II 

113TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5059 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 10, 2014 

Received 

AN ACT 

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide for 

the conduct of annual evaluations of mental health care 

and suicide prevention programs of the Department of 

Veterans Affairs, to require a pilot program on loan 

repayment for psychiatrists who agree to serve in the 

Veterans Health Administration of the Department of 

Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Clay Hunt Suicide Pre5 vention for American Veterans Act’’ or the ‘‘Clay Hunt 

6 SAV Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. EVALUATIONS OF MENTAL HEALTH CARE AND SUI8 CIDE PREVENTION PROGRAMS OF DEPART9 MENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS. 

10 (a) EVALUATIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not less frequently than 

12 once each year, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

13 shall provide for the conduct of an evaluation of the 

14 mental health care and suicide prevention programs 

15 carried out under the laws administered by the Sec16 retary. 

17 (2) ELEMENTS.—Each evaluation conducted 

18 under paragraph (1) shall— 

19 (A) use metrics that are common among 

20 and useful for practitioners in the field of men21 tal health care and suicide prevention; 

22 (B) identify the most effective mental 

23 health care and suicide prevention programs 

24 conducted by the Secretary, including such pro25 grams conducted at a Center of Excellence; 


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1 (C) identify the cost-effectiveness of each 

2 program identified under subparagraph (B); 

3 (D) measure the satisfaction of patients 

4 with respect to the care provided under each 

5 such program; and 

6 (E) propose best practices for caring for 

7 individuals who suffer from mental health dis8 orders or are at risk of suicide, including such 

9 practices conducted or suggested by other de10 partments or agencies of the Federal Govern11 ment, including the Substance Abuse and Men12 tal Health Services Administration of the De13 partment of Health and Human Services. 

14 (3) THIRD PARTY.—Each evaluation conducted 

15 under paragraph (1) shall be conducted by an inde16 pendent third party unaffiliated with the Depart17 ment of Veterans Affairs. Such third party shall 

18 submit to the Secretary each such evaluation. 

19 (b) ANNUAL SUBMISSION.—Not later than December 

20 1 of each year, beginning in 2015, the Secretary shall sub21 mit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate 

22 and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the House of 

23 Representatives a report that contains the following: 

24 (1) The most recent evaluations submitted to 

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1 retary has not previously submitted to such Commit2 tees. 

3 (2) Any recommendations the Secretary con4 siders appropriate. 

5 SEC. 3. PUBLICATION OF INTERNET WEBSITE TO PROVIDE 

6 INFORMATION REGARDING MENTAL HEALTH 

7 CARE SERVICES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Using funds made available to the 

9 Secretary of Veterans Affairs to publish the Internet 

10 websites of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Sec11 retary shall survey the existing Internet websites and in12 formation resources of the Department to publish an 

13 Internet website that serves as a centralized source to pro14 vide veterans with information regarding all of the mental 

15 health care services provided by the Secretary. 

16 (b) ELEMENTS.—The Internet website published 

17 under subsection (a) shall provide to veterans information 

18 regarding all of the mental health care services available 

19 in the Veteran Integrated Service Network that the vet20 eran is seeking such services, including, with respect to 

21 each medical center, Vet Center (as defined in section 

22 1712A of title 38, United States Code), and community23 based outpatient center in the Veterans Integrated Service 

24 Network— 


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1 (1) the name and contact information of each 

2 social work office; 

3 (2) the name and contact information of each 

4 mental health clinic; 

5 (3) a list of appropriate staff; and 

6 (4) any other information the Secretary deter7 mines appropriate. 

8 (c) UPDATED INFORMATION.—The Secretary shall 

9 ensure that the information described in subsection (b) 

10 that is published on the Internet website under subsection 

11 (a) is updated not less than once every 90 days. 

12 (d) OUTREACH.—In carrying out this section, the 

13 Secretary shall ensure that the outreach conducted under 

14 section 1720F(i) of title 38, United States Code, includes 

15 information regarding the Internet website published 

16 under subsection (a). 

