Title: 9–8–8 and Parity Assistance Act of 2022
Policy area: Health

Summary:
9-8-8 and Parity Assistance Act of 2022
This bill modifies provisions to increase access to behavioral health services, with a focus on crisis services and the 9-8-8 telecommunication system. (The 9-8-8 system provides callers with mental health or suicide crisis support and resources through the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and is scheduled to take effect by July 16, 2022.)
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) must award grants to crisis call centers for hiring and training staff and otherwise improving operations.
Further, SAMHSA must establish standards for a behavioral health crisis continuum of care that health care providers and communities may use in responding to individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis. The continuum must include emergency treatment, stabilization, and related services.
Additionally, the bill (1) sets up an office within SAMHSA to coordinate behavioral health activities, (2) requires a national suicide prevention media campaign, and (3) establishes various grants. The grants include
The bill also expands certain behavioral health education and training programs to encompass education and training related to crisis management.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7232 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7232

   To provide for improvements in the implementation of the National 
          Suicide Prevention Lifeline, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 28, 2022

   Mr. Cardenas (for himself, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Ms. Matsui, Ms. Blunt 
  Rochester, Mr. Moulton, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Beyer, and Mr. Raskin) 
 introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 
                          Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To provide for improvements in the implementation of the National 
          Suicide Prevention Lifeline, 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.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``9-8-8 and Parity 
Assistance Act of 2022''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.
   TITLE I--SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

Sec. 101. Behavioral Health Crisis Coordinating Office.
Sec. 102. Regional and local lifeline call center program.
Sec. 103. Mental Health Crisis Response Partnership Pilot Program.
Sec. 104. National suicide prevention media campaign.
         TITLE II--HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

Sec. 201. Health center capital grants.
Sec. 202. Expanding behavioral health workforce training programs.
         TITLE III--BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CRISIS SERVICES EXPANSION

Sec. 301. Crisis response continuum of care.
       TITLE IV--MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER PARITY 
                             IMPLEMENTATION

Sec. 401. Grants to support mental health and substance use disorder 
                            parity implementation.

   TITLE I--SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

SEC. 101. BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CRISIS COORDINATING OFFICE.

    Part A of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290aa 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 506B. BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CRISIS COORDINATING OFFICE.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary, acting through the Assistant 
Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, shall establish an 
office to coordinate work relating to behavioral health crisis care 
across the operating divisions of the Department of Health and Human 
Services, including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and 
the Health Resources and Services Administration and external 
stakeholders.
    ``(b) Duty.--The office established under subsection (a) shall--
            ``(1) convene Federal, State, Tribal, local, and private 
        partners;
            ``(2) launch and manage Federal workgroups charged with 
        making recommendations regarding behavioral health crisis 
        financing, workforce, equity, data, and technology, program 
        oversight, public awareness, and engagement; and
            ``(3) support technical assistance, data analysis, and 
        evaluation functions in order to develop a crisis care system 
        to establish nationwide standards with the objective of 
        expanding the capacity of, and access to, local crisis call 
        centers, mobile crisis care, crisis stabilization, psychiatric 
        emergency services, and rapid post-crisis follow-up care 
        provided by--
                    ``(A) the National Suicide Prevention and Mental 
                Health Crisis Hotline and Response System;
                    ``(B) community mental health centers (as defined 
                in section 1861(ff)(3)(B) of the Social Security Act);
                    ``(C) certified community behavioral health 
                clinics, as described in section 223 of the Protecting 
                Access to Medicare Act of 2014; and
                    ``(D) other community mental health and substance 
                use disorder providers.
    ``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $10,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2023 through 2027.''.

SEC. 102. REGIONAL AND LOCAL LIFELINE CALL CENTER PROGRAM.

    Part B of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290bb 
et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 520E-4 (42 U.S.C. 290bb-
36d) the following:

``SEC. 520E-5. REGIONAL AND LOCAL LIFELINE CALL CENTER PROGRAM.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall award grants to crisis call 
centers described in section 302(c)(1) of the 9-8-8 Implementation and 
Parity Assistance Act of 2022 to--
            ``(1) purchase or upgrade call center technology;
            ``(2) provide for training of call center staff;
            ``(3) improve call center operations; and
            ``(4) hiring of call center staff.
    ``(b) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $441,000,000 for fiscal year 
2023, to remain available until expended.''.

SEC. 103. MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS RESPONSE PARTNERSHIP PILOT PROGRAM.

