I 
119TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7394 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Secretary of Health 
and Human Services, acting through the Assistant Secretary for Mental 
Health and Substance Use, to establish a Mental and Behavioral Health 
Career Promotion Grant Program, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 5, 2026 
Ms. BALINT (for herself, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, and Ms. NORTON) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy 
and Commerce 
A BILL 
To amend the Public Health Service Act to direct the Sec-
retary of Health and Human Services, acting through 
the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance 
Use, to establish a Mental and Behavioral Health Career 
Promotion Grant Program, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Mental Health Career 
Promotion Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CAREER PRO-
MOTION GRANT PROGRAM. 
Subpart 3 of part B of title V of the Public Health 
Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290bb–31 et seq.) is amended by 
adding at the end the following: 
‘‘SEC. 520O. MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CAREER 
PROMOTION GRANT PROGRAM. 
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through 
the Assistant Secretary, shall establish a program, to be 
known as the Mental and Behavioral Health Career Pro-
motion Grant Program, to award grants to eligible entities 
to establish or expand eligible mental and behavioral 
health career promotion programs in schools served by 
local educational agencies or in public junior or community 
colleges. 
‘‘(b) ELIGIBLE ENTITIES.—To be eligible to receive 
a grant under this section, an entity shall be a partnership 
that includes— 
‘‘(1)(A) 1 or more local educational agencies, or 
a consortium of such local educational agencies; or 
‘‘(B) a State educational agency; 
‘‘(2) 1 or more public junior or community col-
leges, or a consortium of such public junior or com-
munity colleges; and 
‘‘(3) at least 1— 
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‘‘(A) community-based mental or behav-
ioral health provider (such as a certified com-
munity behavioral health clinic, a community 
mental health center, an opioid treatment pro-
gram, or a nonprofit mental health or substance 
use professional association); or 
‘‘(B) other community-based entity, as de-
termined appropriate by the Secretary, acting 
through the Assistant Secretary (such as a 
State or local behavioral health authority, a 
human service agency, a child welfare agency, 
or an institution of higher education, such as a 
historically Black college or university). 
‘‘(c) ELIGIBLE MENTAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH 
CAREER PROMOTION PROGRAMS.—To be eligible for a 
grant under this section, a mental and behavioral health 
career promotion program shall promote careers in mental 
and behavioral health to students in grades 9 through 12 
or in public junior or community colleges, such as by— 
‘‘(1) providing educational presentations to stu-
dents that increase exposure to and knowledge of ca-
reers in the mental and behavioral health field; 
‘‘(2) coordinating internships and externships 
for students who demonstrate an interest in mental 
and behavioral health; 
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‘‘(3) providing opportunities for students to 
interact with and shadow mental and behavioral 
health care professionals; 
‘‘(4) providing students with mentorships and 
experiential learning opportunities; or 
‘‘(5) partnering with local institutions of higher 
education and community behavioral health organi-
zations to promote careers in mental and behavioral 
health. 
‘‘(d) ACTIVITY REQUIREMENT.—A grant awarded 
under this section may only be used for activities that are 
developmentally, linguistically, and culturally appropriate. 
‘‘(e) AWARD DURATION; RENEWAL.—A grant award-
ed under this section shall be for a period of 5 years and 
may be renewed. 
‘‘(f) GEOGRAPHICAL
DIVERSITY.—The Secretary, 
acting through the Assistant Secretary, shall ensure that 
grants awarded under this section cover a diverse range 
of geographical areas. 
‘‘(g) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.—The Secretary, act-
ing through the Assistant Secretary, may provide technical 
assistance in seeking grants under this section to high- 
need local educational agencies and to public junior and 
community colleges. 
‘‘(h) EVALUATION AND MEASURES OF OUTCOMES.— 
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‘‘(1) IN
GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting 
through the Assistant Secretary, shall develop a fis-
cally appropriate process for evaluating activities 
carried out through grants awarded under this sec-
tion. Under such process, the Secretary, acting 
through the Assistant Secretary, shall— 
‘‘(A) provide to recipients of such grants— 
‘‘(i) guidelines for the submission to 
the Assistant Secretary of data concerning 
such activities; and 
‘‘(ii) measures of outcomes to be used 
by such recipients in evaluating the effec-
tiveness of such activities (including out-
comes related to the student, family, and 
local educational systems supported by 
such activities); 
‘‘(B) require each such recipient to submit 
to the Assistant Secretary annual reports— 
‘‘(i) containing data on such activities 
carried out by the recipient; and 
‘‘(ii) that use the measures of out-
comes described in subparagraph (A)(ii) to 
evaluate the effectiveness of such activities; 
and 
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‘‘(C) not later than 1 year after the date 
of enactment of this section, and annually 
thereafter, submit to Congress a report describ-
ing the results and effectiveness of the pro-
grams under this section. 
‘‘(2) LIMITATION.—A recipient of a grant 
under this section may not use more than 10 per-
cent of the amounts received for data collection, per-
formance measurement, and performance assess-
ment. 
‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
‘‘(1) CAREERS
IN
MENTAL
AND
BEHAVIORAL 
HEALTH.—The term ‘careers in mental and behav-
ioral health’ means occupations whose primary in-
tent and function is the direct treatment or recovery 
support of patients with, or in recovery from, a men-
tal or behavioral health disorder, which may in-
clude— 
‘‘(A) physicians (including physicians with 
a degree of Doctor of Medicine or Doctor of Os-
teopathic Medicine); 
‘‘(B) advanced practice registered nurse 
practitioners; 
‘‘(C) social workers; 
‘‘(D) marriage and family therapists; 
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‘‘(E) counselors (including addiction and 
mental health licensed professionals); 
‘‘(F) psychologists; 
‘‘(G) psychiatrists (including child and ad-
olescent psychiatrists); 
‘‘(H) psychiatric aides; 
‘‘(I) neurologists; 
‘‘(J) peer support specialists; 
‘‘(K) addiction specialists and prevention 
specialists; 
‘‘(L) community health workers; and 
‘‘(M) physician assistants. 
‘‘(2) ESEA TERMS.—The terms ‘local edu-
cational agency’ and ‘State educational agency’ have 
the meanings given such terms in section 8101 of 
the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 
1965. 
‘‘(3) HEA TERMS.—(A) The terms ‘institution 
of higher education’, ‘high-need local educational 
agency’, and ‘junior or community college’ have the 
meanings given such terms, respectively, in sections 
101(a), 200, and 312(f) of the Higher Education 
Act of 1965. 
‘‘(B) The term ‘historically Black college or 
university’ has the meaning given the term ‘part B 
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institution’ under section 322 of the Higher Edu-
cation Act of 1965. 
‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2031.’’. 
Æ 
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