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<BillSummaries>
<item congress="114" measure-type="s" measure-number="646" measure-id="id114s646" originChamber="SENATE" orig-publish-date="2015-03-03" update-date="2015-03-25">
<title>Medical Evaluation Parity for Servicemembers Act of 2015</title>
<summary summary-id="id114s646v00" currentChamber="SENATE" update-date="2015-03-25">
<action-date>2015-03-03</action-date>
<action-desc>Introduced in Senate</action-desc>
<summary-text><![CDATA[<p><b>Medical Evaluation Parity for Servicemembers Act of 2015</b></p> <p>Directs the Secretary of the military department concerned to: (1) provide an individual with a mental health screening before such individual enlists or is commissioned as an officer in the Armed Forces, and (2) use such results as a baseline for any subsequent mental health examinations. </p> <p>Prohibits the Secretary from considering the results of such screening in determining the promotion of a member of the Armed Forces.</p> <p>Directs the Secretary to treat a screening in the same manner as medical records with respect to laws and regulations relating to the privacy of information.</p> <p>Requires the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health to submit to Congress and the Department of Defense (DOD) a report on preliminary mental health screenings of members of the Armed Forces, including recommendations regarding: (1) establishing preliminary mental health screenings to establish parity with physical screenings; and (2) the composition of the mental health screening, evidenced-based best practices, and how to track changes relating to traumatic brain injuries, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other conditions. </p> <p>Directs DOD and the Government Accountability Office to report on the efficacy of preliminary mental health screenings. Requires DOD to report on the efficacy of the mental health components of the physical examinations to members of the Armed Forces who are separated from active duty.</p>]]></summary-text>
</summary>
</item>
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<dc:language>EN</dc:language>
<dc:rights>Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.</dc:rights>
<dc:contributor>Congressional Research Service, Library of Congress</dc:contributor>
<dc:description>This file contains bill summaries for federal legislation. A bill summary describes the most significant provisions of a piece of legislation and details the effects the legislative text may have on current law and federal programs. Bill summaries are authored by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the Library of Congress. As stated in Public Law 91-510 (2 USC 166 (d)(6)), one of the duties of CRS is "to prepare summaries and digests of bills and resolutions of a public general nature introduced in the Senate or House of Representatives". For more information, refer to the User Guide that accompanies this file.</dc:description>
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