Title: To provide additional guidance to grantees seeking funding to treat or prevent mental health or substance  use disorders.
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Reinforcing Evidence-Based Standards Under Law in Treating Substance Abuse Act of 2018 or the RESULTS Act of 2018
This bill amends the Public Health Service Act to require applicants to demonstrate that a program or activity is evidence-based when applying for support from the Department of Health and Human Services for a program or activity to prevent or treat a mental health or substance use disorder.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5272 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5272

  To ensure that programs and activities that are funded by a grant, 
 cooperative agreement, loan, or loan guarantee from the Department of 
 Health and Human Services, and whose purpose is to prevent or treat a 
      mental health or substance use disorder, are evidence-based.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 14, 2018

  Mr. Stivers (for himself, Mr. Engel, Mrs. Comstock, and Mr. Gibbs) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                          Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To ensure that programs and activities that are funded by a grant, 
 cooperative agreement, loan, or loan guarantee from the Department of 
 Health and Human Services, and whose purpose is to prevent or treat a 
      mental health or substance use disorder, are evidence-based.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reinforcing Evidence-Based Standards 
Under Law in Treating Substance Abuse Act of 2018'' or the ``RESULTS 
Act of 2018''.

SEC. 2. ENSURING THAT CERTAIN PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES SUPPORTED BY HHS 
              TO PREVENT OR TREAT MENTAL HEALTH OR SUBSTANCE USE 
              DISORDERS ARE EVIDENCE-BASED.

    (a) In General.--Part P of title III of the Public Health Service 
Act is amended by inserting after section 399V-6 (42 U.S.C. 280g-17) 
the following:

``SEC. 399V-7. ENSURING THAT PROGRAMS AND ACTIVITIES TO PREVENT OR 
              TREAT MENTAL HEALTH OR SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS ARE 
              EVIDENCE-BASED.

    ``(a) In General.--In the case of any applicant for a grant, 
cooperative agreement, loan, or loan guarantee from the Department of 
Health and Human Services to be used primarily for a program or 
activity to implement interventions to prevent or treat a mental health 
or substance use disorder, the Secretary shall--
            ``(1) require the applicant to submit materials 
        demonstrating that the program or activity is evidence-based; 
        and
            ``(2) subject to subsection (d), post such materials on the 
        public website of the Department.
    ``(b) Delegation.--The Secretary shall carry out this section 
acting through the head of the relevant agency or office within the 
Department of Health and Human Services.
    ``(c) Waivers.--
            ``(1) Standard.--The Secretary may waive the applicability 
        of subsection (a) if the applicant involved demonstrates to the 
        Secretary's satisfaction that--
                    ``(A) the programs and activities to be funded are 
                emergent or innovative; and
                    ``(B) such programs and activities will contribute 
                to the body of knowledge that is needed for similar 
                programs and activities (such as programs targeting 
                specific populations) to become evidence-based.
            ``(2) Process; criteria.--The Secretary shall ensure that--
                    ``(A) the waiver process under this subsection is 
                streamlined and simplified, to the fullest extent 
                possible; and
                    ``(B) the criteria for a waiver do not in any way 
                discourage the funding of emergent or innovative 
                programs or activities.
            ``(3) Availability of evidence.--As a condition on receipt 
        of a waiver under paragraph (1), subject to subsection (d), the 
        Secretary shall require the applicant to submit any materials 
        submitted pursuant to such waiver--
                    ``(A) to a federally maintained or recognized 
                registry of evidence-based programs or activities, or 
                to another evidence-based practice resource center, to 
                be made publicly available; or
                    ``(B) to the Secretary to post on the public 
                website of the Department of Health and Human Services.
    ``(d) Protection of Confidential Commercial Information.--Nothing 
in this section shall be construed to alter the protections offered by 
laws governing disclosure of confidential commercial or trade secret 
information and any other information exempt from disclosure pursuant 
to section 552(b) of title 5, United States Code.
    ``(e) Definition.--In this section, the term `evidence-based' means 
verified or supported by research or practices that--
            ``(1) are conducted in compliance with rigorous scientific 
        methods in regards to efficacy and effectiveness;
            ``(2) are published in peer-reviewed journals, where 
        applicable;
            ``(3) reflect information that existing clinical guidelines 
        or leading professional organizations and agencies with 
        relevant expertise in the field recognize as accurate, 
        objective, and complete; or
            ``(4) demonstrate the effectiveness of a specific therapy 
        in practice.''.
    (b) Regulations.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall 
promulgate final regulations to carry out section 399V-7 of the Public 
Health Service Act, as added by subsection (a).
    (c) Applicability.--Section 399V-7 of the Public Health Service 
Act, as added by subsection (a), applies to any application for a 
grant, cooperative agreement, loan, or loan guarantee described in such 
section 399V-7 that is submitted to the Department of Health and Human 
Services on or after the date that is 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act.
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