DOGS Act

I 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION H. R. 6170 To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a pilot program to study the efficacy of dog-assisted therapy on vulnerable populations, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MARCH 10, 2020 Mr. LIPINSKI introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce A BILL To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to carry out a pilot program to study the efficacy of dog- assisted therapy on vulnerable populations, 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 ‘‘Dogs Offering Gentle 4 Support Act’’or the ‘‘DOGS Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress makes the following findings: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 Mar 17, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6170.IH H6170 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 6170 IH (1) Medical research has demonstrated mental, 1 emotional, and cognitive benefits of dog-assisted 2 therapy in various populations. 3 (2) Vulnerable populations, such as children 4 with low reading comprehension, elderly nursing 5 home residents and veterans suffering from post- 6 traumatic stress disorder, can see particularly strong 7 benefits from dog-assisted therapy. 8 (3) Congress should support this growing body 9 of research by deploying Federal agency resources to 10 determine the ways in which dog-assisted therapy 11 can be most beneficial. 12 (4) Findings from the pilot program established 13 under this Act can be instructive to State and local 14 governments, non-profit organizations and other en- 15 tities seeking to make use of dog-assisted therapy. 16 SEC. 3. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES 17 PILOT PROGRAM ON DOG-ASSISTED THER- 18 APY. 19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Commencing not later than 120 20 days after the date of the enactment of the Act, subject 21 to the availability of appropriations, the Secretary of 22 Health and Human Services shall carry out a pilot pro- 23 gram under which the Secretary shall make grants to ap- 24 propriate non-government entities for the purpose of con- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 Mar 17, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6170.IH H6170 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 6170 IH ducting routine dog-assisted therapy in various community 1 settings and populations. In addition to the eligibility cri- 2 teria in subsection (e), the Secretary may impose addi- 3 tional eligibility criteria necessary for the effective func- 4 tioning of the pilot program. 5 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this program is to 6 add to the growing body of research on the effectiveness 7 of dog-assisted therapy in various settings and among var- 8 ious populations, and to encourage the broader adoption 9 of dog-assisted therapy in settings and among populations 10 where such therapy offers proven benefits. 11 (c) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 12 gress that vulnerable populations should be prioritized in 13 grant awards from the Secretary to eligible entities. Such 14 populations may include, but are not limited to, patients 15 in nursing or assisted-living facilities, children with intel- 16 lectual and developmental disabilities in academic settings, 17 and veterans seeking care in State or Federal veterans’ 18 facilities. 19 (d) DURATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.—The pilot pro- 20 gram required by subsection (a) shall be carried out dur- 21 ing the 3-year period beginning on the date of the com- 22 mencement of the pilot program. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 Mar 17, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6170.IH H6170 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 6170 IH (e) ELIGIBILITY AND CONDITIONS ON RECEIPT OF 1 GRANTS.—As a condition of receiving a grant under this 2 section, a non-government entity shall— 3 (1) submit to the Secretary certification that 4 the entity is an organization described in section 5 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that 6 visits community settings with dogs for the purposes 7 of providing dog-assisted therapy; 8 (2) ensure that dogs making therapy visits are 9 certified by a therapy dog certification with dem- 10 onstrated experience, national scope, and recognized 11 leadership and expertise in the training of therapy 12 dogs and their handlers; 13 (3) agree to cover all costs in excess of the 14 grant amount; 15 (4) agree to a minimum number of routine vis- 16 its to a community setting, as determined by the 17 Secretary to ensure meaningful impact on those 18 present in the setting; 19 (5) ensure that any training of dogs does not 20 involve abusive methods such as shock collars, and 21 instead uses positive reinforcement training; 22 (6) provide a wellness certification from a li- 23 censed veterinarian for any dog making a therapy 24 visit under this program; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 Mar 17, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6170.IH H6170 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 6170 IH (7) submit to the Secretary an application con- 1 taining such information, certification, and assur- 2 ances as the Secretary may require. 3 (f) COLLECTION OF DATA.—In carrying out this sec- 4 tion, the Secretary shall— 5 (1) develop metrics and other appropriate 6 means to measure the impact of routine dog-assisted 7 therapy on the populations visited by non-govern- 8 ment organizations approved under subsection (e); 9 and 10 (2) establish processes to document and track 11 the progress of populations under the program in 12 terms of the benefits and improvements noted as a 13 result of the program. 14 (g) GAO BRIEFING AND STUDY.— 15 (1) BRIEFING.—Not later than 1 year after the 16 date of the commencement of the pilot program 17 under subsection (a), the Comptroller General of the 18 United States shall provide to the Committee on En- 19 ergy and Commerce of the House of Representatives 20 and to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, 21 and Pensions of the Senate a briefing on the meth- 22 odology established for the program. 23 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 270 days after 24 the date on which the program terminates, the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 Mar 17, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6170.IH H6170 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 6170 IH Comptroller General shall submit to the committees 1 specified in paragraph (1) a report on the program. 2 Such report shall include an evaluation of the ap- 3 proach and methodology used for the program with 4 respect to— 5 (A) helping vulnerable populations over- 6 come emotional or cognitive challenges; and 7 (B) relevant metrics, including those devel- 8 oped by the Secretary under paragraph (1) of 9 subsection (f). 10 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:25 Mar 17, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H6170.IH H6170 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS