I 
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1803 
To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a 
grant program to promote comprehensive mental health and suicide pre-
vention efforts in high schools, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 11, 2021 
Mr. CA´RDENAS (for himself and Mrs. TRAHAN) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 
addition to the Committee on Education and Labor, 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 con-
cerned 
A BILL 
To authorize the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
to establish a grant program to promote comprehensive 
mental health and suicide prevention efforts in high 
schools, 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 ‘‘Youth Mental Health 
and Suicide Prevention Act of 2021’’. 
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SEC. 2. COORDINATED PROMOTION OF HIGH SCHOOL COM-
PREHENSIVE MENTAL HEALTH AND SUICIDE 
PREVENTION PLANS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, acting through the 
Director of the Center for Mental Health Services of the 
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administra-
tion, may carry out a program to award grants, on a com-
petitive basis, to eligible entities to enhance services for 
high school students with mental health and behavioral 
health issues that can lead to school failure, including de-
pression, substance abuse, and suicide attempts. 
(b) APPLICATION.—To be eligible for a grant under 
this section, an eligible entity shall submit to the Secretary 
an application in such form, at such time, and containing 
such information as the Secretary determines appropriate, 
including, at a minimum— 
(1) a description of identified mental health and 
behavioral health needs of high school students 
served by such eligible entity; 
(2) a description of existing Federal, State, 
local, private, and institutional resources available to 
address the needs described in paragraph (1); 
(3) a description of the outreach strategies of 
such eligible entity to promote access to services, in-
cluding a proposed plan for mental health equity and 
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assisting students most in need of mental health 
services; 
(4) a description of how such eligible entity will 
involve, as appropriate, students and peer represent-
atives in the planning, implementation, and evalua-
tion processes; 
(5) a description of how such eligible entity will 
support other students and the school community if 
a student dies by suicide; 
(6) a plan to— 
(A) implement the activities described in 
subsection (c); and 
(B) evaluate the outcomes of such activi-
ties; and 
(7) an assurance that such eligible entity will 
submit to the Secretary, for each fiscal year in which 
grant funds are used, a report with respect to— 
(A) the activities carried out under sub-
section (c); and 
(B) the outcomes of such activities. 
(c) GRANT USES.—A grant awarded under this sec-
tion may only be used, with respect to high school students 
served by an eligible entity, for— 
(1) evaluating existing program activities and 
prevention strategies; 
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