Title: Sexual Assault Victims Protection Act of 2019
Policy area: Health

Summary:
Sexual Assault Victims Protection Act of 2019
This bill requires the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to conduct a series of activities relating to sexual assault evidence and treatment. Among other things, HHS must establish a task force to improve forensic evidence collection related to sexual assault, maintain a website with resources and best practices related to the treatment of individuals for sexual assault, and host an annual meeting to address gaps in health care relating to sexual assault.
In addition, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must require Medicare-participating hospitals, in their community call plans relating to on-call coverage, to specifically delineate coverage responsibilities with respect to screening and treatment related to sexual assault.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4758 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4758

 To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a 
 national sexual assault care and treatment task force; and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 18, 2019

 Mr. Griffith introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on 
  Ways and Means, and 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 Secretary of Health and Human Services to establish a 
 national sexual assault care and treatment task force; 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 ``Sexual Assault Victims Protection 
Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. NATIONAL SEXUAL ASSAULT CARE AND TREATMENT TASK FORCE.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services 
shall establish a task force to be known as the ``National Sexual 
Assault Care and Treatment Task Force'' (referred to in this section as 
the ``Task Force'') to identify barriers to improving access to sexual 
assault forensic examiners, sexual assault nurse examiners, and other 
forensic medical examiners.
    (b) Membership.--The Task Force shall include a representative from 
the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Centers for Disease 
Control and Prevention, the Health Resources and Services 
Administration, the Indian Health Service, the Office for Victims of 
Crime of the Department of Justice, the Office on Women's Health of the 
Department of Health and Human Services, and the Office on Violence 
Against Women of the Department of Justice, a survivor of sexual 
assault; representatives from regional and national organizations with 
expertise in forensic nursing, rape trauma or crisis counseling, 
investigating rape and gender violence cases, survivors' advocacy and 
support, sexual assault prevention education, rural health, and 
responding to sexual violence in Native communities; representatives 
from hospitals, patient groups, and emergency department physicians; 
and representatives of States, including States that have in effect 
State laws or procedures that address the objectives described in 
subsection (c).
    (c) Objectives.--To assist and standardize State-level efforts to 
improve medical forensic evidence collection relating to sexual 
assault, the Task Force shall--
            (1) identify barriers to the recruitment, training, and 
        retention of sexual assault forensic examiners, sexual assault 
        response teams, sexual assault nurse examiners, and others who 
        perform such examinations;
            (2) make recommendations for improving access to medical 
        forensic examinations, including the feasibility of, or 
        barriers to, utilizing mobile units and telehealth services;
            (3) make recommendations for improving coordination of 
        services, other protocols regarding the care and treatment of 
        sexual assault survivors, and the preservation of evidence 
        between law enforcement officials and health care providers;
            (4) make recommendations for updating national minimum 
        standards for forensic medical examiner training and forensic 
        medical evidence collection relating to sexual assault;
            (5) make recommendations for the development of resources 
        and best practices described in subsection (e) for inclusion on 
        the public website of the Department of Health and Human 
        Services;
            (6) make recommendations on the collection and retention of 
        sexual assault kits, including anonymous or unreported sexual 
        assault kits; and
            (7) make recommendations on processes and best practices 
        for communicating to sexual assault survivors who seek care in 
        the emergency room information about the availability of 
        forensic medical evidence collection as part of the care and 
        treatment of such survivors.
    (d) Transparency Requirements.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than one year after first 
        convening, the Task Force shall submit to the Secretary a 
        report on the recommendations, findings, and conclusions of the 
        Task Force.
            (2) Report.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
        report on the recommendations, findings, and conclusions of the 
        Task Force.
    (e) Sexual Assault Treatment Resources.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than July 1, 2020, the Secretary 
        shall post on the public website of the Department of Health 
        and Human Services resources and best practices developed by 
        health care providers, forensic scientists, law enforcement 
        representatives, and advocates of sexual assault victims, 