    Title V of the Public Health Service Act is amended (42 U.S.C. 
290aa) by inserting after section 520F (42 U.S.C. 290bb-37) the 
following:

``SEC. 520F-1. MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS RESPONSE PARTNERSHIP PILOT PROGRAM.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish a pilot program 
under which the Secretary will award competitive grants to eligible 
entities to establish new, or enhance existing, mobile crisis response 
teams that divert the response for mental health and substance use 
crises from law enforcement to mobile crisis teams, as described in 
subsection (b).
    ``(b) Mobile Crisis Teams Described.--A mobile crisis team 
described in this subsection is a team of individuals--
            ``(1) that is available to respond to individuals in crisis 
        and provide immediate stabilization, referrals to community-
        based mental health and substance use disorder services and 
        supports, and triage to a higher level of care if medically 
        necessary;
            ``(2) which may include licensed counselors, clinical 
        social workers, physicians, paramedics, crisis workers, peer 
        support specialists, or other qualified individuals; and
            ``(3) which may provide support to divert behavioral health 
        crisis calls from the 9-1-1 system to the 9-8-8 system.
    ``(c) Priority.--In awarding grants under this section, the 
Secretary shall prioritize applications which account for the specific 
needs of the communities to be served, including children and families, 
veterans, rural and underserved populations, and other groups at 
increased risk of death from suicide or overdose.
    ``(d) Report.--
            ``(1) Initial report.--Not later than one year after the 
        date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall 
        submit to Congress a report on steps taken by eligible entities 
        as of such date of enactment to strengthen the partnerships 
        among mental health providers, substance use disorder treatment 
        providers, primary care physicians, mental health and substance 
        use crisis teams, and paramedics, law enforcement officers, and 
        other first responders.
            ``(2) Progress reports.--Not later than one year after the 
        date on which the first grant is awarded to carry out this 
        section, and for each year thereafter, the Secretary shall 
        submit to Congress a report on the grants made during the year 
        covered by the report, which shall include--
                    ``(A) data on the teams and people served by such 
                programs, including demographic information of 
                individuals served, volume and types of service 
                utilization, linkage to community-based resources and 
                diversion from law enforcement settings, data 
                consistent with the State block grant requirements for 
                continuous evaluation and quality improvement, and 
                other relevant data as determined by the Secretary; and
                    ``(B) the Secretary's recommendations and best 
                practices for--
                            ``(i) States and localities providing 
                        mobile crisis response and stabilization 
                        services for youth and adults; and
                            ``(ii) improvements to the program 
                        established under this section.
    ``(e) Eligible Entity.--In this section, the term `eligible entity' 
means each of the following:
            ``(1) Community mental health centers (as defined in 
        section 1861(ff)(3)(B) of the Social Security Act).
            ``(2) Certified community behavioral health clinics 
        described in section 223 of the Protecting Access to Medicare 
        Act of 2014.
            ``(3) An entity that operates citywide, Tribal-wide, or 
        county-wide crisis response systems, including cities, 
        counties, Tribes, or a department or agency of a city, county, 
        or Tribe, including departments or agencies of social services, 
        disability services, health services, public health, or mental 
        health and substance disorder services.
            ``(4) A program of the Indian Health Service, whether 
        operated by such Service, an Indian Tribe (as that term is 
        defined in section 4 of the Indian Health Care Improvement 
        Act), or by a Tribal organization (as that term is defined in 
        section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education 
        Assistance Act) or a facility of the Native Hawaiian health 
        care systems authorized under the Native Hawaiian Health Care 
        Improvement Act.
            ``(5) A public, nonprofit, or other organization that--
                    ``(A) can demonstrate the ability of such 
                organization to effectively provide community-based 
                alternatives to law enforcement; and
                    ``(B) has a demonstrated involvement with the 
                identified communities to be served.
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $100,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2023 through 2027.''.

SEC. 104. NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION MEDIA CAMPAIGN.

    Subpart 3 of part B of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 290bb-31 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 520N. NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION MEDIA CAMPAIGN.

    ``(a) National Suicide Prevention Media Campaign.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than the date that is 3 years 
        after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in 
        consultation with the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and 
        Substance Use and the Director of the Centers for Disease 
        Control and Prevention (referred to in this section as the 
        `Director'), shall conduct a national suicide prevention media 
        campaign (referred to in this section as the `national media 
        campaign'), for purposes of--
                    ``(A) preventing suicide in the United States;
                    ``(B) educating families, friends, and communities 
                on how to address suicide and suicidal thoughts, 
                including when to encourage individuals with suicidal 
                risk to seek help; and
                    ``(C) increasing awareness of suicide prevention 
                resources of the Centers for Disease Control and 
                Prevention and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health 
                Services Administration (including the suicide 
                prevention hotline maintained under section 520E-3, any 
                suicide prevention mobile application of the Centers 
                for Disease Control and Prevention or the Substance 
                Abuse Mental Health Services Administration, and other 
                support resources determined appropriate by the 
                Secretary).
            ``(2) Additional consultation.--In addition to consulting 
        with the Assistant Secretary and the Director under this 
        section, the Secretary shall consult with, as appropriate, 
        State, local, Tribal, and territorial health departments, 
        primary health care providers, hospitals with emergency 
        departments, mental and behavioral health services providers, 
        crisis response services providers, paramedics, law 
        enforcement, suicide prevention and mental health 
        professionals, patient advocacy groups, survivors of suicide 
        attempts, and representatives of television and social media 
        platforms in planning the national media campaign to be 
        conducted under paragraph (1).
    ``(b) Target Audiences.--
            ``(1) Tailoring advertisements and other communications.--
        In conducting the national media campaign under subsection 
        (a)(1), the Secretary may tailor culturally competent 
        advertisements and other communications of the campaign across 
        all available media for a target audience (such as a particular 
        geographic location or demographic) across the lifespan.
            ``(2) Targeting certain local areas.--The Secretary shall, 
        to the maximum extent practicable, use amounts made available 
        under subsection (f) for media that targets certain local areas 
        or populations at disproportionate risk for suicide.
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--
            ``(1) Required uses.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall, if 
                reasonably feasible with the funds made available under 
                subsection (f), carry out the following, with respect 
                to the national media campaign:
                            ``(i) Testing and evaluation of 
                        advertising.
                            ``(ii) Evaluation of the effectiveness of 
                        the national media campaign.
                            ``(iii) Operational and management 
                        expenses.
                            ``(iv) The creation of an educational 
                        toolkit for television and social media 
                        platforms to use in discussing suicide and 
                        raising awareness about how to prevent suicide.
                    ``(B) Specific requirements.--
                            ``(i) Testing and evaluation of 
                        advertising.--In testing and evaluating 
                        advertising under subparagraph (A)(i), the 
                        Secretary shall test all advertisements after 
                        use in the national media campaign to evaluate 
                        the extent to which such advertisements have 
                        been effective in carrying out the purposes of 
                        the national media campaign.
                            ``(ii) Evaluation of effectiveness of 
                        national media campaign.--In evaluating the 
                        effectiveness of the national media campaign 
                        under subparagraph (A)(ii), the Secretary 
                        shall--
                                    ``(I) take into account the number 
                                of unique calls that are made to the 
                                suicide prevention hotline maintained 
                                under section 520E-3 and assess whether 
                                there are any State and regional 
                                variations with respect to the capacity 
                                to answer such calls;
                                    ``(II) take into account the number 
                                of unique encounters with suicide 
                                prevention and support resources of the 
                                Centers for Disease Control and 
                                Prevention and the Substance Abuse and 
                                Mental Health Services Administration 
                                and assess engagement with such suicide 
                                prevention and support resources;
                                    ``(III) assess whether the national 
                                media campaign has contributed to 
                                increased awareness that suicidal 
                                individuals should be engaged, rather 
                                than ignored; and
                                    ``(IV) take into account such other 
                                measures of evaluation as the Secretary 
                                determines are appropriate.
            ``(2) Optional uses.--The Secretary may use amounts made 
        available under subsection (f) for the following, with respect 
        to the national media campaign:
                    ``(A) Partnerships with professional and civic 
                groups, community-based organizations, including faith-
                based organizations, and Federal agencies or Tribal 
                organizations that the Secretary determines have 
                experience in suicide prevention, including the 
                Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
                Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and 
                Prevention.
                    ``(B) Entertainment industry outreach, interactive 
                outreach, media projects and activities, the 
                dissemination of public information, news media 
                outreach, outreach through television programs, and 
                corporate sponsorship and participation.
    ``(d) Prohibitions.--None of the amounts made available under 
subsection (f) may be obligated or expended for any of the following:
            ``(1) To supplant Federal suicide prevention campaigns in 
        effect as of the date of the enactment of this section.
            ``(2) For partisan political purposes, or to express 
        advocacy in support of or to defeat any clearly identified 
        candidate, clearly identified ballot initiative, or clearly 
        identified legislative or regulatory proposal.
    ``(e) Report to Congress.--Not later than 18 months after 
implementation of the national media campaign has begun, the Secretary, 
in coordination with the Assistant Secretary and the Director, shall, 
with respect to the first year of the national media campaign, submit 
to Congress a report that describes--
            ``(1) the strategy of the national media campaign and 
        whether specific objectives of such campaign were accomplished, 
        including whether such campaign impacted the number of calls 
        made to lifeline crisis centers and the capacity of such 
        centers to manage such calls;
            ``(2) steps taken to ensure that the national media 
        campaign operates in an effective and efficient manner 
        consistent with the overall strategy and focus of the national 
        media campaign;
            ``(3) plans to purchase advertising time and space;
            ``(4) policies and practices implemented to ensure that 
        Federal funds are used responsibly to purchase advertising time 
        and space and eliminate the potential for waste, fraud, and 
        abuse; and
            ``(5) all contracts entered into with a corporation, a 
        partnership, or an individual working on behalf of the national 
        media campaign.
    ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--For purposes of carrying 
out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated $10,000,000 
for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026.''.

         TITLE II--HEALTH RESOURCES AND SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

SEC. 201. HEALTH CENTER CAPITAL GRANTS.

    Subpart 1 of part D of title III of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 254b et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 330O. HEALTH CENTER CAPITAL GRANTS.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall award grants to eligible 
entities for capital projects.
    ``(b) Eligible Entity.--In this section, the term `eligible entity' 
is an entity that is--
            ``(1) a health center funded under section 330, or in the 
        case of a Tribe or Tribal organization, eligible, to be awarded 
        without regard to the time limitation in subsection (e)(3) and 
        subsections (e)(6)(A)(iii), (e)(6)(B)(iii), and (r)(2)(B) of 
        such section; or
            ``(2) a mental health and substance use crisis receiving 
        and stabilization program and crisis call center described in 
        section 302(c)(1) of the 9-8-8 Implementation and Parity 
        Assistance Act of 2022 that have a working relationship with 
        one or more local community mental health and substance use 
        organizations, community mental health centers, and certified 
        community behavioral health clinics, or other local mental 
        health and substance use care providers, including inpatient 
        and residential treatment settings.
    ``(c) Use of Funds.--Amounts made available to a recipient of a 
grant or cooperative agreement pursuant to subsection (a) shall be used 
for crisis response program facility alteration, renovation, 
remodeling, expansion, construction, and other capital improvement 
costs, including the costs of amortizing the principal of, and paying 
interest on, loans for such purposes.
    ``(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $1,000,000,000, to remain 
available until expended.''.

SEC. 202. EXPANDING BEHAVIORAL HEALTH WORKFORCE TRAINING PROGRAMS.

    Section 756 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 294e-1) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``crisis 
                management (such as at a crisis call center, as part of 
                a mobile crisis team, or through crisis receiving and 
                stabilization program),'' after ``occupational 
                therapy,'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``and providing 
                crisis management services (such as at a crisis call 
                center, as part of a mobile crisis team, or through 
                crisis receiving and stabilization program)'' after 
                ``treatment services,'';
                    (C) in paragraph (3), by inserting ``and providing 
                crisis management services (such as at a crisis call 
                center, as part of a mobile crisis team, or through 
                crisis receiving and stabilization program),'' after 
                ``behavioral health services''; and
                    (D) in paragraph (4), by inserting ``including for 
                the provision of crisis management services (such as at 
                a crisis call center, as part of a mobile crisis team, 
                or through crisis receiving and stabilization 
                program),'' after ``paraprofessional field'';
            (2) in subsection (d)(2), by inserting ``or that emphasize 
        training in crisis management and meeting the crisis needs of 
        diverse populations specified in (b)(2), including effective 
        outreach and engagement'' after ``partnerships''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(g) Additional Funding.--
            ``(1) In general.--For each of fiscal years 2023 through 
        2027, in addition to funding made available under subsection 
        (f), there are authorized to be appropriated $15,000,000 for 
        workforce development for crisis management, as specified in 
        paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (a).
            ``(2) Priority.--In making grants for the purpose specified 
        in paragraph (1), the Secretary shall give priority to programs 
        demonstrating effective recruitment and retention efforts for 
        individuals and groups from different racial, ethnic, cultural, 
        geographic, religious, linguistic, and class backgrounds, and 
        different genders and sexual orientations, as specified in 
        subsection (b)(2).''.

