Improving Data Collection for Adverse Childhood Experiences Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 4980 To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to support research and programmatic efforts that will build on previous research on the effects of adverse childhood experiences. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES DECEMBER 8, 2020 Mr. KING introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Sec- retary of Health and Human Services, acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to support research and programmatic ef- forts that will build on previous research on the effects of adverse childhood experiences. 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; FINDINGS. 3 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 4 ‘‘Improving Data Collection for Adverse Childhood Experi- 5 ences Act’’. 6 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:59 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4980.IS S4980 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 4980 IS (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 1 (1) Certain negative events, circumstances, or 2 maltreatment to which children may be exposed, 3 known as adverse childhood experiences, are associ- 4 ated with negative health outcomes. 5 (2) Childhood psychological, physical, or sexual 6 abuse; household challenges such as violence, sub- 7 stance use, mental illness, separation or divorce, or 8 incarceration of a family member; and emotional or 9 physical neglect have been shown to negatively im- 10 pact a person’s long-term health and well-being. 11 (3) Adverse childhood experiences and associ- 12 ated conditions such as living in under-resourced or 13 racially segregated neighborhoods, frequently mov- 14 ing, experiencing food insecurity, and other insta- 15 bility can cause toxic stress, a prolonged activation 16 of the stress-response system. 17 (4) Experiencing one or more adverse childhood 18 experiences is associated with higher risks of some 19 of the leading causes of death and disability in the 20 United States. 21 (5) More than half of all people in the United 22 States have experienced one or more adverse child- 23 hood experiences. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:59 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4980.IS S4980 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 4980 IS (6) The Centers for Disease Control and Pre- 1 vention has recognized adverse childhood experiences 2 as a major public health concern and made it a pri- 3 ority area for focus in the National Center for In- 4 jury Prevention and Control of the Centers for Dis- 5 ease Control and Prevention. 6 (7) Further research is needed to better define 7 adverse childhood experiences, understand the causal 8 pathway between adverse childhood experiences and 9 physical health outcomes, and identify protective fac- 10 tors against adverse childhood experiences and their 11 effects, in order to inform and improve current pro- 12 grams and future efforts to promote public health. 13 (8) Evidence-based prevention and mitigation 14 strategies to address adverse childhood experiences 15 have been identified, but efforts are needed to facili- 16 tate implementation in communities. 17 SEC. 2. SUPPORTING RESEARCH ON ADVERSE CHILDHOOD 18 EXPERIENCES. 19 Part J of title III of the Public Health Service Act 20 (42 U.S.C. 280b et seq.) is amended by inserting after 21 section 393D (42 U.S.C. 280b–1f) the following: 22 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:59 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4980.IS S4980 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 4980 IS ‘‘SEC. 393E. SUPPORTING RESEARCH ON PREVENTING OR 1 REMEDIATING ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPE- 2 RIENCES. 3 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 4 the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Pre- 5 vention, may, in cooperation with the States, collect and 6 report data on adverse childhood experiences through the 7 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, the Youth 8 Risk Behavior Surveillance System, or other relevant pub- 9 lic health surveys or questionnaires to contribute to a lon- 10 gitudinal study that— 11 ‘‘(1) builds on previous literature, including the 12 seminal CDC–Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood 13 Experiences (ACE) Study, on the biology and neuro- 14 science of childhood adversity that establishes the 15 links between adverse childhood experiences and neg- 16 ative outcomes; and 17 ‘‘(2) focuses on elements not included in the 18 study referred to in paragraph (1), including— 19 ‘‘(A) the inclusion of a diverse nationally 20 representative sample of participants; 21 ‘‘(B) the strength of the relationship be- 22 tween individual, specific adverse childhood ex- 23 periences and negative health outcomes; 24 ‘‘(C) the intensity and frequency of adverse 25 childhood experiences; 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:59 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4980.IS S4980 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 4980 IS ‘‘(D) the relative strength of particular 1 risk and protective factors; and 2 ‘‘(E) the effect of social, economic, and 3 community conditions on health and well-being. 4 ‘‘(b) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary may, 5 directly or through awards of grants or contracts to public 6 or nonprofit private entities, provide technical assistance 7 with respect to the collection and reporting of data as de- 8 scribed in subsection (a). 9 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 10 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 11 $10,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2026.’’. 12 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 19:59 Dec 12, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\S4980.IS S4980 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS