,i #aaeth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #fega ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,july #bf1 #bjah,mr4 ,bera introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,energy and ,commerce1 and in addition to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology1 for a period to be subsequently determined by the ,speaker1 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 improve the detection1 prevention1 and treatment of mental health issues among public safety officers1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,helping ,emergency ,responders ,overcome ,act of #bjah4 #b4 ,data system to capture national public safety officer suicide incidence ,the ,public ,health ,service ,act is amended by inserting after section #cag,t of such ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bdg;b-#bb7 the following3 #cag,u4 ,data system to capture national public safety officer suicide incidence 7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary1 acting primarily through the ,director of the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention and in coordination with other agencies as the ,secretary determines appropriate1 shall-- 7#a7 develop and maintain a data system1 to be known as the ,public ,safety ,officer ,suicide ,reporting ,system1 for the purposes of-- 7,a7 collecting data on the suicide incidence among public safety officers2 and 7,b7 facilitating the study of successful interventions to reduce suicide among public safety officers2 and 7#b7 integrate such system into the ,national ,violent ,death ,reporting ,system1 so long as the ,secretary determines such integration to be consistent with the purposes described in paragraph 7#a74 7b7 ,data collection ,in collecting data for the ,public ,safety ,officer ,suicide ,reporting ,system1 the ,secretary shall1 at a minimum1 collect the following information3 7#a7 ,the total number of suicides in the ,united ,states among all public safety officers in a given calendar year4 7#b7 ,suicide rates for public safety officers in a given calendar year1 disaggregated by-- 7,a7 age and gender of the public safety officer2 7,b7 ,state2 7,c7 occupation2 7,d7 status of the public safety officer as volunteer1 paid-on-call1 or career2 and 7,e7 status of the public safety officer as active or retired4 7c7 ,consultation during development ,in developing the ,public ,safety ,officer ,suicide ,reporting ,system1 the ,secretary shall consult with non-,federal experts to determine the best means to collect data regarding suicide incidence in a safe1 sensitive1 anonymous1 and effective manner4 ,such non-,federal experts shall include the following3 7#a7 ,public health experts with experience in developing and maintaining suicide registries4 7#b7 ,organizations that track suicide among public safety officers4 7#c7 ,mental health experts with experience in studying suicide and other profession-related traumatic stress4 7#d7 ,clinicians with experience in diagnosing and treating mental health issues4 7#e7 ,active and retired volunteer1 paid-on-call1 and career public safety officers4 7#f7 ,relevant national police1 and fire and emergency response1 organizations4 7d7 ,data privacy and security ,in developing and maintaining the ,public ,safety ,officer ,suicide ,reporting ,system1 the ,secretary shall ensure that all applicable ,federal and ,state privacy and security protections are followed to ensure that-- 7#a7 the confidentiality and anonymity of suicide victims and their families are protected1 including so as to ensure that data cannot be used to deny benefits2 and 7#b7 data is sufficiently secure to prevent unauthorized access4 7e7 ,reporting 7#a7 ,annual report ,not later than one year after the date of enactment of the ,helping ,emergency ,responders ,overcome ,act of #bjah1 and annually thereafter1 the ,secretary shall submit a report to the ,congress on the suicide incidence among public safety officers4 ,each such report shall-- 7,a7 include such suicide incidence disaggregated by age1 gender1 and ,state of employment2 7,b7 identify risk factors for suicide among public safety officers2 7,c7 disaggregate rates of suicide by-- 7i7 occupation2 7ii7 status as volunteer1 paid-on-call1 or career2 and 7iii7 status as active or retired2 7,d7 include recommendations for further study regarding the suicide incidence among public safety officers2 7,e7 identify options for interventions to reduce suicide among public safety officers2 and 7,f7 ensure the confidentiality and anonymity of suicide victims and their families1 as described in subsection 7d77#a74 7#b7 ,public availability ,upon the submission of each report to the ,congress under paragraph 7#a71 the ,secretary shall make the full report publicly available on the website of the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention4 7f7 ,definition ,in this section1 the term public safety officer means-- 7#a7 a public safety officer as defined in section #abjd of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh2 or 7#b7 a public safety telecommunicator as described in detailed occupation #dc-ejca in the ,standard ,occupational ,classification ,manual of the ,office of ,management and ,budget 7#bjah74 4 #c4 ,peer-support behavioral health and wellness programs within local fire departments ,part ,b of title ,,iii of the ,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bdc et seq47 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #cbj;,b4 ,peer-support behavioral health and wellness programs within local fire departments 7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary shall award grants to eligible entities for the purpose of establishing or enhancing peer-support behavioral health and wellness programs within local fire departments4 7b7 ,program description ,a peer-support behavioral health and wellness program funded under this section shall-- 7#a7 use fire fighters to serve as peer counselors-- 7,a7 to assist other fire fighters with issues related to behavioral health1 including posttraumatic stress1 substance abuse1 and co-related disorders2 and 7,b7 to conduct outreach regarding such assistance to fire fighters and their families2 7#b7 provide training to fire fighters to serve as such peer counselors2 7#c7 purchase materials to be used exclusively to provide such training2 and 7#d7 disseminate such information and materials as are necessary to conduct the program4 7c7 ,definition ,in this section1 the term eligible entity means a nonprofit fire service organization with expertise and experience with respect to fire fighter health and life safety4 4 #d4 ,development of resources for educating mental health professionals about treating fire fighters ,the ,administrator of the ,united ,states ,fire ,administration1 in coordination with the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services1 shall develop and make publicly available resources that may be used by the ,federal ,government and other entities to educate mental health professionals about-- 7#a7 the culture of ,federal1 ,state1 tribal1 and local fire departments2 and 7#b7 evidence-based therapies for mental health issues common to ,federal1 ,state1 local1 and tribal fire fighters4 #e4 ,best practices and other resources for addressing posttraumatic stress disorder in public safety officers 7a7 ,development2 updates ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall-- 7#a7 develop and assemble evidence-based best practices and other resources to identify1 prevent1 and treat posttraumatic stress disorder and co-occurring disorders in public safety officers2 and 7#b7 reassess and update1 as the ,secretary determines necessary1 such best practices and resources1 including based upon the options for interventions to reduce suicide among public safety officers identified in the annual reports required by section #cag,u7e77#a77;,e7 of the ,public ,health ,service ,act1 as added by section #b of this ,act4 7b7 ,consultation ,in developing1 assembling1 and updating the best practices and resources under subsection 7a71 the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall consult with1 at a minimum1 the following3 7#a7 ,public health experts4 7#b7 ,mental health experts with experience in studying suicide and other profession-related traumatic stress4 7#c7 ,clinicians with experience in diagnosing and treating mental health issues4 7#d7 ,relevant national police1 fire1 and emergency response organizations4 7c7 ,availability ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall make the best practices and resources under subsection 7a7 available to ,federal1 ,state1 and local fire fighter1 police1 and emergency response departments4 7d7 ,federal training and development programs ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services shall work with ,federal departments and agencies1 including the ,united ,states ,fire ,administration1 to incorporate education and training on the best practices and resources under subsection 7a7 into ,federal training and development programs for public safety officers4 7e7 ,definition ,in this section1 the term public safety officer means-- 7#a7 a public safety officer as defined in section #abjd of the ,omnibus ,crime ,control and ,safe ,streets ,act of #aifh2 or 7#b7 a public safety telecommunicator as described in detailed occupation #dc-ejca in the ,standard ,occupational ,classification ,manual of the ,office of ,management and ,budget 7#bjah74