[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 793 Referred in House (RFH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 793


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           December 12, 2007

            Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
To provide for the expansion and improvement of traumatic brain injury 
                               programs.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reauthorization of the Traumatic 
Brain Injury Act''.

SEC. 2. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO RESTRUCTURING.

    Part J of title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
280b et seq.) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating the section 393B (42 U.S.C. 280b-1c) 
        relating to the use of allotments for rape prevention 
        education, as section 393A and moving such section so that it 
        follows section 393;
            (2) by redesignating existing section 393A (42 U.S.C. 280b-
        1b) relating to prevention of traumatic brain injury, as 
        section 393B; and
            (3) by redesignating the section 393B (42 U.S.C. 280b-1d) 
        relating to traumatic brain injury registries, as section 393C.

SEC. 3. TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY PROGRAMS OF THE CENTERS FOR DISEASE 
              CONTROL AND PREVENTION.

    (a) Prevention of Traumatic Brain Injury.--Clause (ii) of section 
393B(b)(3)(A) of the Public Health Service Act, as so redesignated, (42 
U.S.C. 280b-1b) is amended by striking ``from hospitals and trauma 
centers'' and inserting ``from hospitals and emergency departments''.
    (b) National Program for Traumatic Brain Injury Surveillance and 
Registries.--Section 393C of the Public Health Service Act, as so 
redesignated, (42 U.S.C. 280b et seq.) is amended--
            (1) in the section heading, by inserting ``surveillance 
        and'' after ``national program for traumatic brain injury''; 
        and
            (2) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding paragraph 
        (1), by striking ``may make grants'' and all that follows 
        through ``to collect data concerning--'' and inserting ``may 
        make grants to States or their designees to develop or operate 
        the State's traumatic brain injury surveillance system or 
        registry to determine the incidence and prevalence of traumatic 
        brain injury and related disability, to ensure the uniformity 
        of reporting under such system or registry, to link individuals 
        with traumatic brain injury to services and supports, and to 
        link such individuals with academic institutions to conduct 
        applied research that will support the development of such 
        surveillance systems and registries as may be necessary. A 
        surveillance system or registry under this section shall 
        provide for the collection of data concerning--''.
    (c) Report.--Section 393C of the Public Health Service Act (as so 
redesignated) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(b) Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of the 
Reauthorization of the Traumatic Brain Injury Act, the Secretary, 
acting through the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention and the Director of the National Institutes of Health and in 
consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs, shall submit to the relevant committees of Congress a 
report that contains the findings derived from an evaluation concerning 
activities and procedures that can be implemented by the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Defense, and the 
Department of Veterans Affairs to improve the collection and 
dissemination of compatible epidemiological studies on the incidence 
and prevalence of traumatic brain injury in the military and veterans 
populations who return to civilian life. The report shall include 
recommendations on the manner in which such agencies can further 
collaborate on the development and improvement of traumatic brain 
injury diagnostic tools and treatments.''.

SEC. 4. STUDY ON TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.

    Part J of title III of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
280b et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 393C the following:

``SEC. 393C-1. STUDY ON TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.

    ``(a) Study.--The Secretary, acting through the Director of the 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention with respect to paragraph 
(1) and in consultation with the Director of the National Institutes of 
Health and other appropriate entities with respect to paragraphs (2), 
(3), and (4), may conduct a study with respect to traumatic brain 
injury for the purpose of carrying out the following:
            ``(1) In collaboration with appropriate State and local 
        health-related agencies--
                    ``(A) determining the incidence of traumatic brain 
                injury and prevalence of traumatic brain injury related 
                disability and the clinical aspects of the disability 
                in all age groups and racial and ethnic minority groups 
                in the general population of the United States, 
                including institutional settings, such as nursing 
                homes, correctional facilities, psychiatric hospitals, 
                child care facilities, and residential institutes for 
                people with developmental disabilities; and
                    ``(B) reporting national trends in traumatic brain 
                injury.
            ``(2) Identifying common therapeutic interventions which 
        are used for the rehabilitation of individuals with such 
        injuries, and, subject to the availability of information, 
        including an analysis of--
                    ``(A) the effectiveness of each such intervention 
                in improving the functioning, including return to work 
                or school and community participation, of individuals 
                with brain injuries;
                    ``(B) the comparative effectiveness of 
                interventions employed in the course of rehabilitation 
                of individuals with brain injuries to achieve the same 
                or similar clinical outcome; and
                    ``(C) the adequacy of existing measures of outcomes 
                and knowledge of factors influencing differential 
                outcomes.
            ``(3) Identifying interventions and therapies that can 
        prevent or remediate the development of secondary neurologic 
        conditions related to traumatic brain injury.
            ``(4) Developing practice guidelines for the rehabilitation 
        of traumatic brain injury at such time as appropriate 
        scientific research becomes available.
    ``(b) Dates Certain for Reports.--If the study is conducted under 
subsection (a), the Secretary shall, not later than 3 years after the 
date of the enactment of the Reauthorization of the Traumatic Brain 
Injury Act, submit to Congress a report describing findings made as a 
result of carrying out such subsection (a).
    ``(c) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term 
`traumatic brain injury' means an acquired injury to the brain. Such 
term does not include brain dysfunction caused by congenital or 
degenerative disorders, nor birth trauma, but may include brain 
injuries caused by anoxia due to trauma including near drowning. The 
Secretary may revise the definition of such term as the Secretary 
determines necessary.''.

SEC. 5. TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY PROGRAMS OF THE NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF 
              HEALTH.

    Section 1261 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300d-61) 
is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ``Labor and Human 
        Resources'' and inserting ``Health, Education, Labor, and 
        Pensions'';
            (2) in subparagraph (D) of subsection (d)(4), by striking 
        ``head brain injury'' and inserting ``brain injury''; and
            (3) in subsection (i), by inserting ``, and such sums as 
        may be necessary for each of fiscal years 2008 through 2011'' 
        before the period at the end.

