- 13 ment programs for public safety officers. 14 (e) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘public 15 safety officer’’ means— 16 (1) a public safety officer as defined in section 17 1204 of the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe 18 Streets Act of 1968; or 19 (2) a public safety teleco [Text truncated for display. 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