I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3420 

To improve and enhance substance use disorder programs for members of 

the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 30, 2009 

Mr. KENNEDY (for himself, Mr. JONES, Mr. PIERLUISI, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, 

Mr. LOEBSACK, Mr. BISHOP of New York, Mr. TONKO, and Mr. 

GRIJALVA) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services 

A BILL 

To improve and enhance substance use disorder programs 

for members of the Armed Forces, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Supporting Uniformed 

5 Personnel by Providing Oversight and Relevant Treatment 

6 for Substance Use Disorders Act’’ or the ‘‘SUPPORT for 

7 Substance Use Disorders Act’’. 

8 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

9 Congress makes the following findings: 


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1 (1) The Armed Forces is comprised of more 

2 than 1,400,000 members in the regular components 

3 and more than 1,080,000 members in the Reserves. 

4 More than 1,800,000 members of the Armed Forces 

5 have been deployed in Operation Iraqi Freedom, Op6 eration Enduring Freedom, and the Global War on 

7 Terrorism since 2001. 

8 (2) Substance use disorders are chronic dis9 eases that can be prevented, treated, and managed 

10 effectively. Failure to prevent or treat these condi11 tions results in severe and widespread consequences, 

12 including increased risk of suicide, exacerbation of 

13 mental and physical health disorders, increased risk 

14 of domestic violence and family discord, and in15 creased risk of unemployment and homelessness. 

16 (3) According to the 2005 Department of De17 fense Survey of Health Related Behaviors Among 

18 Active Duty Personnel, 24 percent of the members 

19 of the Armed Forces surveyed reported symptoms of 

20 alcohol dependence and nearly 11 percent of the 

21 members surveyed reported use of an illicit drug. 

22 Misuse of controlled prescription drugs, particularly 

23 narcotic painkillers, is a significant and growing 

24 problem among members of the Armed Forces as 

25 well. 


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1 (4) Substance abuse disorders often co-occur 

2 with other health problems. According to the 2007 

3 Report of the Department of Defense Task Force on 

4 Mental Health, 17 percent of soldiers from brigade 

5 combat teams are at risk of developing clinically sig6 nificant symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, 

7 major depression, or anxiety after deployment, and 

8 an even higher percentage of such soldiers, 28 per9 cent, would experience symptoms based upon broad10 er screening criteria. The prevalence of post-trau11 matic stress disorder within a year of combat de12 ployment was estimated to range from 10 to 25 per13 cent. 

14 (5) According to the 2007 Report of the De15 partment of Defense Task Force on Mental Health, 

16 symptoms of disorders such as post-traumatic stress 

17 disorder often include complex disinhibitory behav18 iors such as self-medicating with alcohol, other medi19 cations, or illicit drugs in an attempt to return to 

20 ‘‘normalcy’’. 

21 (6) According to the 2007 Report of the De22 partment of Defense Task Force on Mental Health, 

23 of the 686,306 veterans separated from active duty 

24 between 2002 and December 2006 who were eligible 

25 for care from the Department of Veterans Affairs, 


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1 229,015 (or 33 percent) accessed care at a Depart2 ment facility. Of those veterans who accessed such 

3 care since 2002, 83,889 (or 37 percent) were diag4 nosed with or were evaluated for a mental disorder, 

5 including post-traumatic stress disorder (39,243 or 

6 17 percent), nondependent abuse of drugs (33,099 

7 or 14 percent), and depressive disorder (27,023 or 

8 12 percent). 

9 (7) According to the 2007 Report of the De10 partment of Defense Task Force on Mental Health, 

11 20 percent of married soldiers planned to separate 

12 or divorce. 

13 (8) According to the 2007 Report of the De14 partment of Defense Task Force on Mental Health, 

15 relationship problems are the top risk factor for sui16 cide. Mental disorders, alcohol and substance use 

17 disorders, and significant stress are other significant 

18 risk factors for suicide. The National Violent Death 

19 Reporting System of the Centers for Disease Control 

20 and Prevention determined that, of a group of 

21 former or current military personnel who died by 

22 suicide in 2005, 17.2 percent had an alcohol problem 

23 and 7.7 percent had a problem with other sub24 stances. The suicide prevention action network 

25 (SPAN) reports a 20 percent increase in suicide 


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1 among members of the Armed Forces on active duty, 

2 89 suicides in 2007 with 32 deaths under investiga3 tion, and a rise of attempted suicides by soldiers by 

4 6 times higher than it was at the start of Operation 

5 Iraqi Freedom. 

6 (9) While some commands and facilities in the 

7 Armed Forces provide outstanding services for mem8 bers of the Armed Forces for substance use dis9 orders, the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treat10 ment, and management of, and research on, sub11 stance use disorders in members of the Armed 

12 Forces is inconsistent in availability, structure, and 

13 success among the various Armed Forces. 

