[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1701 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1701

   To amend title 10, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of 
Defense to establish a special review board for certain former members 
of the Armed Forces with post-traumatic stress disorder or a traumatic 
                 brain injury, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 25, 2009

 Mr. Jones (for himself and Mr. Taylor) introduced the following bill; 
         which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 10, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of 
Defense to establish a special review board for certain former members 
of the Armed Forces with post-traumatic stress disorder or a traumatic 
                 brain injury, and for other purposes.

    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 ``PTSD/TBI Guaranteed Review For 
Heroes Act''.

SEC. 2. SPECIAL REVIEW BOARD.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 79 of title 10, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 1553 the following new section:
``Sec. 1553a. Special review board for former members with post-
              traumatic stress disorder or traumatic brain injury
    ``(a) Establishment.--(1) The Secretary of Defense shall establish 
within the Office of the Secretary of Defense a board of review to 
review the discharge or dismissal (other than a discharge or dismissal 
by sentence of a general court-martial) of a covered individual. The 
board shall be known as the `special review board'.
    ``(2) The special review board shall consist of not fewer than five 
members, at least one of whom shall be a health care professional from 
a field of medicine relevant to the matter being reviewed.
    ``(b) Review.--(1) Upon the request of a covered individual, Member 
of Congress, or the surviving spouse, next of kin, or legal 
representative of a covered individual, the special review board may 
review the discharge or dismissal of the individual. A request for 
review shall be made not later than 15 years after the discharge or 
dismissal.
    ``(2) The review by the special review board under paragraph (1) 
shall be based on--
            ``(A) the records of the Armed Force concerned, including 
        an evaluation of the actions of the covered individual before 
        and after a deployment in support of a contingency operation;
            ``(B) the treatment or lack of treatment received by the 
        covered individual for post-traumatic stress disorder or 
        traumatic brain injury; and
            ``(C) such other evidence as may be presented to the board.
    ``(3) A covered individual who requests a review under this section 
may appear before the board in person or by counsel or an accredited 
representative of an organization recognized by the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs under chapter 59 of title 38.
    ``(4) If the special review board reviews the discharge or 
dismissal of a covered individual, a service review agency may not 
review such discharge or dismissal.
    ``(5) If a Member of Congress requests the review of a covered 
individual under paragraph (1) and the special review board denies such 
request or does not change the discharge or dismissal of such 
individual under subsection (c), the special review board shall notify 
such Member of Congress of the decision and the rationale for such 
decision.
    ``(c) Actions.--As the result of a review of a covered individual 
under subsection (b), the special review board may change the discharge 
or dismissal of the individual to honorable.
    ``(d) Correction of Records.--The Secretary concerned shall correct 
the military records of a covered individual in accordance with a 
change made by the special review board under subsection (c).
    ``(e) Regulations.--(1) This section shall be carried out in 
accordance with regulations prescribed by the Secretary of Defense.
    ``(2) The regulations under paragraph (1) shall specify reasonable 
deadlines for the performance of reviews required by this section.
    ``(f) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) The term `covered individual' means a former member 
        of the Armed Forces who--
                    ``(A) was deployed in support of a contingency 
                operation;
                    ``(B) was discharged or dismissed from the Armed 
                Forces under a general or other than honorable 
                condition; and
                    ``(C) has been diagnosed by a health care 
                professional with post-traumatic stress disorder or a 
                traumatic brain injury.
            ``(2) The term `health care professional' means a 
        physician, clinical psychologist, or psychiatrist.
            ``(3) The term `Member of Congress' has the meaning given 
        that term in section 1130(d)(1) of this title.
            ``(4) The term `service review agency' has the meaning 
        given that term in section 1559(c) of this title.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
chapter 79 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to section 1553 the following new item:

``1553a. Special review board for members with post-traumatic stress 
                            disorder or traumatic brain injury.''.

SEC. 3. EXAMINATION AND EVALUATION OF MEMBERS WITH POST-TRAUMATIC 
              STRESS DISORDER OR TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY.

    (a) Referral to Physical Evaluation Board; Limits on Separation.--
Section 1145(a)(4) of title 10, United States Code, is amended by 
adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
    ``(C) If a physician, clinical psychologist, psychiatrist, or other 
appropriate health care professional determines in an examination under 
this paragraph that a member who was deployed in support of a 
contingency operation has (or may have) post-traumatic stress disorder 
or a traumatic brain injury, the Secretary concerned--
            ``(1) shall refer the member for evaluation by a physical 
        evaluation board under section 1222 of this title; and
            ``(2) may not separate the member from an Armed Force until 
        the Secretary considers the results of the evaluation as 
        provided in subsection (d) of such section.''.
    (b) Evaluation by Physical Evaluation Board.--Section 1222 of title 
10, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following 
new subsection:
    ``(d) Evaluation for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or Traumatic 
Brain Injury.--With respect to a member who is referred under section 
1145(a)(4)(C) of this title to a physical evaluation board for 
evaluation--
            ``(1) if the board determines that the member is unfit to 
        perform the duties of the member's office, grade, rank, or 
        rating because of post-traumatic stress disorder or traumatic 
        brain injury, the Secretary concerned shall retire or separate 
        the member pursuant to this chapter; and
            ``(2) if the board determines that the member is fit to 
        perform the duties of the member's office, grade, rank, or 
        rating, the Secretary concerned shall take into account the 
        findings of the board in the course of any separation of the 
        member from an Armed Force.''.
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