17 SEC. 4. PILOT PROGRAM FOR REPAYMENT OF EDU18 CATIONAL LOANS FOR CERTAIN PSYCHIA19 TRISTS OF VETERANS HEALTH ADMINISTRA20 TION. 

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Veterans 

22 Affairs shall carry out a pilot program to repay loans of 

23 individuals described in subsection (b) that— 


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1 (1) were used by such individuals to finance 

2 education relating to psychiatric medicine, including 

3 education leading to— 

4 (A) a degree of doctor of medicine; or 

5 (B) a degree of doctor of osteopathy; and 

6 (2) were obtained from any of the following: 

7 (A) A governmental entity. 

8 (B) A private financial institution. 

9 (C) A school. 

10 (D) Any other authorized entity as deter11 mined by the Secretary. 

12 (b) ELIGIBLE INDIVIDUALS.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), an 

14 individual eligible for participation in the pilot pro15 gram is an individual who— 

16 (A) either— 

17 (i) is licensed or eligible for licensure 

18 to practice psychiatric medicine in the Vet19 erans Health Administration of the De20 partment of Veterans Affairs; or 

21 (ii) is enrolled in the final year of a 

22 residency program leading to a specialty 

23 qualification in psychiatric medicine that is 

24 approved by the Accreditation Council for 

25 Graduate Medical Education; and 


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1 (B) demonstrates a commitment to a long2 term career as a psychiatrist in the Veterans 

3 Health Administration, as determined by the 

4 Secretary. 

5 (2) PROHIBITION ON SIMULTANEOUS ELIGI6 BILITY.—An individual who is participating in any 

7 other program of the Federal Government that re8 pays the educational loans of the individual is not el9 igible to participate in the pilot program. 

10 (c) SELECTION.—The Secretary shall select not less 

11 than 10 individuals described in subsection (b) to partici12 pate in the pilot program for each year in which the Sec13 retary carries out the pilot program. 

14 (d) PERIOD OF OBLIGATED SERVICE.—The Sec15 retary shall enter into an agreement with each individual 

16 selected under subsection (c) in which such individual 

17 agrees to serve a period of 2 or more years of obligated 

18 service for the Veterans Health Administration in the field 

19 of psychiatric medicine, as determined by the Secretary. 

20 (e) LOAN REPAYMENTS.— 

21 (1) AMOUNTS.—Subject to paragraph (2), a 

22 loan repayment under this section may consist of 

23 payment of the principal, interest, and related ex24 penses of a loan obtained by an individual who is 

25 participating in the pilot program for all educational 


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1 expenses (including tuition, fees, books, and labora2 tory expenses) of such individual relating to edu3 cation described in subsection (a)(1). 

4 (2) LIMIT.—For each year of obligated service 

5 that an individual who is participating in the pilot 

6 program agrees to serve under subsection (d), the 

7 Secretary may pay not more than $30,000 in loan 

8 repayment on behalf of such individual. 

9 (f) BREACH.— 

10 (1) LIABILITY.—An individual who participates 

11 in the pilot program and fails to satisfy the period 

12 of obligated service under subsection (d) shall be lia13 ble to the United States, in lieu of such obligated 

14 service, for the amount that has been paid or is pay15 able to or on behalf of the individual under the pilot 

16 program, reduced by the proportion that the number 

17 of days served for completion of the period of obli18 gated service bears to the total number of days in 

19 the period of obligated service of such individual. 

20 (2) REPAYMENT PERIOD.—Any amount of dam21 ages that the United States is entitled to recover 

22 under this subsection shall be paid to the United 

23 States not later than 1 year after the date of the 

24 breach of the agreement. 

25 (g) REPORT.— 


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1 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 2 years 

2 after the date on which the pilot program under sub3 section (a) commences, the Secretary shall submit to 

4 the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate 

5 and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

6 House of Representatives a report on the pilot pro7 gram. 

8 (2) ELEMENTS.—The report required by para9 graph (1) shall include the following: 

10 (A) The number of individuals who partici11 pated in the pilot program, including the num12 ber of new hires. 

13 (B) The locations in which such individuals 

14 were employed by the Department, including 

15 how many such locations were rural or urban 

16 locations. 

17 (C) An assessment of the quality of the 

18 work performed by such individuals in the 

19 course of such employment, including the per20 formance reviews of such individuals. 

21 (D) The number of psychiatrists the Sec22 retary determines is needed by the Department 

23 in the future. 

24 (3) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 90 days 

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1 nates under subsection (i), the Secretary shall sub2 mit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

3 Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

4 the House of Representatives an update to the re5 port submitted under paragraph (1) and any rec6 ommendations that the Secretary considers appro7 priate. 

8 (h) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

9 regulations to carry out this section, including standards 

10 for qualified loans and authorized payees and other terms 

11 and conditions for the making of loan repayments. 

12 (i) TERMINATION.—The authority to carry out the 

13 pilot program shall expire on the date that is 3 years after 

14 the date on which the Secretary commences the pilot pro15 gram. 

16 SEC. 5. PILOT PROGRAM ON COMMUNITY OUTREACH. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Veterans Affairs 

18 shall establish a pilot program to assist veterans 

19 transitioning from serving on active duty and to improve 

20 the access of veterans to mental health services. 

21 (b) LOCATIONS.—The Secretary shall carry out the 

22 pilot program under subsection (a) at not less than five 

23 Veterans Integrated Service Networks that have a large 

24 population of veterans who— 


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1 (1) served in the reserve components of the 

2 Armed Forces; or 

3 (2) are transitioning into communities with an 

4 established population of veterans after having re5 cently separated from the Armed Forces. 

6 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The pilot program at each Vet7 erans Integrated Service Network described in subsection 

8 (b) shall include the following: 

9 (1) A community oriented veteran peer support 

10 network, carried out in partnership with an appro11 priate entity with experience in peer support pro12 grams, that— 

13 (A) establishes peer support training 

14 guidelines; 

15 (B) develops a network of veteran peer 

16 support counselors to meet the demands of the 

17 communities in the Veterans Integrated Service 

18 Network; 

19 (C) conducts training of veteran peer sup20 port counselors; 

21 (D) with respect to one medical center se22 lected by the Secretary in each such Veterans 

23 Integrated Service Network, has— 


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1 (i) a designated peer support spe2 cialist who acts as a liaison to the commu3 nity oriented veteran peer network; and 

4 (ii) a certified mental health profes5 sional designated as the community ori6 ented veteran peer network mentor; and 

7 (E) is readily available to veterans, includ8 ing pursuant to the Veterans Integrated Service 

9 Network cooperating and working with State 

10 and local governments and appropriate entities. 

11 (2) A community outreach team for each med12 ical center selected by the Secretary pursuant to 

13 paragraph (1)(D) that— 

14 (A) assists veterans transitioning into com15 munities; 

16 (B) establishes a veteran transition advi17 sory group to facilitate outreach activities; 

18 (C) includes the participation of appro19 priate community organizations, State and local 

20 governments, colleges and universities, cham21 bers of commerce and other local business orga22 nizations, and organizations that provide legal 

23 aid or advice; and 

24 (D) coordinates with the Veterans Inte25 grated Service Network regarding the Veterans 


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1 Integrated Service Network carrying out an an2 nual mental health summit to assess the status 

3 of veteran mental health care in the community 

4 and to develop new or innovative means to pro5 vide mental health services to veterans. 

6 (d) REPORTS.— 

7 (1) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 18 

8 months after the date on which the pilot program 

9 under subsection (a) commences, the Secretary shall 

10 submit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

11 Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

12 the House of Representatives a report on the pilot 

13 program. With respect to each Veterans Integrated 

14 Service Network described in subsection (b), the re15 port shall include— 

16 (A) a full description of the peer support 

17 model implemented under the pilot program, 

18 participation data, and data pertaining to past 

19 and current mental health related hospitaliza20 tions and fatalities; 

21 (B) recommendations on implementing 

22 peer support networks throughout the Depart23 ment; 

24 (C) whether the mental health resources 

25 made available under the pilot program for 


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1 members of the reserve components of the 

2 Armed Forces is effective; and 

3 (D) a full description of the activities and 

4 effectiveness of community outreach coordi5 nating teams under the pilot program, including 

6 partnerships that have been established with 

7 appropriate entities. 

