I 
110TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 327 
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop and implement a 
comprehensive program designed to reduce the incidence of suicide among 
veterans. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 9, 2007 
Mr. BOSWELL (for himself, Mr. KIND, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Mr. LI-
PINSKI, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. ENGEL, Mr. ROSS, Mr. WEINER, Ms. WOOL-
SEY, Mr. SCHIFF, Mr. LINCOLN DAVIS of Tennessee, Mrs. CAPPS, Mr. 
BRADY of Pennsylvania, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mrs. LOWEY, Mr. LANTOS, Ms. 
SCHWARTZ, Mr. MEEKS of New York, Mr. ORTIZ, Mr. NEAL of Massa-
chusetts, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. SPRATT, Mr. BOUCHER, Mr. 
HONDA, Ms. MATSUI, Mr. MCINTYRE, Ms. WATERS, Mr. CRAMER, Mr. 
MOLLOHAN, Mr. WEXLER, Mr. MILLER of North Carolina, Mr. CROW-
LEY, Ms. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. MOORE of 
Kansas, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. OLVER, Mr. COSTELLO, Mr. POM-
EROY, Mr. SALAZAR, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. LATHAM, Mr. MICHAUD, 
Mrs. MALONEY of New York, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. PASCRELL, Mrs. 
MCCARTHY of New York, Mr. STARK, Mr. EDWARDS, Mr. MORAN of Vir-
ginia, Mr. KING of Iowa, Mr. BERMAN, Mr. ETHERIDGE, Mr. LOEBSACK, 
Mr. MARSHALL, Mr. FILNER, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. 
MCDERMOTT, Mr. BRALEY of Iowa, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. LARSON of Con-
necticut, Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California, Mr. BAIRD, Mr. WATT, Mr. 
SHERMAN, Mr. TAYLOR, Mr. CHANDLER, Mr. BERRY, Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. 
DONNELLY, Mr. HILL, Mr. BOYD of Florida, Mr. CARDOZA, Mr. 
MELANCON, Ms. HARMAN, Ms. BEAN, Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota, Mr. 
BACA, Mr. COSTA, Mr. MATHESON, Mr. BARROW, Mr. SCOTT of Georgia, 
Mr. SHULER, Mr. WILSON of Ohio, Mr. PATRICK MURPHY of Pennsyl-
vania, Ms. HERSETH, Mr. MAHONEY of Florida, Mr. ELLSWORTH, Mr. 
HAYES, and Mr. WAMP) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 
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A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop and 
implement a comprehensive program designed to reduce 
the incidence of suicide among veterans. 
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 ‘‘Joshua Omvig Vet-
erans Suicide Prevention Act’’. 
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
It is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) suicide among veterans suffering from post- 
traumatic stress disorder (in this section referred to 
as ‘‘PTSD’’) is a serious problem; and 
(2) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs should 
take into consideration the special needs of veterans 
suffering from PTSD and the special needs of elder-
ly veterans who are at high risk for depression and 
experience high rates of suicide in developing and 
implementing the comprehensive program under this 
Act. 
SEC. 3. COMPREHENSIVE PROGRAM FOR SUICIDE PREVEN-
TION AMONG VETERANS. 
The Secretary of Veterans Affairs (in this Act re-
ferred to as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall develop and carry out 
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a comprehensive program designed to reduce the incidence 
of suicide among veterans. The program shall incorporate 
the components described in section 4. 
SEC. 4. COMPONENTS OF PROGRAM. 
(a) STAFF EDUCATION.—In carrying out the com-
prehensive program under section 3, the Secretary shall 
provide for mandatory training for appropriate staff and 
contractors (including all medical personnel) of the De-
partment of Veterans Affairs who interact with veterans. 
This training shall cover information appropriate to the 
duties being performed by such staff and contractors. The 
training shall include information on— 
(1) recognizing risk factors for suicide; 
(2) proper protocols for responding to crisis sit-
uations involving veterans who may be at high risk 
for suicide; and 
(3) best practices for suicide prevention. 
(b) SCREENING OF VETERANS RECEIVING MEDICAL 
CARE.—In carrying out the comprehensive program, the 
Secretary shall provide for screening of veterans who re-
ceive medical care at a Department of Veterans Affairs 
medical facility (including a center established under sec-
tion 1712A of title 38, United States Code) for risk fac-
tors for suicide. 
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(c) TRACKING OF VETERANS.—In carrying out the 
comprehensive program, the Secretary shall provide for 
appropriate tracking of veterans. 
(d) COUNSELING AND TREATMENT OF VETERANS.— 
In carrying out the comprehensive program, the Secretary 
shall provide for referral of veterans at risk for suicide 
for appropriate counseling and treatment. 
(e) DESIGNATION OF SUICIDE PREVENTION COUN-
SELORS.—In carrying out the comprehensive program, the 
Secretary shall designate a suicide prevention counselor at 
each Department of Veterans Affairs medical facility other 
than centers established under section 1712A of title 38, 
United States Code. Each counselor shall work with local 
emergency rooms, police departments, mental health orga-
nizations, and veterans service organizations to engage in 
outreach to veterans and improve the coordination of men-
tal health care to veterans. 
(f) BEST PRACTICES RESEARCH.—In carrying out 
the comprehensive program, the Secretary shall provide 
for research on best practices for suicide prevention 
among veterans. Research shall be conducted under this 
subsection in consultation with the heads of the following 
entities: 
(1) The Department of Health and Human 
Services. 
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(2) The National Institute of Mental Health. 
(3) The Substance Abuse and Mental Health 
Services Administration. 
(4) The Centers for Disease Control and Pre-
vention. 
(g) SEXUAL TRAUMA RESEARCH.—In carrying out 
the comprehensive program, the Secretary shall provide 
for research on mental health care for veterans who have 
experienced sexual trauma while in military service. The 
research design shall include consideration of veterans of 
a reserve component. 
(h) 24-HOUR MENTAL HEALTH CARE.—In carrying 
out the comprehensive program, the Secretary shall pro-
vide for mental health care availability to veterans on a 
24-hour basis. 
(i) HOTLINE.—In carrying out the comprehensive 
program, the Secretary may provide for a toll-free hotline 
for veterans to be staffed by appropriately trained mental 
health personnel and available at all times. 
(j) OUTREACH AND EDUCATION FOR VETERANS AND 
FAMILIES.—In carrying out the comprehensive program, 
the Secretary shall provide for outreach to and education 
for veterans and the families of veterans, with special em-
phasis on providing information to veterans of Operation 
Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and the 
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families of such veterans. Education to promote mental 
health shall include information designed to— 
(1) remove the stigma associated with mental 
illness; 
(2) encourage veterans to seek treatment and 
assistance for mental illness; 
(3) promote skills for coping with mental ill-
ness; and 
(4) help families of veterans with— 
(A) understanding issues arising from the 
readjustment of veterans to civilian life; 
(B) identifying signs and symptoms of 
mental illness; and 
(C) encouraging veterans to seek assist-
ance for mental illness. 
(k) PEER SUPPORT COUNSELING PROGRAM.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—In carrying out the com-
prehensive program, the Secretary shall establish 
and carry out a peer support counseling program, 
under which veterans shall be permitted to volunteer 
as peer counselors— 
(A) to assist other veterans with issues re-
lated to mental health and readjustment; and 
(B) to conduct outreach to veterans and 
the families of veterans. 
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