,,ii #aagth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #gjh ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,march #aa1 #bjba,mr4 ,kelly 7for himself and ,mrs4 ,capito7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to direct the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services to convene a task force to advise the ,assistant ,secretary for ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use on a national strategy for preventing mental health and substance use crises during a public health emergency1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,preventing ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use ,crises ,during ,emergencies ,act4 #b4 ,findings 7a7 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,united ,states invests annually in the public mental health of people of the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,congress appropriated #c1fjj1jjj1jjj in fiscal year #bjbj to the ,substance ,abuse and ,mental ,health ,services ,administration4 7#c7 ,funds are also appropriated to address mental health and substance use in targeted populations through the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs1 the ,department of the ,interior1 and the ,national ,institute of ,mental ,health4 7#d7 ,on ,january #ca1 #bjbj1 the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services declared a public health emergency due to the spread of ,,covid-#ai1 and extended such declaration1 most recently1 on ,october #b1 #bjbj4 7#e7 ,as of ,august #a1 #bjbj1 ,congress provided an additional #gbe1jjj1jjj in supplemental funding to augment mental health and substance use services during the ,,covid-#ai pandemic4 7#f7 ,such supplemental funding included #dbe1jjj1jjj to the ,substance ,abuse and ,mental ,health ,services ,administration1 of which-- 7,a7 #aaj1jjj1jjj was allocated for emergency grants for behavioral health services2 7,b7 #bej1jjj1jjj was allocated for the ,certified ,community ,behavioral ,health ,centers program2 and 7,c7 #ej1jjj1jjj was allocated for suicide prevention4 7#g7 ,the ,,covid-#ai pandemic has exacerbated concerns about the mental health and well-being of the people of the ,united ,states4 7#h7 ,a third of people in the ,united ,states are feeling severe anxiety1 according to ,census ,bureau data1 and nearly a quarter show signs of depression4 7#i7 ,a recent poll by the ,kaiser ,family ,foundation found that the pandemic had negatively affected the mental health of #ef percent of adults4 7#aj7 ,in ,april1 texts to a ,federal emergency mental-health line were up #a1jjj percent from the year before4 7#aa7 ,the situation is particularly dire for certain vulnerable groups that face a significant risk of post-traumatic stress disorder1 including-- 7,a7 health care workers2 7,b7 ,,covid-#ai patients with severe cases2 and 7,c7 individuals who have lost loved ones4 7#ab7 ,in overburdened intensive-care units1 delirious patients are seeing chilling hallucinations4 7#ac7 ,at least #b overwhelmed emergency medical workers have died by suicide since the beginning of the ,,covid-#ai pandemic4 7#ad7 ,the public mental health crisis will continue after the ,,covid-#ai pandemic subsides4 7b7 ,statement of policy ,it is the policy of the ,united ,states to protect the health and safety of all people of the ,united ,states during public health emergencies and to proactively lead public health efforts to advance the mental health of the ,nation4 #c4 ,task force to prevent mental health and substance use crises 7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,health and ,human ,services 7referred to in this section as the ,secretary7 shall convene a task force known as the ,task ,force to ,prevent ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use ,crises 7referred to in this section as the ,task ,force7 to-- 7#a7 assess the response of the ,federal ,government with respect to mental health and substance use during and after the spread of ,,covid-#ai2 and 7#b7 advise the ,assistant ,secretary for ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use on a national strategy for preventing mental health and substance use crises during a public health emergency4 7b7 ,assessment ,in carrying out subsection 7a71 the ,task ,force shall assess-- 7#a7 the efficacy1 outcomes1 and cost of each ,federal initiative taken during the spread of ,,covid-#ai to support mental health and address substance use1 including an identification of-- 7,a7 any initiative that was not successful2 and 7,b7 best practices and strategies2 7#b7 the ability of ,federal agencies to coordinate mental health programs and services and allocate resources to respond to a public health emergency2 7#c7 the ability of ,federal agencies to use technology developed through the ,small ,business ,innovation ,research ,program established under section #i of the ,small ,business ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #fch7 to respond to a public health emergency2 7#d7 the ability of ,federal1 ,state1 and local agencies to coordinate with other government agencies1 nonprofit organizations1 and entities in the private sector during a public health emergency2 7#e7 any needed improvements to coordination described in paragraphs 7#b7 and 7#d72 7#f7 a review of research programs of the ,federal agencies listed in subsection 7c77#c7 with respect to mental health and substance use during a public health emergency2 and 7#g7 a review of the amount of funds used by such ,federal agencies to support mental health and address substance use during a public health emergency4 7c7 ,membership 7#a7 ,chair ,not later than #fj days after the date of enactment of this section1 the ,secretary shall appoint an individual to serve as the ,chair of the ,task ,force4 7#b7 ,composition ,the ,task ,force shall be composed of-- 7,a7 representatives of ,federal agencies1 including the agencies listed in paragraph 7#c72 7,b7 representatives of nongovernmental organizations2 7,c7 patient advocates2 and 7,d7 ,state and local public health experts who specialize in mental health and substance use4 7#c7 ,federal agencies ,the agencies represented under paragraph 7#b77;,a7 shall1 at a minimum1 include the following3 7,a7 ,the ,centers for ,disease ,control and ,prevention4 7,b7 ,the ,national ,institute of ,mental ,health4 7,c7 ,the ,national ,institutes of ,health4 7,d7 ,the ,national ,institute on ,drug ,abuse4 7,e7 ,the ,food and ,drug ,administration4 7,f7 ,the ,health ,resources and ,services ,administration4 7,g7 ,the ,substance ,abuse and ,mental ,health ,services ,administration4 7,h7 ,the ,agency for ,healthcare ,research and ,quality4 7,i7 ,the ,administration for ,children and ,families4 7,j7 ,the ,centers for ,medicare ,medicaid ,services4 7,k7 ,the ,department of the ,interior4 7,l7 ,the ,department of ,veterans ,affairs4 7,m7 ,the ,department of ,education4 7,n7 ,the ,department of ,defense4 7,o7 ,the ,department of ,justice4 7,p7 ,the ,department of ,housing and ,urban ,development4 7,q7 ,the ,administration for ,community ,living4 7,r7 ,the ,indian ,health ,service4 7,s7 ,the ,department of ,labor4 7d7 ,meetings ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of this section1 the ,secretary shall convene a meeting of the ,task ,force and shall convene subsequent meetings on a periodic basis4 7e7 ,submissions to ,congress 7#a7 ,progress report ,not later than one year after the date of enactment of this section1 the ,task ,force shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the progress of the ,task ,force in carrying out subsection 7a74 7#b7 ,final report ,not later than #b years after the date of enactment of this section1 and annually thereafter1 the ,task ,force shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the activities of the ,task ,force in carrying out subsection 7a71 including-- 7,a7 the results of the assessment under subsection 7b72 and 7,b7 any findings1 conclusions1 and recommendations4 7f7 ,disposition of records ,upon dissolution of the ,task ,force1 the records of the ,task ,force shall become records of the ,assistant ,secretary for ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use4 7g7 ,public health emergency defined ,in this section1 the term public health emergency means a public health emergency declared pursuant to section #cai of the ,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bdg;d74 #d4 ,national strategy on mental health and substance use during a public health emergency ,section #eja of the ,public ,health ,service ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #bij;aa7 is amended-- 7#a7 by redesignating subsection 7q7 as subsection 7r72 and 7#b7 by inserting after subsection 7p7 the following3 7q7 ,national strategy during public health emergencies ,not later than #cj months after the date of enactment of the ,preventing ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use ,crises ,during ,emergencies ,act1 and annually thereafter1 the ,assistant ,secretary shall prepare and submit a national strategy to the appropriate congressional committees on preventing mental health and substance use crises during a public health emergency declared by the ,secretary under section #cai4 ,such strategy shall be based on the reports submitted to ,congress by the ,task ,force to ,prevent ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use ,crises established under section #c of the ,preventing ,mental ,health and ,substance ,use ,crises ,during ,emergencies ,act and shall include-- 7#a7 advancements in research with respect to mental health and substance use during a public health emergency2 and 7#b7 a plan to increase the ability of ,federal agencies to coordinate mental health programs and services and allocate resources to respond to a public health emergency4 4