8 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 90 days 

9 before the date on which the pilot program termi10 nates under subsection (e), the Secretary shall sub11 mit to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of the 

12 Senate and the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs of 

13 the House of Representatives an update to the re14 port submitted under paragraph (1). 

15 (e) CONSTRUCTION.—This section may not be con16 strued to authorize the Secretary to hire additional em17 ployees of the Department to carry out the pilot program 

18 under subsection (a). 

19 (f) TERMINATION.—The authority of the Secretary to 

20 carry out the pilot program under subsection (a) shall ter21 minate on the date that is 3 years after the date on which 

22 the pilot program commences. 


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1 SEC. 6. COLLABORATION ON SUICIDE PREVENTION EF2 FORTS BETWEEN DEPARTMENT OF VET3 ERANS AFFAIRS AND NON-PROFIT MENTAL 

4 HEALTH ORGANIZATIONS. 

5 (a) COLLABORATION.—The Secretary of Veterans Af6 fairs may collaborate with non-profit mental health orga7 nizations to prevent suicide among veterans as follows: 

8 (1) To improve the efficiency and effectiveness 

9 of suicide prevention efforts carried out by the Sec10 retary and non-profit mental health organizations. 

11 (2) To assist non-profit mental health organiza12 tions with the suicide prevention efforts of such or13 ganizations through the use of the expertise of em14 ployees of the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

15 (3) To jointly carry out suicide prevention ef16 forts. 

17 (b) EXCHANGE OF RESOURCES.—In carrying out any 

18 collaboration under subsection (a), the Secretary and any 

19 non-profit mental health organization with which the Sec20 retary is collaborating under such subsection shall ex21 change training sessions and best practices to help with 

22 the suicide prevention efforts of the Department and such 

23 organization. 

24 (c) DIRECTOR OF SUICIDE PREVENTION COORDINA25 TION.—The Secretary shall select within the Department 

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1 take any collaboration with non-profit mental health orga2 nizations under this section or any other provision of law. 

3 SEC. 7. ADDITIONAL PERIOD OF ELIGIBILITY FOR HEALTH 

4 CARE FOR CERTAIN VETERANS OF COMBAT 

5 SERVICE DURING CERTAIN PERIODS OF HOS6 TILITIES AND WAR. 

7 Paragraph (3) of section 1710(e) of title 38, United 

8 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘(3) In the case of care for a veteran described in 

10 paragraph (1)(D), hospital care, medical services, and 

11 nursing home care may be provided under or by virtue 

12 of subsection (a)(2)(F) only during the following periods: 

13 ‘‘(A) Except as provided by subparagraph (B), 

14 with respect to a veteran described in paragraph 

15 (1)(D) who is discharged or released from the active 

16 military, naval, or air service after January 27, 

17 2003, the five-year period beginning on the date of 

18 such discharge or release. 

19 ‘‘(B) With respect to a veteran described in 

20 paragraph (1)(D) who is discharged or released from 

21 the active military, naval, or air service after Janu22 ary 1, 2009, and before January 1, 2011, but did 

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1 paragraph (A), the one-year period beginning on 

2 January 1, 2015. 

3 ‘‘(C) With respect to a veteran described in 

4 paragraph (1)(D) who is discharged or released from 

5 the active military, naval, or air service on or before 

6 January 27, 2003, and did not enroll in the patient 

7 enrollment system under section 1705 of this title on 

8 or before such date, the three-year period beginning 

9 on January 27, 2008.’’. 

10 SEC. 8. PROHIBITION ON NEW APPROPRIATIONS. 

11 No additional funds are authorized to be appro12 priated to carry out this Act and the amendments made 

13 by this Act, and this Act and such amendments shall be 

14 carried out using amounts otherwise made available for 

15 such purposes. 

Passed the House of Representatives December 9, 

2014. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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