14 SEC. 3. COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ON PREVENTION, DIAG15 NOSIS, MITIGATION, TREATMENT, AND MAN16 AGEMENT OF SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS IN 

17 MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES. 

18 (a) REVIEW AND ASSESSMENT OF CURRENT CAPA19 BILITIES.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec22 retary of Defense shall, in consultation with the Sec23 retaries of the military departments and the Sec24 retary of Veterans Affairs, conduct a comprehensive 

25 review of the programs and activities of the DepartVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:57 Aug 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3420.IH H3420

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1 ment of Defense for the prevention, diagnosis, miti2 gation, treatment, and management of, and research 

3 on, substance use disorders in members of the 

4 Armed Forces. 

5 (2) ELEMENTS.—The review conducted under 

6 paragraph (1) shall include, at a minimum, an as7 sessment of each of the following: 

8 (A) The current state and effectiveness of 

9 the programs of the Department of Defense 

10 and the military departments relating to the 

11 prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, 

12 and management of, and research on, substance 

13 use disorders in members of the Armed Forces. 

14 (B) The adequacy of the availability of and 

15 access to care for substance use disorders in 

16 military medical treatment facilities and under 

17 the TRICARE program. 

18 (C) The adequacy of oversight by the De19 partment of programs relating to the preven20 tion, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and man21 agement of substance use disorders in members 

22 of the Armed Forces. 

23 (D) The adequacy and appropriateness of 

24 current credentials and other requirements for 

25 healthcare professionals treating members of 


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1 the Armed Forces with substance use disorders, 

2 including an assessment of the advisability of 

3 adopting uniform credentials and requirements 

4 for such treatment for healthcare professionals 

5 who are members of organizations such as the 

6 Association for Addiction Professionals 

7 (NAADAC), the American Society of Addiction 

8 Medicine (ASAM), the American Psychiatric 

9 Association (APA), and the National Board for 

10 Certified Counselors (NBCC). 

11 (E) The advisable ratio of physician and 

12 non-physician care providers for substance use 

13 disorders to members of the Armed Forces with 

14 such disorders. 

15 (F) The adequacy and appropriateness of 

16 protocols for the diagnosis, treatment, and 

17 management of substance use disorders in 

18 members of the Armed Forces. 

19 (G) The adequacy of the availability of and 

20 access to care for substance use disorders for 

21 members of the reserve components of the 

22 Armed Forces when compared with the avail23 ability of and access to care for substance use 

24 disorders for members of the regular compo25 nents of the Armed Forces, including an identiVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:57 Aug 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3420.IH H3420

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1 fication of any obstacles that are unique to the 

2 prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, 

3 and management of substance use disorders in 

4 members of the reserve components of the 

5 Armed Forces. 

6 (H) The adequacy of the prevention, diag7 nosis, mitigation, treatment, and management 

8 of substance use disorders and related distress 

9 in dependent family members of members of the 

10 Armed Forces, whether such family members 

11 suffer from their own substance use disorder or 

12 because of the substance use disorder of a 

13 member of the Armed Forces. 

14 (I) Any gaps in the current capabilities of 

15 the Department of Defense for the prevention, 

16 diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and manage17 ment of, and research on, substance use dis18 orders in members of the Armed Forces. 

19 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 

20 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

21 of Defense shall submit to the congressional defense 

22 committees a report setting forth the findings and 

23 recommendations of the Secretary as a result of the 

24 review conducted under paragraph (1). The report 

25 shall— 


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1 (A) set forth the findings and rec2 ommendations of the Secretary regarding each 

3 element of the review set forth in paragraph 

4 (2); 

5 (B) set forth relevant statistics on the fre6 quency of substance use disorders in members 

7 of the regular components of the Armed Forces, 

8 members of the reserve component of the 

9 Armed Forces, and dependents of such mem10 bers (including spouses and children); and 

11 (C) include such other findings and rec12 ommendations on improvements to the current 

13 capabilities of the Department of Defense for 

14 the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, 

15 and management of, and research on, substance 

16 use disorders in members of the Armed Forces 

17 as the Secretary considers appropriate. 

