Advancing Research to Prevent Suicide Act

Bill: 116-s-3351
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX]
Introduced: 2020-02-27
Policy area: Health
Subjects: Drug, alcohol, tobacco use

Education programs funding

Health programs administration and funding

Health promotion and preventive care

Higher education

Medical research

Mental health

Research administration and funding
Latest action: action_date: 2020-02-27
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Summaries:
action_date: 2020-02-27
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><b>Advancing Research to Prevent Suicide Act</b></p> <p>This bill directs the National Science Foundation to award competitive, merit-reviewed grants to institutions of higher education (or their consortia) to support multidisciplinary, fundamental research with potential relevance to suicide, including potential relevance to prevention and treatment. </p> <p>In awarding such grants, the NSF shall encourage applications submitted by early career researchers, including doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers, to promote the researchers' development. </p>

tv_txt: II 116th CONGRESS 2d Session S. 3351 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES February 27, 2020 Mr. Cornyn (for himself and Ms. Rosen ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To direct the Director of the National Science Foundation to support multidisciplinary research on the science of suicide, and to advance the knowledge and understanding of issues that may be associated with several aspects of suicide including intrinsic and extrinsic factors related to areas such as wellbeing, resilience, and vulnerability.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Advancing Research to Prevent Suicide Act . 2. Findings Congress finds the following: (1) The rate of Americans dying by suicide is on the rise, increasing 10.7 to 14.0 deaths per 100,000 people from 2001 to 2017. (2) Suicide is the tenth-leading cause of death among people in the United States and the second-leading cause of death for young people between the ages of 15 and 34. (3) The National Science Foundation funds research that is improving our basic understanding of factors with potential relevance to suicide, including potential relevance to prevention and treatment. (4) Despite progress in mental health research, current gaps exist in scientific understanding and basic knowledge of human neural, genetic, cognitive, perceptual, behavioral, social, and environmental factors with potential relevance to suicide. 3. National Science Foundation research (a) In general The Director of the National Science Foundation, in consultation with the Director of the National Institutes of Health and the Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, where appropriate, shall, subject to the availability of appropriations, award grants on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis to institutions of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 ( 20 U.S.C. 1001 )) (or consortia of such institutions) to support multidisciplinary, fundamental research with potential relevance to suicide, including potential relevance to prevention and treatment, including— (1) basic understanding of human social behavior; (2) the neural basis of human cognition; (3) basic understanding of cognitive, linguistic, social, cultural, and biological processes related to human development across the lifespan; (4) basic understanding of perceptual, motor, and cognitive processes, and their interaction, in typical human behavior; and (5) basic understanding of the relevance of drug and alcohol abuse. (b) Applications from early career researchers To promote the development of early career researchers, in awarding funds under subsection (a), the Director of the National Science Foundation shall encourage applications submitted by early career researchers, including doctoral students or postdoctoral researchers.