S. 2822 — Introduced in Senate

II 116th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 2822 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES November 7, 2019Ms. Duckworth introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs A BILL To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to develop and maintain a suicide risk management and prevention and lethal means training course for certain employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Post–9/11 Veteran Suicide Prevention Counseling Act. 2. Suicide risk management and prevention and lethal means training course of the Department of Veterans Affairs (a) Development (1) Initial development Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in consultation with entities described in subsection (b), shall develop a suicide risk management and prevention and lethal means training course that is culturally appropriate and addresses the concerns of firearm owners. (2) Periodic updates The Secretary shall update the training under this subsection not less frequently than once every two years. (b) Entities described The entities described in this subsection are the following: (1) The Secretary of Health and Human Services. (2) The National Institutes of Health. (3) Public and private institutions of higher education. (4) Experts in the assessment, treatment, and management of suicidal tendencies. (5) Relevant professional associations. (6) Gun ownership groups, in order to reduce the stigma associated with firearm ownership and safe storage. (c) Trainees; frequency of training The Secretary shall provide the most recent training developed under subsection (a) not less frequently than once every five years to each employee of the Veterans Health Administration who regularly interacts with veterans in the course of such employment. (d) Public availability The Secretary shall make the training developed under subsection (a) available to members of the public.