Title: To provide for a staffing improvement plan and occupational series for licensed professional mental health counselors and marriage and family therapists of Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to (1) submit a plan to address its staffing shortages of licensed professional mental health counselors and marriage and family therapists, and (2) develop an occupational series for such counselors and therapists.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8145 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8145

To provide for a staffing improvement plan and occupational series for 
licensed professional mental health counselors and marriage and family 
 therapists of Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 1, 2020

Mrs. Hayes (for herself, Mr. Ryan, Mr. Morelle, Mr. Bishop of Georgia, 
Mr. Rush, Mr. Cleaver, Ms. Fudge, Mr. Carson of Indiana, Ms. Wild, Mr. 
    O'Halleran, Ms. Lee of California, Mr. Soto, and Mr. Cardenas) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                           Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for a staffing improvement plan and occupational series for 
licensed professional mental health counselors and marriage and family 
 therapists of Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. STAFFING IMPROVEMENT PLAN AND OCCUPATIONAL SERIES FOR 
              LICENSED PROFESSIONAL MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELORS AND 
              MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPISTS OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS 
              AFFAIRS.

    (a) Staffing Plan.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 270 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the 
        Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 
        on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a plan to 
        address staffing shortages of licensed professional mental 
        health counselors and marriage and family therapists of the 
        Department of Veterans Affairs.
            (2) Elements.--The plan required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) The number of positions for licensed 
                professional mental health counselors and marriage and 
                family therapists of the Department that need to be 
                filled to meet demand, disaggregated by Veterans 
                Integrated Service Network and medical center.
                    (B) An identification of the steps that the 
                Secretary will take in each Veterans Integrated Service 
                Network to address such shortages, including the 
                following:
                            (i) A description of any region-specific 
                        hiring incentives to be used by the Secretary 
                        in consultation with the directors of Veterans 
                        Integrated Service Networks and medical centers 
                        of the Department.
                            (ii) A description of any local retention 
                        or engagement incentives to be used by 
                        directors of Veterans Integrated Service 
                        Networks.
                    (C) Such recommendations for legislative or 
                administrative action as the Secretary, in consultation 
                with the Inspector General of the Department of 
                Veterans Affairs, considers necessary to aid in 
                addressing staffing shortages of licensed professional 
                mental health counselors and marriage and family 
                therapists of the Department.
    (b) Occupational Series for Certain Mental Health Providers.--Not 
later than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with the Office of 
Personnel Management, shall develop--
            (1) an occupational series for licensed professional mental 
        health counselors of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and
            (2) an occupational series for marriage and family 
        therapists of the Department.
    (c) Report.--Not later than one year after the submittal of the 
plan required by subsection (a), the Secretary shall submit to the 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a report setting 
forth the number of licensed professional mental health counselors and 
marriage and family therapists hired by the Department during the one-
year period preceding the submittal of the report, disaggregated by 
Veterans Integrated Service Network and medical center.
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