18 (b) PLAN FOR IMPROVEMENT AND ENHANCEMENT

19 OF PROGRAMS.— 

20 (1) PLAN REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days 

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec22 retary of Defense shall, in consultation with the Sec23 retaries of the military departments and the Sec24 retary of Veterans Affairs, submit to the congres25 sional defense committees a comprehensive plan for 


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1 the improvement and enhancement of the programs 

2 and activities of the Department of Defense for the 

3 prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and 

4 management of, and research on, substance use dis5 orders in members of the Armed Forces and their 

6 dependent family members. 

7 (2) BASIS.—The comprehensive plan required 

8 by paragraph (1) shall take into account the fol9 lowing: 

10 (A) The results of the review and assess11 ment conducted under subsection (a). 

12 (B) Any preliminary results of the study 

13 required by section 4. 

14 (C) Similar initiatives of the Secretary of 

15 Veterans Affairs to expand and improve care 

16 for substance use disorders among veterans, in17 cluding the programs and activities conducted 

18 under title I of the Veterans’ Mental Health 

19 and Other Care Improvements Act of 2008 

20 (Public Law 110–387; 112 Stat. 4112). 

21 (3) COMPREHENSIVE STATEMENT OF POLICY.— 

22 The comprehensive plan required by paragraph (1) 

23 shall include a comprehensive statement of the policy 

24 of the Department of Defense regarding the preven25 tion, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and manageVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:57 Aug 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3420.IH H3420

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1 ment of, and research on, substance use disorders in 

2 members of the Armed Forces and their dependent 

3 family members. 

4 (4) AVAILABILITY OF SERVICES AND TREAT5 MENT.—The comprehensive plan required by para6 graph (1) shall include mechanisms to ensure the 

7 availability to members of the Armed Forces and 

8 their dependent family members of services and 

9 treatment for substance use disorders, including, but 

10 not limited to, services and treatment as follows: 

11 (A) Screening for substance use disorder in 

12 all settings, including primary care settings. 

13 (B) Short-term motivational counseling 

14 services. 

15 (C) Marital and family counseling. 

16 (D) Inpatient, intensive outpatient, or 

17 other residential care services. 

18 (E) Private medical, psychiatric, and pro19 fessional counseling services. 

20 (F) Relapse prevention services. 

21 (G) Ongoing aftercare and outpatient 

22 counseling services. 

23 (H) Pharmacological treatments aimed at 

24 treating substance use disorders, including 

25 treating cravings for drugs and alcohol. 


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1 (I) Detoxification and stabilization serv2 ices. 

3 (J) Coordination with groups providing 

4 peer-to-peer counseling. 

5 (K) Such other services as the Secretary 

6 considers appropriate. 

7 (5) PREVENTION AND REDUCTION OF DIS8 ORDERS.—The comprehensive plan required by para9 graph (1) shall include mechanisms to facilitate the 

10 prevention and reduction of substance use disorders 

11 in members of the Armed Forces through science12 based initiatives, including education programs, for 

13 members of the Armed Forces and their families. 

14 (6) SPECIFIC INSTRUCTIONS.—The comprehen15 sive plan required by paragraph (1) shall include 

16 each of the following: 

17 (A) SUBSTANCES OF ABUSE.—Instructions 

18 on the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treat19 ment, and management of substance use dis20 orders in members of the Armed Forces, includ21 ing the abuse of alcohol, illicit drugs, and non22 medical use and abuse of prescription drugs (in23 cluding addiction to prescription drugs that is 

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1 quired and medically appropriate pain treat2 ment). 

