Title: Student Mental Health Rights Act
Policy area: Education

Summary:
Student Mental Health Rights Act
This bill addresses mental health and substance use at institutions of higher education (IHEs).
Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Education (ED) to conduct a study on mental health conditions and substance use conditions at IHEs.
In addition, ED must issue guidance on IHEs' (1) compliance with federal law on mental health, (2) legal obligations to students with mental health conditions and students with substance use conditions, and (3) policies which may have a disparate impact on such students.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5204 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5204

To direct the Secretary of Education to study student mental health at 
 institutions of higher education and to issue guidance on compliance 
    with the Americans with Disabilities Act for mental health and 
 substance use disorder policies of institutions of higher education, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 20, 2019

    Ms. Porter (for herself, Mr. Courtney, and Ms. Mucarsel-Powell) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                          Education and Labor

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the Secretary of Education to study student mental health at 
 institutions of higher education and to issue guidance on compliance 
    with the Americans with Disabilities Act for mental health and 
 substance use disorder policies of institutions of higher education, 
                        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 ``Student Mental Health Rights Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Nearly all institutions of higher education are subject 
        to--
                    (A) the Americans with Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 
                12101 et seq.);
                    (B) section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 
                (29 U.S.C. 794); or
                    (C) the Fair Housing Act (42 U.S.C. 3601 et seq.).
            (2) The laws described in paragraph (1) prohibit 
        discrimination on the basis of disability, defined as ``with 
        respect to an individual, a physical or mental impairment that 
        substantially limits one or more major life activities of such 
        individual, a record of such an impairment, or being regarded 
        as having such an impairment'' under section 3(1) of the 
        Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12102(1)).
            (3) Under section 2(a)(3) of the Americans with 
        Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101(a)(3)), Congress 
        found that ``discrimination against individuals with 
        disabilities persists in such critical areas as employment, 
        housing, public accommodations, education, transportation, 
        communication, recreation, institutionalization, health 
        services, voting, and access to public services''.
            (4) The laws described in paragraph (1) prohibit 
        institutions of higher education from discriminating against 
        students with disabilities, including by failing to provide 
        reasonable accommodations or reasonable modifications to such 
        students so that such students are able to fully participate in 
        university life.
            (5) The laws described in paragraph (1) prohibit 
        institutions of higher education from discriminating against 
        students with a mental health disabilities, including by 
        failing to provide the reasonable accommodations or reasonable 
        modifications to such a student.
            (6) The vast majority of institutions of higher education 
        lack a comprehensive plan for addressing and preventing 
        discrimination against students with mental health disabilities 
        or who are experiencing crises, in many cases--
                    (A) requiring such students to leave the 
                institution of higher education;
                    (B) evicting such students from on-campus housing; 
                and
                    (C) establishing excessive and unnecessary 
                impediments to the return of such students to the 
                institution of higher education.

SEC. 3. STUDY.

    (a) Requirement.--Not later than June 30, 2021, the Secretary shall 
complete a study on mental health conditions and substance use 
conditions including--
            (1) the prevalence of such conditions among students at 
        institutions of higher education and policies to support 
        students with respect to such conditions;
            (2) the policies of institutions of higher education with 
        respect to students considering a leave of absence or return 
        from absence due to such conditions; and
            (3) best practices for supporting students at institutions 
        of higher education in making decisions regarding the 
        management of such conditions, including the effect such 
        practices have on graduation rates and degree completion.
    (b) Report.--The Secretary shall submit to the House Committee on 
Education and Labor a report on the findings of the study required by 
subsection (a).

SEC. 4. GUIDANCE.

    Not later than June 30, 2021, the Secretary shall, in consultation 
with the Assistant Attorney General of the Civil Rights Division of the 
Department of Justice, issue guidance on--
            (1) the compliance of institutions of higher education with 
        the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12101 et 
        seq.) with respect to students with mental health conditions;
            (2) the legal obligations of institutions of higher 
        education with respect to accommodating students with mental 
        health conditions and students with substance use conditions; 
        and
            (3) policies of institutions of higher education which may 
        have a disparate impact on students with mental health 
        conditions and students with substance use conditions.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    (a) Institution of Higher Education.--The term ``institution of 
higher education'' has the meaning given that term in section 101(a) of 
the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)).
    (b) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of 
Education.
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