        relating to the treatment of individuals for sexual assault by 
        health care providers. Such resources and best practices shall 
        include the following:
                    (A) Resources for health care providers.--Resources 
                and best practices for health care providers, 
                including--
                            (i) best practices for training personnel 
                        on sexual assault forensic evidence collection;
                            (ii) best practices relating to providing 
                        counseling and appropriate referrals to such 
                        individuals; and
                            (iii) other resources and best practices 
                        determined appropriate by the Secretary.
                    (B) Resources for sexual assault survivors.--
                Resources and best practices for sexual assault 
                survivors, including--
                            (i) information about the forensic exam 
                        furnished by a sexual assault forensic 
                        examiner, including the process and potential 
                        benefits of collecting evidence;
                            (ii) information on available State-wide 
                        databases of sexual assault nurse examiner-
                        ready or sexual assault forensic examiner-ready 
                        facilities;
                            (iii) survivor advocacy group websites and 
                        hotlines;
                            (iv) next-steps guides for survivors with 
                        best practices for preserving evidence and 
                        seeking treatment after an assault; and
                            (v) other resources and best practices 
                        determined appropriate by the Secretary.
            (2) Updates.--As soon as practicable after the submission 
        of the report under subsection (d)(1) to the Secretary, the 
        Secretary shall update the resources and best practices posted 
        on the website of the Department of Health and Human Services 
        under paragraph (1) to take into consideration the 
        recommendations, findings, and conclusions of the Task Force 
        contained in such report. The Secretary shall update such 
        resources and best practices periodically, but not less 
        frequently than annually.
    (f) Annual Summit.--The Secretary shall convene an annual 
stakeholder meeting to address gaps in health care provider care 
relating to sexual assault that includes the Task Force.
    (g) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            (1) Medical forensic examination.--The term ``medical 
        forensic examination'' means an examination provided to a 
        sexual assault survivor by medical personnel trained to gather 
        evidence of a sexual assault in a manner suitable for use in a 
        court of law.
            (2) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Health and Human Services.
            (3) Sexual assault.--The term ``sexual assault'' means any 
        non-consensual sexual act proscribed by Federal, tribal, or 
        State law, including when the individual lacks capacity to 
        consent.
            (4) Sexual assault examiner.--The term ``sexual assault 
        examiner'' means a registered nurse, advanced practice nurse, 
        physician, or physician assistant specifically trained to 
        provide comprehensive care to sexual assault forensic 
        examinations.
            (5) Sexual assault forensic examiner.--The term ``sexual 
        assault forensic examiner'' means a medical practitioner who 
        has specialized forensic training in treating sexual assault 
        survivors and conducting medical forensic examinations.
            (6) Sexual assault nurse examiner.--The term ``sexual 
        assault nurse examiner'' means a registered nurse who has 
        specialized forensic training in treating sexual assault 
        survivors and conducting medical forensic examinations.
            (7) Sexual assault response team.--The term ``sexual 
        assault response team'' means a multidisciplinary team that 
        provides a specialized and immediate response to survivors of 
        sexual assault, and may include health care personnel, law 
        enforcement representatives, community-based survivor 
        advocates, prosecutors, and forensic scientists.

SEC. 3. PROMOTING COORDINATION OF SEXUAL ASSAULT CARE IN LOCAL 
              COMMUNITIES.

    Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall revise section 
489.24(j) of title 42, Code of Federal Regulations, to require each 
formal community call plan (as described in section 489.24(j)(2)(iii) 
of such title (or a successor regulation)) to provide--
            (1) with respect to the delineation of on-call coverage 
        responsibilities described in subparagraph (A) of such section, 
        for a delineation of such coverage responsibilities for 
        screening and treatment relating to sexual assault and includes 
        a schedule of the on-call coverage availability for such 
        screening and treatment at each hospital with on-call coverage 
        responsibilities for such treatment; and
            (2) with respect to assurances related to local and 
        regional EMS system protocols described in subparagraph (D) of 
        such section, for an assurance that such protocols include 
        information with respect to community on-call arrangements for 
        screening and treatment relating to sexual assault.
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