Title: Mental Health Care for Children Inhumanely Separated from Parents by the Federal Government Act of 2019
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Mental Health Care for Children Inhumanely Separated from Parents by the Federal Government Act of 2019
This bill requires the federal government to ensure that children who are separated from their parents at the border by the Department of Homeland Security receive mental health services for free, including a mental health assessment within 24 hours of such separation and annually thereafter, as needed. Children who have already been separated (since April 6, 2018) must receive a mental health assessment within 24 hours after enactment of this bill.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1336 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1336

To require the Federal Government to provide mental health services to 
 each child who has been separated from one or more parent as a result 
 of implementation of the Trump Administration's zero tolerance policy 
          at the United States border, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 25, 2019

 Ms. Barragan introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 
   the Judiciary, 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 concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the Federal Government to provide mental health services to 
 each child who has been separated from one or more parent as a result 
 of implementation of the Trump Administration's zero tolerance policy 
          at the United States border, 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. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Mental Health Care for Children 
Inhumanely Separated from Parents by the Federal Government Act of 
2019''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) On April 6, 2018, Attorney General Jeff Sessions 
        announced that the Trump Administration would begin 
        implementing a new zero tolerance policy for immigrants 
        crossing the border into the United States illegally.
            (2) Between April 19 and May 31, 2018, 1,995 children were 
        separated by the Department of Homeland Security from their 
        migrant parents at the border.
            (3) On May 8, 2018, the president of the American Academy 
        of Pediatrics issued a statement opposing separation of 
        children and parents at the border, explaining that ``highly 
        stressful experiences, like family separation, can cause 
        irreparable harm, disrupting a child's brain architecture and 
        affecting his or her short- and long-term health. This type of 
        prolonged exposure to serious stress--known as toxic stress--
        can carry lifelong consequences for children.''.
            (4) On May 29, 2018, the president of the American 
        Psychological Association issued a statement regarding the 
        ``traumatic effects of separating immigrant families'', 
        explaining that ``[t]he longer that children and parents are 
        separated, the greater the reported symptoms of anxiety and 
        depression for the children. Negative outcomes for children 
        include psychological distress, academic difficulties and 
        disruptions in their development.''.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
separation of children from migrating parents, as is resulting from the 
Trump Administration's implementation of the zero tolerance immigration 
policy, is cruel, inhumane, and harmful to the mental health of 
separated children.

SEC. 3. MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR CHILDREN SEPARATED BY THE DEPARTMENT 
              OF HOMELAND SECURITY AT THE BORDER.

    (a) In General.--The Federal Government shall, including through 
contracts with qualified mental health professionals, ensure that--
            (1) beginning not later than 24 hours after a child is 
        separated from one or more parent by the Department of Homeland 
        Security at the United States border, such child receives a 
        mental health assessment by such a professional who is not 
        employed by the Federal Government;
            (2) not later than 24 hours after the date of the enactment 
        of this Act, any child who was separated from one or more 
        parent at the United States border at any time on or after 
        April 6, 2018, shall receive a mental health assessment from 
        such a professional who is not employed by the Federal 
        Government;
            (3) on an ongoing basis and as described in subsection (c), 
        a child described in paragraph (1) or (2) is, subject to 
        subsection (b), provided with mental health services by such a 
        professional regardless of whether such child remains in a 
        detention center or is released to a family member or guardian 
        (provided such child remains in the United States) and an 
        adequate network of such professionals is available nationwide 
        to enable access to such services; and
            (4) 100 percent of the costs of such assessment and 
        services provided to a child pursuant to this subsection are 
        covered by the Federal Government, without any cost-sharing or 
        other related obligation with respect to such assessment or 
        services provided to such child.
    (b) Opt-Out.--After release from a detention center, the parent or 
legal guardian of a child described in subsection (a) may choose for 
such child to not receive services otherwise made available pursuant to 
paragraph (3) of such subsection and to not be provided an independent 
assessment described in subsection (c).
    (c) Termination.--On an annual basis, a child receiving mental 
health services provided pursuant to subsection (a)(3) shall be subject 
to an independent assessment by a qualified mental health professional 
who is not directly involved in the provision of mental health services 
to such child and who is not employed by the Federal Government to 
determine whether such child continues to need such services or if such 
services should be terminated. In the case a determination is made 
pursuant to the previous sentence that such services should be 
terminated, the requirements under subsection (a) with respect to such 
child shall terminate. Prior to the termination of services, the 
qualified mental health professional involved in the provision of 
mental health services to such child shall consult the parent or 
guardian of such child in planning for reducing and then terminating 
such services.
    (d) Qualified Mental Health Professional Defined.--In this section, 
the term ``qualified mental health professional'' means a provider of 
mental health services who is eligible to participate as such a 
provider under a State plan under the Medicaid program under title XIX 
of the Social Security Act or under a State child health plan under the 
Children's Health Insurance Program under title XXI of such Act and 
who--
            (1) has training in the treatment of mental illness in 
        children and adolescents; and
            (2) agrees to maintain patient records for children and 
        adolescents receiving mental health services under this Act in 
        accordance with State and Federal health information privacy 
        and security laws in the same manner and to the same extent as 
        such provider would be required under such laws to maintain 
        such records for such children and adolescents if such children 
        and adolescents were nationals of the United States (as such 
        term is defined in paragraph (22) of section 101 of the 
        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)).
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