3 (B) HEALTHCARE PROFESSIONALS.—In4 structions on— 

5 (i) appropriate training of healthcare 

6 professionals in the prevention, screening, 

7 diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and man8 agement of substance use disorders in 

9 members of the Armed Forces; 

10 (ii) appropriate staffing levels for 

11 healthcare professionals at military medical 

12 treatment facilities for the prevention, 

13 screening, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, 

14 and management of substance use dis15 orders in members of the Armed Forces; 

16 and 

17 (iii) such uniform training and 

18 credentialing requirements for physician 

19 and non-physician healthcare professionals 

20 in the prevention, screening, diagnosis, 

21 mitigation, treatment, and management of 

22 substance use disorders in members of the 

23 Armed Forces as the Secretary considers 

24 appropriate. 


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1 (C) SERVICES FOR DEPENDENTS.—In2 structions on the availability of services for sub3 stance use disorders to military dependents (in4 cluding services for dependents suffering from 

5 their own substance use disorder and depend6 ents suffering because of the substance use dis7 order of a member of the Armed Forces), in8 cluding instructions on making such services 

9 available to such dependents to the maximum 

10 extent practicable. 

11 (D) PREVENTION MATERIALS.—Instruc12 tions on the dissemination of materials regard13 ing substance abuse prevention, including, at a 

14 minimum, materials on the following: 

15 (i) The dangers of alcohol abuse. 

16 (ii) The risks of self-medication, and 

17 the potential co-occurrence of drug use or 

18 abuse with illnesses such as post-traumatic 

19 stress disorder. 

20 (iii) The risks associated with abuse 

21 of prescription medications and the signs 

22 of inadvertent addiction to prescription 

23 medications that may occur as a con24 sequence of otherwise prescribed treatment 

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1 cure and dispose of such substances to 

2 safeguard such substances from third par3 ties such as children. 

4 (iv) The risks of substance abuse 

5 faced by military dependents due to the 

6 stresses of having a spouse or parent de7 ployed, as well as other factors relating to 

8 substance abuse that are unique to mili9 tary families. 

10 (v) Strategies for prevention of drug 

11 and alcohol abuse among children of mili12 tary families, and suggestions for military 

13 parents on how to intervene and find help 

14 for a child with a substance use disorder. 

15 (E) DIFFERENTIATION OF DISCIPLINARY

16 ACTION AND TREATMENT.—Instructions on the 

17 separation of disciplinary actions from preven18 tion and treatment of substance use disorders 

19 in members of the Armed Forces. 

20 (F) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Instructions on 

21 confidentiality for members of the Armed 

22 Forces in seeking or receiving services or treat23 ment for substance use disorders. 

24 (G) PARTICIPATION OF CHAIN OF COM25 MAND.—Instructions on appropriate consultaVerDate Nov 24 2008 04:57 Aug 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3420.IH H3420

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1 tion, reference to, and involvement of the chain 

2 of command of members of the Armed Forces 

3 in matters relating to the diagnosis, treatment, 

4 and management of substance use disorders in 

5 such members. 

6 (H) CONSIDERATION OF GENDER.—In7 structions on gender specific requirements in 

8 the prevention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, 

9 and management of substance use disorders in 

10 members of the Armed Forces, including gender 

11 specific care and treatment requirements. 

12 (I) COORDINATION WITH OTHER

13 HEALTHCARE INITIATIVES.—Instructions on the 

14 integration of efforts on the prevention, diag15 nosis, mitigation, treatment, and management 

16 of substance use disorders in members of the 

17 Armed Forces with efforts to address co-occur18 ring health care disorders (including post-trau19 matic stress disorder and depression) and sui20 cide prevention. 

21 (7) OTHER ELEMENTS.—In addition to the 

22 matters specified in paragraph (3), the comprehen23 sive plan required by paragraph (1) shall include the 

24 following: 


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1 (A) LEAD AGENT.—The designation by the 

2 Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Af3 fairs of a lead agent to coordinate implementa4 tion of the plan. 

5 (B) MILESTONES AND SCHEDULES.—Mile6 stones and schedules for the achievement of the 

7 goals of the plan, including goals relating to the 

8 following: 

9 (i) Enhanced education of members of 

10 the Armed Forces regarding substance use 

11 disorders. 

12 (ii) Enhanced and improved identi13 fication and diagnosis of substance use dis14 orders in members of the Armed Forces. 

15 (iii) Enhanced and improved access of 

16 members of the Armed Forces to services 

17 and treatment for and management of sub18 stance use disorders. 

