PATHS Act

Bill: 117-s-2873
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE]
Introduced: 2021-09-28
Policy area: Health
Latest action: action_date: 2021-09-28
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Summaries:
action_date: 2021-09-28
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><strong>Preventing and Addressing Trauma with Health Services Act or the PATHS Act</strong></p> <p>This bill establishes grants to increase access to trauma support and mental health care for individuals who have experienced gun violence in communities with higher rates of violence-related deaths than the national average.</p> <p>The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) must award the grants to nonprofit or community organizations, government agencies, or health care institutions that offer mental health services. In awarding these grants, SAMHSA may give preference to community health centers, federally qualified health centers, and applicants proposing to work in partnership with other eligible entities.</p>

tv_txt: II 117th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 2873 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES September 28, 2021 Mr. Coons (for himself, Mr. Booker , and Mr. Durbin ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions A BILL To require the Secretary of Health and Human Services to award grants to establish or expand programs and activities to increase access to high-quality culturally competent trauma support and mental health care, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Preventing and Addressing Trauma with Health Services Act or the PATHS Act . 2. Grants for high-quality culturally competent trauma support and mental health services Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act ( 42 U.S.C. 290dd et seq. ) is amended by adding at the end the following: 553. Grants for high-quality culturally competent trauma support and mental health services (a) In general The Secretary, acting through the Assistant Secretary and in consultation with the heads of other relevant Federal agencies, shall award grants to eligible entities to establish or expand programs and activities for the purpose of increasing access to high-quality culturally competent trauma support and mental health care for covered individuals in covered communities. (b) Eligible entities To be eligible for a grant under this section, an entity shall be— (1) a nonprofit or community-based program or organization that— (A) provides or has developed plans to provide culturally competent programs and resources that are aligned with evidence-based or evidence-informed practices for trauma-informed mental health care; and (B) has demonstrated expertise in serving covered communities; (2) a Federal, State, or local agency, such as a public health, mental health, law enforcement, or social services agency, that conducts activities (which may be through partnering with a nonprofit or community-based organization) to, in a covered community, screen individuals for mental health needs, assess such needs, and provide mental health services or referrals to such services; or (3) a hospital, health care clinic, or other health care institution that provides to a covered community culturally competent programs, mental health services, and resources that are aligned with evidence-based or evidence-informed practices for trauma-informed mental health care. (c) Applications; preference; period (1) In general An eligible entity desiring a grant under this section shall submit to the Secretary an application at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may reasonably require. (2) Preference In selecting applicants for a grant under this section, the Secretary may give preference to eligible entities that— (A) demonstrate they have established a partnership with another eligible entity or service provider in a covered community; or (B) are community health centers or federally qualified health centers. (3) Period Each grant awarded under this section shall be for a period of 5 years, with equal amounts awarded to the recipient through the grant for each of such 5 years. (d) Use of funds An eligible entity that receives a grant under subsection (a)— (1) shall use the funds to increase access to or provide evidence-based or evidence-informed, trauma-informed mental health services to covered individuals in a covered community; and (2) may use the grant funds to— (A) establish and maintain programming to provide culturally competent mental health services; (B) hire and retain mental health care providers; (C) train mental health care providers on culturally competent trauma-informed care strategies; (D) develop strategies and projects to enhance access to trauma-informed care and resources for covered individuals in a covered community; (E) establish partnerships with other eligible entities to develop and enhance effective strategies to provide trauma-informed mental health services to covered individuals in a covered community; (F) develop strategies and training for law enforcement officers or other first responders to provide referral services to covered individuals in a covered community to trauma-informed mental health services; (G) build public awareness and education about trauma-informed mental health services in a covered community; and (H) build public awareness and education in a covered community about the importance of addressing trauma resulting from gun violence. (e) Evaluation (1) Grant recipient requirements An eligible entity that receives a grant under this section shall— (A) develop metrics and key performance indicators to assess outcomes achieved by programs or activities funded through such grant; and (B) not later than the date that is 2 years after the day on which the entity receives such grant, and 1 year after such date, submit to the Secretary a report that details— (i) the metrics and key performance indicators used to assess outcomes achieved by such programs or activities; (ii) the process used to identify and develop such metrics and key performance indicators; and (iii) an assessment of the outcomes achieved by such programs or activities. (2) Report to Congress Not later than the date that is 3 years after the date of enactment of this section, and each year thereafter through fiscal year 2026, the Secretary shall conduct an evaluation of the programs or activities funded by a grant under this section and submit a report of the results of such evaluation to Congress. (f) Definitions In this section: (1) Covered community The term covered community means a community that has an age-adjusted rate of violence-related (or intentional) injury deaths that is above the national average, as determined by the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2) Covered individual The term covered individual means an individual who has been injured, has witnessed, has been threatened, has been exposed to, or has been otherwise impacted by gun violence within the 5 years preceding the date of enactment of this section. (g) Authorization of appropriations To carry out this section, there is authorized to be appropriated $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026. .