I 
118TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3680 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for a national outreach 
and education strategy and research to improve the behavioral and men-
tal health of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander 
population, while addressing stigma within such population against be-
havioral and mental health treatment. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 25, 2023 
Ms. CHU (for herself, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. CASE, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. KIM 
of New Jersey, Mr. LIEU, Ms. MENG, Ms. STRICKLAND, Ms. TOKUDA, 
and Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for 
a national outreach and education strategy and research 
to improve the behavioral and mental health of the Asian 
American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander popu-
lation, while addressing stigma within such population 
against behavioral and mental health treatment. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Stop Mental Health 
Stigma in Our Communities Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) The term ‘‘AANHPI’’ means Asian Amer-
ican, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander. 
(2) Except as otherwise specified, the term 
‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of Health and 
Human Services. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) The AANHPI community is among the 
fastest growing population groups in the United 
States. It is a diverse population representing over 
30 countries, making up more than 50 distinct eth-
nic groups, and speaking more than 100 languages 
and dialects. 
(2) There is a growing mental health crisis in 
the United States, particularly for AANHPI individ-
uals. AANHPI individuals with mental health prob-
lems have the lowest rates of mental health service 
utilization compared to other racial or ethnic popu-
lations. In 2021, only 25 percent of Asian adults 
with a mental health problem received treatment in 
the past year. Although suicide is the tenth leading 
cause of death, it is the leading cause of death for 
AANHPI youth. From 2018 to 2020, AANHPI 
youth between the ages of 10- to 24-years old were 
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the only racial or ethnic population in this age cat-
egory where suicide was the leading cause of death. 
(3) Such mental health disparities within the 
AANHPI community may be attributed to systemic 
barriers to accessing mental health services, includ-
ing stigma attached to mental health, limited avail-
ability of and access to culturally and linguistically 
appropriate services, and insufficient research. 
(4) Insufficient research on AANHPI commu-
nities often leads to an inaccurate representation of 
their experiences and needs. It is imperative to 
disaggregate AANHPI population data to better un-
derstand the range of mental health issues for each 
subpopulation so specific culturally and linguistically 
appropriate solutions can be developed. 
(5) Critical investments are necessary to reduce 
stigma and improve mental health within AANHPI 
communities, including— 
(A) increasing culturally and linguistically 
appropriate outreach, education, and mental 
health services; 
(B) improving representation of AANHPI 
individuals among behavioral health providers; 
and 
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(C) strengthening data collection in re-
search. 
SEC. 4. NATIONAL ASIAN AMERICAN, NATIVE HAWAIIAN, 
AND PACIFIC ISLANDER BEHAVIORAL AND 
MENTAL 
HEALTH 
OUTREACH 
AND 
EDU-
CATION STRATEGY. 
Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 290dd et seq.) is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section: 
‘‘SEC. 553. NATIONAL AANHPI BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL 
HEALTH OUTREACH AND EDUCATION STRAT-
EGY. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Assistant Secretary, shall, in coordination with the 
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health and the 
Director of the National Institute on Minority Health and 
Health Disparities and in consultation with advocacy and 
behavioral and mental health organizations serving popu-
lations of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific 
Islander individuals or communities, develop and imple-
ment a national outreach and education strategy to pro-
mote behavioral and mental health and reduce stigma as-
sociated with mental health conditions and substance use 
disorder within the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and 
Pacific Islander population. Such strategy shall— 
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‘‘(1) be designed to meet the diverse cultural 
and language needs of the various Asian American, 
Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander subpopula-
tions; 
‘‘(2) be developmentally and age-appropriate; 
‘‘(3) increase awareness of symptoms of mental 
illnesses common among such subpopulations, taking 
into account differences within subgroups such as 
gender, gender identity, age, sexual orientation, or 
ethnicity; 
‘‘(4) provide information on evidence-based, cul-
turally and linguistically appropriate and adapted 
interventions and treatments; 
‘‘(5) ensure full participation of, and engage, 
both consumers and community members in the de-
velopment and implementation of materials; and 
‘‘(6) seek to broaden the perspective among 
both individuals in Asian American, Native Hawai-
ian, and Pacific Islander communities and stake-
holders serving such communities to use a com-
prehensive public health approach to promoting be-
havioral and mental health that addresses a holistic 
view of health by focusing on the intersection be-
tween behavioral and mental health and physical 
health. 