         TITLE III--BEHAVIORAL HEALTH CRISIS SERVICES EXPANSION

SEC. 301. CRISIS RESPONSE CONTINUUM OF CARE.

    Subpart 3 of part B of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 290bb-31 et seq.), as amended by section 106, is further amended 
by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 520O. CRISIS RESPONSE CONTINUUM OF CARE.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish standards for a 
continuum of care for use by health care providers and communities in 
responding to individuals, including children and adolescents, 
experiencing mental health crises, substance related crises, and crises 
arising from co-occurring disorders (referred to in this section as the 
`crisis response continuum').
    ``(b) Requirements.--
            ``(1) Scope of standards.--The standards established under 
        subsection (a) shall define--
                    ``(A) minimum requirements of core crisis services, 
                as determined by the Secretary, to include requirements 
                that each entity that furnishes such services should--
                            ``(i) not require prior authorization from 
                        an insurance provider nor referral from a 
                        health care provider prior to the delivery of 
                        services;
                            ``(ii) serve all individuals regardless of 
                        age or ability to pay;
                            ``(iii) operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a 
                        week, and provide care to all individuals; and
                            ``(iv) provide care and support through 
                        resources described in paragraph (2)(A) until 
                        the individual has been stabilized or transfer 
                        the individual to the next level of crisis 
                        care; and
                    ``(B) psychiatric stabilization, including the 
                point at which a case may be closed for--
                            ``(i) individuals screened over the phone; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) individuals stabilized on the scene 
                        by mobile teams.
            ``(2) Identification of essential functions.--The Secretary 
        shall identify the essential functions of each service in the 
        crisis response continuum, which shall include at least the 
        following:
                    ``(A) Identification of resources for referral and 
                enrollment in continuing mental health, substance use, 
                or other human services relevant for the individual in 
                crisis where necessary.
                    ``(B) Delineation of access and entry points to 
                services within the crisis response continuum.
                    ``(C) Development of and adherence to protocols and 
                agreements for the transfer and receipt of individuals 
                to and from other segments of the crisis response 
                continuum segments as needed, and from outside 
                referrals including health care providers, law 
                enforcement, EMS, fire, education institutions, and 
                community-based organizations.
                    ``(D) Description of the qualifications of crisis 
                services staff, including roles for physicians, 
                licensed clinicians, case managers, and peers (in 
                accordance with State licensing requirements or 
                requirements applicable to Tribal health 
                professionals).
                    ``(E) Requirements for the convening of 
                collaborative meetings of crisis response service 
                providers, first responders, such as paramedics and law 
                enforcement, and community partners (including National 
                Suicide Prevention Lifeline or 9-8-8 call centers, 9-1-
                1 public service answering points, and local mental 
                health and substance use disorder treatment providers) 
                operating in a common region for the discussion of case 
                management, best practices, and general performance 
                improvement.
            ``(3) Service capacity and quality standards.--Such 
        standards shall include definitions of--
                    ``(A) adequate volume of services to meet 
                population need;
                    ``(B) appropriate timely response; and
                    ``(C) capacity to meet the needs of different 
                patient populations who may experience a mental health 
                or substance use crisis, including children, families, 
                and all age groups, cultural and linguistic minorities, 
                individuals with co-occurring mental health and 
                substance use disorders, individuals with cognitive 
                disabilities, individuals with developmental delays, 
                and individuals with chronic medical conditions and 
                physical disabilities.
            ``(4) Oversight and accreditation.--The Secretary shall 
        designate entities charged with the oversight and accreditation 
        of entities within the crisis response continuum.
            ``(5) Implementation timeframe.--Not later than 1 year 
        after the date of enactment of this title, the Secretary shall 
        establish the standards under this section.
            ``(6) Data collection and evaluations.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The Secretary, directly or 
                through grants, contracts, or interagency agreements, 
                shall collect data and conduct evaluations with respect 
                to the provision of services and programs offered on 
                the crisis response continuum for purposes of assessing 
                the extent to which the provision of such services and 
                programs meet certain objectives and outcomes measures 
                as determined by the Secretary. Such objectives shall 
                include--
                            ``(i) a reduction in reliance on law 
                        enforcement response to individuals in crisis 
                        who would be more appropriately served by a 
                        mobile crisis team capable of responding to 
                        mental health and substance related crises;
                            ``(ii) a reduction in boarding or extended 
                        holding of patients in emergency room 
                        facilities who require further psychiatric 
                        care, including care for substance use 
                        disorders;
                            ``(iii) evidence of adequate access to 
                        crisis care centers and crisis bed services; 
                        and
                            ``(iv) evidence of adequate linkage to 
                        appropriate post-crisis care and longitudinal 
                        treatment for mental health or substance use 
                        disorder when relevant.
                    ``(B) Rulemaking.--The Secretary shall carry out 
                this subsection through notice and comment rulemaking, 
                following a request for information from stakeholders.
    ``(c) Components of Crisis Response Continuum.--The crisis response 
continuum consists of at least the following components:
            ``(1) Crisis call centers.--Regional clinically managed 
        crisis call centers that provide telephonic crisis intervention 
        capabilities. Such centers should meet National Suicide 
        Prevention Lifeline operational guidelines regarding suicide 
        risk assessment and engagement and offer air traffic control-
        quality coordination of crisis care in real-time.
            ``(2) Mobile crisis response team.--Teams of providers that 
        are available to reach any individual in the service area in 
        their home, workplace, school, physician's office or outpatient 
        treatment setting, or any other community-based location of the 
        individual in crisis in a timely manner.
            ``(3) Crisis receiving and stabilization facilities.--
        Subacute inpatient facilities and other facilities specified by 
        the Secretary that provide short-term observation and crisis 
        stabilization services to all referrals, including the 
        following services:
                    ``(A) 23-hour crisis stabilization services.--A 
                direct care service that provides individuals in severe 
                distress with up to 23 consecutive hours of supervised 
                care to assist with deescalating the severity of their 
                crisis or need for urgent care in a subacute inpatient 
                setting.
                    ``(B) Short-term crisis residential services.--A 
                direct care service that assists with deescalating the 
                severity of an individual's level of distress or need 
                for urgent care associated with a substance use or 
                mental health disorder in a residential setting.
            ``(4) Mental health and substance use urgent care 
        facilities.--Ambulatory services available 12-24 hours per day, 
        7 days a week, where individuals experiencing crisis can walk 
        in without an appointment to receive crisis assessment, crisis 
        intervention, medication, and connection to continuity of care.
            ``(5) Additional facilities and providers.--The Secretary 
        shall specify additional facilities and health care providers 
        as part of the crisis response continuum, as the Secretary 
        determines appropriate.
    ``(d) Relationship to State Law.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the standards 
        established under this section are minimum standards and 
        nothing in this section may be construed to preclude a State 
        from establishing additional standards, so long as such 
        standards are not inconsistent with the requirements of this 
        section or other applicable law.
            ``(2) Waiver or modification.--The Secretary shall 
        establish a process under which a State may request a waiver or 
        modification of a standard established under this section.''.

       TITLE IV--MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER PARITY 
                             IMPLEMENTATION

SEC. 401. GRANTS TO SUPPORT MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE DISORDER 
              PARITY IMPLEMENTATION.

    (a) In General.--Section 2794(c) of the Public Health Service Act 
(42 U.S.C. 300gg-94(c)) (as added by section 1003 of the Patient 
Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148)) is amended by 
adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) Parity implementation.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Beginning 60 days after the date 
                of enactment of this paragraph, the Secretary shall 
                award grants to States to implement the mental health 
                and substance use disorder parity provisions of section 
                2726, provided that in order to receive such a grant, a 
                State is required to request and review from health 
                insurance issuers offering group or individual health 
                insurance coverage the comparative analyses and other 
                information required of such health insurance issuers 
                under subsection (a)(8)(A) of such section 2726 
                regarding the design and application of nonquantitative 
                treatment limitations imposed on mental health or 
                substance use disorder benefits.
                    ``(B) Authorization of appropriations.--For 
                purposes of awarding grants under subparagraph (A), 
                there are authorized to be appropriated $25,000,000 for 
                each of the first five fiscal years beginning after the 
                date of the enactment of this paragraph.''.
    (b) Technical Amendment.--Section 2794 of the Public Health Service 
Act (42 U.S.C. 300gg-95), as added by section 6603 of the Patient 
Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148) is redesignated 
as section 2795.
                                 <all>