I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2548 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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 10, 2023 Mr. CRENSHAW (for himself and Ms. CRAIG) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 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 22:41 Apr 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2548.IH H2548 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2548 IH 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 22:41 Apr 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2548.IH H2548 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2548 IH ‘‘(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 22:41 Apr 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2548.IH H2548 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2548 IH 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 22:41 Apr 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2548.IH H2548 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2548 IH ‘‘(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 22:41 Apr 14, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H2548.IH H2548 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS