```

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9581 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9581

 To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish the Substance Use 
     Disorder Treatment and Behavioral and Mental Health Workforce 
              Scholarship Program, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 12, 2024

Ms. Salinas (for herself, Mr. Molinaro, Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Tonko, and Mrs. 
 Napolitano) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 
   Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined by the 
  Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall 
           within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
 To amend the Public Health Service Act to establish the Substance Use 
     Disorder Treatment and Behavioral and Mental Health Workforce 
              Scholarship Program, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``STAR Plus Scholarship Act''.

SEC. 2. SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER TREATMENT AND BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL 
              HEALTH WORKFORCE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--Part F of title VII of the Public Health Service 
Act (42 U.S.C. 295h) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 782. SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER TREATMENT AND BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL 
              HEALTH WORKFORCE SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM.

    ``(a) Establishment.--The Secretary, acting through the 
Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, (in 
this section referred to as the `Secretary') shall establish the 
Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Behavioral and Mental Health 
Workforce Scholarship Program (in this section referred to as the 
`Scholarship Program') to award scholarships to assure an adequate 
supply of individuals in covered employment.
    ``(b) Eligibility; Application; Written Contract.--To be eligible 
to participate in the Scholarship Program, an individual must--
            ``(1) be accepted for enrollment, or be enrolled, as a 
        full-time student--
                    ``(A) in an accredited (as determined by the 
                Secretary) educational institution in a State; and
                    ``(B) in a course of study or program, offered by 
                such institution and approved by the Secretary, leading 
                to covered employment;
            ``(2) submit an application to participate in the 
        Scholarship Program; and
            ``(3) sign and submit to the Secretary, at the time of 
        submittal of such application, a written contract (described in 
        subsection (f)) to accept payment of a scholarship and to serve 
        (in accordance with this section) for the applicable period of 
        obligated service in a mental health professional shortage 
        area.
    ``(c) Review and Evaluation of Information and Forms by Prospective 
Applicant.--
            ``(1) Contents of application and contract forms.--In 
        disseminating application forms and contract forms to 
        individuals desiring to participate in the Scholarship Program, 
        the Secretary shall include with such forms--
                    ``(A) a fair summary of the rights and liabilities 
                of an individual whose application is approved (and 
                whose contract is accepted) by the Secretary, including 
                in the summary a clear explanation of the damages to 
                which the United States is entitled under subsection 
                (j) in the case of the individual's breach of the 
                contract; and
                    ``(B) such other information as may be necessary 
                for the individual to understand the individual's 
                prospective participation in the Scholarship Program, 
                including a statement of all factors considered in 
                approving applications for participation in the 
                Scholarship Program and in approving specific positions 
                and employers that are eligible for the Scholarship 
                Program.
            ``(2) Clarity; availability.--The application form, 
        contract form, and all other information furnished by the 
        Secretary under this section shall be written in a manner 
        calculated to be understood by the average individual applying 
        to participate in the Scholarship Program. The Secretary shall 
        make such application forms, contract forms, and other 
        information available to individuals desiring to participate in 
        the Scholarship Program on a date sufficiently early to ensure 
        that such individuals have adequate time to carefully review 
        and evaluate such forms and information.
            ``(3) Education and assistance.--
                    ``(A) Distribution of informational materials.--The 
                Secretary shall distribute to health professions 
                schools materials providing information on the 
                Scholarship Program and shall encourage the schools to 
                disseminate the materials to the students of the 
                schools.
                    ``(B) End of obligated service.--
                            ``(i) Encouragement to continue service.--
                        In the case of any health professional whose 
                        period of obligated service under the 
                        Scholarship Program is nearing completion, the 
                        Secretary shall encourage the individual to 
                        remain in a mental health professional shortage 
                        area and to continue in covered employment.
                            ``(ii) Assistance in transition.--During 
                        the period in which a health professional is 
                        planning and making the transition from 
                        obligated service under the Scholarship 
                        Program, the Secretary may provide assistance 
                        to the professional regarding such transition 
                        if the professional is remaining in a mental 
                        health professional shortage area and is 
                        continuing in covered employment.
    ``(d) Factors Considered in Providing Contracts; Priorities.--
            ``(1) Factors considered in providing contracts.--In 
        providing contracts under the Scholarship Program--
                    ``(A) the Secretary shall consider the extent of 
                the demonstrated interest of the applicants for the 
                contracts in providing substance use disorder treatment 
                and behavioral and mental health services; and
                    ``(B) may consider such other factors regarding the 
                applicants as the Secretary determines to be relevant 
                to selecting qualified individuals to participate in 
                such Program.
            ``(2) Priorities.--In providing contracts under the 
        Scholarship Program, the Secretary shall give priority--
                    ``(A) to any application for such a contract 
                submitted by an individual who has characteristics that 
                increase the probability that the individual will 
                continue to serve in a mental health professional 
                shortage area after the period of obligated service 
                pursuant to subsection (f) is completed; and
                    ``(B) to any application for such a contract 
                submitted by an individual who is from a group or 
                population that is underrepresented in the substance 
                use disorder treatment and behavioral and mental health 
                workforce.
    ``(e) Commencement of Participation in Scholarship Program; 
Notice.--
            ``(1) Commencement of participation.--An individual becomes 
        a participant in the Scholarship Program only upon the 
        Secretary's approval of the individual's application submitted 
        under subsection (b)(2) and the Secretary's acceptance of the 
        contract submitted by the individual under subsection (b)(3).
            ``(2) Notice.--The Secretary shall provide written notice 
        to an individual promptly upon the Secretary's approving, under 
        paragraph (1), of the individual's participation in the 
        Scholarship Program.
    ``(f) Written Contract; Contents.--The written contract (referred 
to in this section) between the Secretary and an individual shall 
contain--
            ``(1) an agreement that--
                    ``(A) subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary 
                agrees to provide the individual with a scholarship 
                (described in subsection (g)) for a period of one or 
                more school years during which the individual is 
                pursuing a course of study described in subsection 
                (b)(1)(B); and
                    ``(B) subject to paragraph (2), the individual 
                agrees--
                            ``(i) to accept provision of such a 
                        scholarship to the individual;
                            ``(ii) to maintain enrollment in a course 
                        of study described in subsection (b)(1)(B) 
                        until the individual completes the course of 
                        study;
                            ``(iii) while enrolled in such course of 
                        study, to maintain an acceptable level of 
                        academic standing (as determined under 
                        regulations of the Secretary by the educational 
                        institution offering such course of study); and
                            ``(iv) to serve for a time period (in this 
                        section referred to as the `period of obligated 
                        service') equal to one year for each school 
                        year for which the individual was provided a 
                        scholarship under the Scholarship Program, in 
                        covered employment in a mental health 
                        professional shortage area (designated under 
                        section 332);
            ``(2) a provision that any financial obligation of the 
        United States arising out of a contract entered into under this 
        section and any obligation of the individual which is 
        conditioned thereon, is contingent upon funds being 
        appropriated for scholarships under this section;
            ``(3) a statement of the damages to which the United States 
        is entitled, under subsection (j), for the individual's breach 
        of the contract; and
            ``(4) such other statements of the rights and liabilities 
        of the Secretary and of the individual, not inconsistent with 
        the provisions of this section.
    ``(g) Scholarship Provisions; Contract With Educational 
Institution; Increase in Monthly Stipend.--
            ``(1) Scholarship provisions.--A scholarship provided to a 
        student for a school year under a written contract under the 
        Scholarship Program shall consist of payment to, or (in 
        accordance with paragraph (2)) on behalf of, the student of the 
        amount (except as provided in section 711) of--
                    ``(A) the tuition of the student in such school 
                year; and
                    ``(B) all other reasonable educational expenses, 
                including fees, books, and laboratory expenses, 
                incurred by the student in such school year.
            ``(2) Contract with educational institution.--The Secretary 
        may contract with an educational institution, in which a 
        participant in the Scholarship Program is enrolled, for the 
        payment to the educational institution of the amounts of 
        tuition and other reasonable educational expenses described in 
        paragraph (1). Payment to such an educational institution may 
        be made without regard to section 3324 of title 31, United 
        States Code.
    ``(h) Employment Ceiling of Department Unaffected.--Notwithstanding 
any other provision of law, individuals who have entered into written 
contracts with the Secretary under this section, while undergoing 
academic training, shall not be counted against any employment ceiling 
affecting the Department.
    ``(i) Obligated Service.--Any individual receiving payments under 
the Scholarship Program as required by an agreement under this section 
shall agree to an annual commitment to work full-time in covered 
employment, with no more than 1 year passing between any 2 years of 
covered employment, in the United States in--
            ``(1) a mental health professional shortage area, as 
        designated under section 332;
            ``(2) a county (or a municipality, if not contained within 
        any county) where the mean drug overdose death rate per 100,000 
        people over the past 3 years for which official data is 
        available from the State, is higher than the most recent 
        available national average overdose death rate per 100,000 
        people, as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and 
        Prevention; or
            ``(3) any facility, program, center, or clinic as 
        determined appropriate by the Secretary for purposes of this 
        section because of a shortage of mental health professionals, 
        including private practices and other medical facilities 
        designated under section 332(a) as having such a shortage.
    ``(j) Breach.--
            ``(1) Liquidated damages formula.--The Secretary may 
        establish a liquidated damages formula to be used in the event 
        of a breach of an agreement entered into under this section.
            ``(2) Limitation.--The failure by an individual to complete 
        the full period of service obligated pursuant to such an 
        agreement, taken alone, shall not constitute a breach of the 
        agreement, so long as the individual completed in good faith 
        the years of service for which payments were made to the 
        individual under this section.
    ``(k) Fund Regarding Use of Amounts Recovered for Contract Breach 
To Replace Services Lost as Result of Breach.--
            ``(1) Establishment of fund.--There is established in the 
        Treasury of the United States a fund to be known as the 
        Substance Use Disorder Treatment and Behavioral and Mental 
        Health Workforce Scholarship Program Replacement Fund (in this 
        subsection referred to as the `Fund'). The Fund shall consist 
        of such amounts as may be appropriated under paragraph (2) to 
        the Fund. Amounts appropriated for the Fund shall remain 
        available until expended.
            ``(2) Authorization of appropriations to fund.--For each 
        fiscal year, there is authorized to be appropriated to the Fund 
        an amount equal to the sum of--
                    ``(A) the amount collected during the preceding 
                fiscal year by the Federal Government pursuant to the 
                liability of individuals under subsection (j) for the 
                breach of contracts entered into under this section; 
                and
                    ``(B) the aggregate of the amount of interest 
                accruing during the preceding fiscal year on 
                obligations held in the Fund pursuant to paragraph (4) 
                and the amount of proceeds from the sale or redemption 
                of such obligations during such fiscal year.
            ``(3) Use of fund.--
                    ``(A) Payments to certain health facilities.--
                Amounts in the Fund and available pursuant to 
                appropriations Acts may, subject to subparagraph (B), 
                be expended by the Secretary to make payments to any 
                entity that has a need for a health professional to 
                provide substance use disorder treatment and behavioral 
                and mental health services as a result of the breach by 
                an individual of a contract entered into under this 
                section.
                    ``(B) Purpose of payments.--An entity receiving 
                payments pursuant to subparagraph (A) may expend the 
                payments to recruit and employ a health professional to 
                provide substance use disorder treatment and behavioral 
                and mental health services to patients of the entity, 
                or to enter into a contract with such a professional to 
                provide the services to the patients.
            ``(4) Investment.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary of the Treasury 
                shall invest such amounts of the Fund as such Secretary 
                determines are not required to meet current withdrawals 
                from the Fund. Such investments may be made only in 
                interest-bearing obligations of the United States. For 
                such purpose, such obligations may be acquired on 
                original issue at the issue price, or by purchase of 
                outstanding obligations at the market price.
                    ``(B) Sale of obligations.--Any obligation acquired 
                by the Fund may be sold by the Secretary of the 
                Treasury at the market price.
    ``(l) Covered Employment Defined.--In this section, the term 
`covered employment' means--
            ``(1) full-time employment (including a fellowship) where 
        the primary intent and function of the position is the direct 
        treatment or recovery support of patients with or in recovery 
        from a substance use, behavioral health, or mental health 
        disorder; and
            ``(2) may include employment as a physician (with a degree 
        of doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathy), a psychiatric 
        nurse, a social worker, a marriage and family therapist, a 
        mental health counselor, an addiction counselor, an 
        occupational therapist, a psychologist, a psychiatrist, a child 
        and adolescent psychiatrist, or a neurologist.
    ``(m) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $75,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2025 through 2029.''.
    (b) Exclusion of Scholarship From Gross Income of the Recipient.--
            (1) In general.--Section 117(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue 
        Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``or'' at the end of 
        subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end of 
        subparagraph (C) and inserting ``, or'', and by adding at the 
        end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(D) section 782 of the Public Health Service 
                Act.''.
            (2) Effective date.--The amendments made by this section 
        shall apply to taxable years ending after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act.
                                 <all>
```