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‘‘(b) REPORTS.—Beginning not later than one year 
after the date of enactment of the Stop Mental Health 
Stigma in Our Communities Act, and annually thereafter, 
the Secretary, acting through the Assistant Secretary, 
shall submit to the Congress, and make publicly available, 
a report on the extent to which the strategy under sub-
section (a) improved behavioral and mental health out-
comes associated with mental health conditions and sub-
stance use disorders within the Asian American, Native 
Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander population. 
‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028.’’. 
SEC. 5. STUDY AND REPORT ON THE AANHPI YOUTH MEN-
TAL HEALTH CRISIS. 
(a) STUDY.— 
(1) 
IN
GENERAL.—The 
Secretary, 
acting 
through the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health 
and Substance Use, in coordination with the Deputy 
Assistant Secretary for Minority Health and the Di-
rector of the National Institute on Minority Health 
and Health Disparities, shall conduct a study on 
mental health among AANHPI youth. 
(2) ELEMENTS.—The study required by para-
graph (1) shall include assessment of— 
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(A) the prevalence of mental health condi-
tions and substance use disorders among 
AANHPI youth; 
(B) AANHPI youth who attempted suicide 
or died by suicide or substance use overdose; 
and 
(C) AANHPI youth who received treat-
ment for a mental health condition or substance 
use disorder. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen-
sions of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce of the House of Representatives, and make 
publicly available, a report on the findings of the study 
conducted under subsection (a), including— 
(1) identification of the barriers to behavioral 
and mental health services that are faced by 
AANHPI youth; 
(2) identification of root causes of mental 
health issues among AANHPI youth; 
(3) recommendations for actions to be taken by 
the Secretary to improve mental health among 
AANHPI youth; 
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(4) recommendations for legislative or adminis-
trative actions to improve mental health among 
AANHPI youth and reduce the prevalence of 
AANHPI youth experiencing depression or suicide; 
and 
(5) such other recommendations as the Sec-
retary determines appropriate. 
(c) DATA.—Any data included in the study or report 
under this section shall be disaggregated by race, eth-
nicity, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, geo-
graphic region, disability status, and other relevant fac-
tors. 
(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To carry 
out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated 
$1,500,000 for fiscal year 2024. 
SEC. 6. STUDY AND REPORT ON STRATEGIES ON THE 
AANHPI BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL HEALTH 
WORKFORCE SHORTAGE. 
(a) STUDY.— 
(1) 
IN
GENERAL.—The 
Secretary, 
acting 
through the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health 
and Substance Use, in coordination with the Sec-
retary of Labor and the Deputy Assistant Secretary 
for Minority Health, shall conduct a study on strate-
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gies for increasing the behavioral and mental health 
professional workforce that identify as AANHPI. 
(2) ELEMENTS.—The study required by para-
graph (1) shall include— 
(A) the total number of licensed behavioral 
and mental health providers in the United 
States who identify as AANHPI; 
(B) information regarding each such pro-
vider’s current type of license, geographic area 
of practice, and type of employer (such as a 
hospital, a Federally qualified health center, a 
school, or private practice); and 
(C) information regarding the cultural and 
linguistic capabilities of such providers, includ-
ing languages spoken proficiently. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 
of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to 
the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pen-
sions of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce of the House of Representatives, and make 
publicly available, a report on the findings of the study 
under subsection (a), including— 
(1) identification of AANHPI licensed behav-
ioral and mental health care providers’ knowledge 
and awareness of the barriers to high-quality behav-
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ioral and mental health care services faced by 
AANHPI individuals, including stigma, limited 
English proficiency, and lack of health insurance 
coverage; 
(2) recommendations for actions to be taken by 
the Secretary to increase the number of AANHPI li-
censed behavioral and mental health professionals; 
(3) recommendations for legislative or adminis-
trative action to improve the enrollment of AANHPI 
individuals in behavioral and mental health profes-
sional education programs; and 
(4) such other recommendations as the Sec-
retary determines appropriate. 
(c) DATA.—Any data included in the study or report 
under this section shall be disaggregated by race, eth-
nicity, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, geo-
graphic region, disability status, and other relevant fac-
tors. 
(d) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘licensed 
behavioral and mental health provider’’ means any indi-
vidual licensed to provide mental health and substance use 
disorder services, such as in the professions of social work, 
psychology, psychiatry, marriage and family therapy, men-
tal health counseling, and substance use disorder coun-
seling. 
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(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—To carry 
out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated 
$1,500,000 for fiscal year 2024. 
Æ 
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