SEC. 6. TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY PROGRAMS OF THE HEALTH RESOURCES AND 
              SERVICES ADMINISTRATION.

    (a) State Grants for Demonstration Projects Regarding Traumatic 
Brain Injury.--Section 1252 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
300d-52) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) by striking ``may make grants to States'' and 
                inserting ``may make grants to States and American 
                Indian consortia''; and
                    (B) by striking ``health and other services'' and 
                inserting ``rehabilitation and other services'';
            (2) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) in paragraphs (1), (3)(A)(i), (3)(A)(iii), and 
                (3)(A)(iv), by striking the term ``State'' each place 
                such term appears and inserting the term ``State or 
                American Indian consortium''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``recommendations 
                to the State'' and inserting ``recommendations to the 
                State or American Indian consortium'';
            (3) in subsection (c), by striking the term ``State'' each 
        place such term appears and inserting ``State or American 
        Indian consortium'';
            (4) in subsection (e), by striking ``A State that 
        received'' and all that follows through the period and 
        inserting ``A State or American Indian consortium that received 
        a grant under this section prior to the date of the enactment 
        of the Reauthorization of the Traumatic Brain Injury Act may 
        complete the activities funded by the grant.'';
            (5) in subsection (f)--
                    (A) in the subsection heading, by inserting ``and 
                American Indian Consortium'' after ``State'';
                    (B) in paragraph (1) in the matter preceding 
                subparagraph (A), paragraph (1)(E), paragraph (2)(A), 
                paragraph (2)(B), paragraph (3) in the matter preceding 
                subparagraph (A), paragraph (3)(E), and paragraph 
                (3)(F), by striking the term ``State'' each place such 
                term appears and inserting ``State or American Indian 
                consortium'';
                    (C) in clause (ii) of paragraph (1)(A), by striking 
                ``children and other individuals'' and inserting 
                ``children, youth, and adults''; and
                    (D) in subsection (h)--
                            (i) by striking ``Not later than 2 years 
                        after the date of the enactment of this 
                        section, the Secretary'' and inserting ``Not 
                        less than biennially, the Secretary'';
                            (ii) by striking ``Commerce of the House of 
                        Representatives, and to the Committee on Labor 
                        and Human Resources'' and inserting ``Energy 
                        and Commerce of the House of Representatives, 
                        and to the Committee on Health, Education, 
                        Labor, and Pensions''; and
                            (iii) by inserting ``and section 1253'' 
                        after ``programs established under this 
                        section,'';
            (6) by amending subsection (i) to read as follows:
    ``(i) Definitions.--For purposes of this section:
            ``(1) The terms `American Indian consortium' and `State' 
        have the meanings given to those terms in section 1253.
            ``(2) The term `traumatic brain injury' means an acquired 
        injury to the brain. Such term does not include brain 
        dysfunction caused by congenital or degenerative disorders, nor 
        birth trauma, but may include brain injuries caused by anoxia 
        due to trauma. The Secretary may revise the definition of such 
        term as the Secretary determines necessary, after consultation 
        with States and other appropriate public or nonprofit private 
        entities.''; and
            (7) in subsection (j), by inserting ``, and such sums as 
        may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2008 through 
        2011'' before the period.
    (b) State Grants for Protection and Advocacy Services.--Section 
1253 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300d-53) is amended--
            (1) in subsections (d) and (e), by striking the term 
        ``subsection (i)'' each place such term appears and inserting 
        ``subsection (l)'';
            (2) in subsection (g), by inserting ``each fiscal year not 
        later than October 1,'' before ``the Administrator shall pay'';
            (3) by redesignating subsections (i) and (j) as subsections 
        (l) and (m), respectively;
            (4) by inserting after subsection (h) the following:
    ``(i) Data Collection.--The Administrator of the Health Resources 
and Services Administration and the Commissioner of the Administration 
on Developmental Disabilities shall enter into an agreement to 
coordinate the collection of data by the Administrator and the 
Commissioner regarding protection and advocacy services.
    ``(j) Training and Technical Assistance.--
            ``(1) Grants.--For any fiscal year for which the amount 
        appropriated to carry out this section is $6,000,000 or 
        greater, the Administrator shall use 2 percent of such amount 
        to make a grant to an eligible national association for 
        providing for training and technical assistance to protection 
        and advocacy systems.
            ``(2) Definition.--In this subsection, the term `eligible 
        national association' means a national association with 
        demonstrated experience in providing training and technical 
        assistance to protection and advocacy systems.
    ``(k) System Authority.--In providing services under this section, 
a protection and advocacy system shall have the same authorities, 
including access to records, as such system would have for purposes of 
providing services under subtitle C of the Developmental Disabilities 
Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000.''; and
            (5) in subsection (l) (as redesignated by this subsection) 
        by striking ``2005'' and inserting ``2011''.

SEC. 7. GAO STUDY WITH RESPECT TO MEMBERS OF THE ARMED FORCES.

    (a) In General.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
conduct a study regarding members of the armed forces who have acquired 
a disability resulting from a traumatic brain injury incurred while 
serving in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Such 
study shall examine how these individuals are being reintegrated into 
their communities, including--
            (1) what is known about this population; and
            (2) what challenges they may face in returning to their 
        communities, such as accessing employment, housing, 
        transportation, and community care programs, and coordinating 
        benefits.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs and the Committee on Education and the Workforce of 
the House of Representatives, a report sum-


              

marizing the results of the study conducted under subsection (a).

            Passed the Senate December 11, 2007.

            Attest:

                                                NANCY ERICKSON,

                                                             Secretary.