19 (iv) Appropriate staffing of military 

20 medical treatment facilities and other fa21 cilities for the treatment of substance use 

22 disorders in members of the Armed Forces. 

23 (C) BEST PRACTICES.—The incorporation 

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1 vention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and 

2 management of substance use disorders. 

3 (D) AVAILABLE RESEARCH.—The incorpo4 ration of applicable results of available studies, 

5 research, and academic reviews on the preven6 tion, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and man7 agement of substance use disorders. 

8 (8) UPDATE IN LIGHT OF INDEPENDENT

9 STUDY.—Upon the completion of the study required 

10 by section 4, the Secretary of Defense shall— 

11 (A) in consultation with the Secretaries of 

12 the military departments and the Secretary of 

13 the Department of Veterans Affairs, make such 

14 modifications and improvements to the com15 prehensive plan required by paragraph (1) as 

16 the Secretary of Defense considers appropriate 

17 in light of the findings and recommendations of 

18 the study; and 

19 (B) submit to the congressional defense 

20 committees a report setting forth the com21 prehensive plan as modified and improved 

22 under subparagraph (A). 


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1 SEC. 4. INDEPENDENT REPORT ON SUBSTANCE USE DIS2 ORDERS IN MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

3 FORCES. 

4 (a) STUDY REQUIRED.—The Secretary of Defense 

5 shall provide for a study on substance use disorders in 

6 members of the Armed Forces to be conducted by the In7 stitute of Medicine of the National Academies of Sciences 

8 or such other independent entity as the Secretary shall 

9 select for purposes of the study. 

10 (b) ELEMENTS.—The study required by subsection 

11 (a) shall include a review and assessment of the following: 

12 (1) The current state and effectiveness of the 

13 programs of the Department of Defense and the 

14 military departments relating to the prevention, di15 agnosis, mitigation, treatment, and management of, 

16 and research on, substance use disorders in members 

17 of the Armed Forces. 

18 (2) The adequacy of the availability of and ac19 cess to care for substance use disorders in military 

20 medical treatment facilities and under the 

21 TRICARE program. 

22 (3) The adequacy of the oversight by the De23 partment of Defense of programs related to the pre24 vention, diagnosis, mitigation, treatment, and man25 agement of substance use disorders in members of 

26 the Armed Forces. 


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1 (4) The adequacy and appropriateness of cur2 rent credentials and other requirements for physi3 cian and non-physician healthcare professionals 

4 treating members of the Armed Forces with sub5 stance use disorders. 

6 (5) The advisable ratio of physician and non7 physician care providers for substance use disorders 

8 to members of the Armed Forces with such dis9 orders. 

10 (6) The adequacy and appropriateness of proto11 cols for the diagnosis, treatment, and management 

12 of substance use disorders in members of the Armed 

13 Forces. 

14 (7) The adequacy of the availability of and ac15 cess to care for substance use disorders for members 

16 of the reserve components of the Armed Forces 

17 when compared with the availability of and access to 

18 care for substance use disorders for members of the 

19 regular components of the Armed Forces. 

20 (8) The adequacy of the prevention, diagnosis, 

21 mitigation, treatment, and management of substance 

22 use disorders in dependent family members of mem23 bers of the Armed Forces, whether such family 

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1 order or because of the substance use disorder of a 

2 member of the Armed Forces. 

3 (9) The need for and appropriate provision of 

4 confidentiality for members of the Armed Forces 

5 who seek services or treatment for a substance use 

6 disorder. 

7 (10) Such other matters as the Secretary con8 siders appropriate for purposes of the study. 

9 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

10 of the enactment of this Act, the entity conducting the 

11 study required by subsection (a) shall submit to the Sec12 retary of Defense and the congressional defense commit13 tees a report on the results of the study. The report shall 

14 set forth the findings and recommendations of the entity 

15 as a result of the study. 

16 SEC. 5. CENTER OF EXCELLENCE IN THE PREVENTION, DI17 AGNOSIS, MITIGATION, TREATMENT, AND 

18 MANAGEMENT OF SUBSTANCE USE DIS19 ORDERS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Defense shall es21 tablish within the Department of Defense a Center of Ex22 cellence in the Prevention, Diagnosis, Mitigation, Treat23 ment, and Management of Substance Use Disorders. 

24 (b) PARTNERSHIPS.—The Secretary of Defense shall 

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1 tent practicable with the Department of Veterans Affairs, 

2 institutions of higher education, and other appropriate 

3 public and private entities (including international enti4 ties) to carry out the responsibilities specified in sub5 section (c). 

6 (c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Center shall have re7 sponsibilities as follows: 

8 (1) To implement the comprehensive plan of the 

9 Department of Defense for the prevention, diagnosis, 

10 mitigation, treatment, and management of substance 

11 use disorders under section 3, including the perform12 ance of research on gender and ethnic group-specific 

13 health needs related to substance use disorders. 

14 (2) To provide for the development, testing, and 

15 dissemination within the Department of evidence16 based best practices for the prevention, diagnosis, 

17 mitigation, treatment, and management of substance 

18 use disorders. 

19 (3) To provide guidance for healthcare profes20 sionals and support service staff of the health sys21 tem of the Department in providing quality health 

22 care for members of the Armed Forces with sub23 stance use disorders, and their dependents, when 

24 possible, who are suffering from the effects of sub25 stance use disorders. 


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1 (4) To provide guidance for healthcare profes2 sionals and support service staff to make members 

3 of the Armed Forces receiving prescription pain 

4 medications aware of the potential for abuse of or 

5 addiction to such substances, and to provide such 

6 members education on ways of properly securing 

7 such substances and disposing of such substances 

8 when no longer needed. 

9 (5) To recommend uniform credentials and 

10 other requirements for healthcare professionals and 

11 support service staff who provide care and support 

12 for members of the Armed Forces and their depend13 ents who suffer from substance use disorders. 

14 (6) To establish, implement, and oversee a uni15 form and comprehensive program to train physician 

16 and non-physician healthcare professionals and sup17 port staff in the Department in the screening, inter18 vention, treatment, and management of substance 

19 use disorders. 

20 (7) To coordinate research, data collection, and 

21 data dissemination on the prevention, diagnosis, 

22 mitigation, treatment, and management of substance 

23 use disorders, and to maintain a database of infor24 mation for that purpose. 


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1 (8) To facilitate advancements in the study of 

2 the short-term and long-term physical and psycho3 logical effects of substance use disorders. 

4 (9) To disseminate evidence-based best prac5 tices within the military medical treatment facilities 

6 for training healthcare professionals and support 

7 staff with respect to substance use disorders. 

8 (10) To conduct basic science and translational 

9 research on substance use disorders in members of 

10 the Armed Forces for the purposes of understanding 

11 the etiology of substance use disorders and devel12 oping preventive interventions and new treatments. 

13 (11) To develop programs and outreach strate14 gies for families of members of the Armed Forces 

15 with substance use disorders to address and to miti16 gate the impact of substance use disorders on such 

17 family members and to support the recovery of such 

18 members from substance use disorders. 

19 (12) To conduct research on the health needs of 

20 families of members of the Armed Forces with sub21 stance use disorders and develop protocols to ad22 dress any needs identified through such research. 

23 (13) To disseminate information to families of 

24 members of the Armed Forces regarding ways to 

25 help prevent alcohol and drug abuse among their 


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1 children, as well as educational materials to address 

2 how situations unique to military families, such as 

3 having a parent deployed, can increase stress levels 

4 and put a child at increased risk of abusing drugs 

5 or alcohol. 

6 (14) To develop and oversee a long-term plan to 

7 increase the number of healthcare professionals and 

8 support personnel within the Department in order to 

9 facilitate the meeting by the Department of the 

10 needs of members of the Armed Forces with sub11 stance use disorders while they remain on active 

12 duty and until their transition to care and treatment 

13 from the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

14 (15) To develop and deploy an education and 

15 awareness training initiative designed to reduce the 

16 negative stigma associated with substance use dis17 orders and treatment. 

18 (16) Such other responsibilities as the Secretary 

19 shall specify. 

20 SEC. 6. CONGRESSIONAL DEFENSE COMMITTEES DEFINED. 

21 In this Act, the term ‘‘congressional defense commit22 tees’’ means— 

23 (1) the Committee on Armed Services and the 

24 Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and 


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1 (2) the Committee on Armed Services and the 

2 Committee on Appropriations of the House of Rep3 resentatives. 

Æ 


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