[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2941 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 2941

To direct the Secretary of Defense and the Secretaries of the military 
departments to encourage female members who separate or retire from the 
  Armed Forces during fiscal year 2020 to participate in the Women's 
Health Transition Training pilot program of the Department of Veterans 
                    Affairs, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 23, 2019

 Ms. Houlahan (for herself, Mr. Cisneros, and Ms. Stefanik) introduced 
 the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' 
  Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on Armed Services, for a 
 period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for 
consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the 
                          committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the Secretary of Defense and the Secretaries of the military 
departments to encourage female members who separate or retire from the 
  Armed Forces during fiscal year 2020 to participate in the Women's 
Health Transition Training pilot program of the Department of Veterans 
                    Affairs, 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 ``Servicewomen's Health Transition 
Training Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
            (1) Women are now the fastest growing cohort of veterans 
        and are expected to double in population by 2045.
            (2) Women comprise approximately 2,000,000 veterans in the 
        United States and 10 percent of the total veteran population.
            (3) Women veterans are nearly two times more likely to 
        commit suicide than civilian women.
            (4) On average, women do not connect with the Veterans 
        Health Administration until 2.7 years after separating from 
        military service.
            (5) Female veterans have a higher rate of homelessness than 
        their male counterparts.
            (6) One in five female members of the Armed Forces report 
        experiencing military sexual trauma.
    (b) Statement of Policy Objectives.--It is in the national interest 
of the United States to ensure female veterans receive a high quality 
of care by promoting programs and initiatives that--
            (1) educate women separating from active duty in the Armed 
        Forces of the services available to them through the Department 
        of Veterans Affairs;
            (2) encourage women to enroll in the system of enrollment 
        of the Veterans Health Administration; and
            (3) increase the number of women receiving health care from 
        the Veterans Health Administration.
    (c) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress that the 
Department of Veterans Affairs, in piloting the Women's Health 
Transition Assistance Program, has found that the pilot program has--
            (1) educated hundreds of women, 99 percent of whom would 
        recommend the program to others, in the process of separating 
        or retiring from the Armed Forces, of the care they can receive 
        from the Department of Veterans Affairs;
            (2) improved awareness among pilot program participants of 
        services available from the Department of Veterans Affairs by 
        56 percent; and
            (3) increased pilot program participants' intent to enroll 
        with the Department of Veterans Affairs by 13.1 percent, 
        increased pilot program participants' intent to use Veteran 
        Affairs health care services by 15.6 percent, and increased 
        pilot program participants' intent to use Veterans Affairs 
        suicide prevention services, if needed, by 19.3 percent.

SEC. 3. PARTICIPATION IN THE WOMEN'S HEALTH TRANSITION TRAINING PILOT 
              PROGRAM OF THE DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense shall direct--
            (1) the Secretaries of the military departments to 
        encourage female members who separate or retire from the Armed 
        Forces during fiscal year 2020 to participate in the Women's 
        Health Transition Training pilot program of the Department of 
        Veterans Affairs at locations selected by the Secretaries of 
        the military departments; and
            (2) commanders of military installations that have centers 
        for the Transition Assistance Program under sections 1142 and 
        1144 of title 10, United States Code, to advertise the Women's 
        Health Transition Training pilot program to female members 
        described in paragraph (1).
    (b) Report.--Not later than February 1, 2021, the Secretary of 
Defense, in consultation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall 
submit to Congress a report regarding participation described in 
subsection (a). The report shall include the following:
            (1) The number of participants in the pilot program.
            (2) The number of pilot program sessions and the locations 
        at which the sessions were held.
            (3) Available metrics including course satisfaction and 
        improved awareness of health services furnished by the 
        Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
            (4) Barriers to expanding the pilot program to reach more 
        female members of the Armed Forces.
            (5) Barriers to offering the pilot program online to reach 
        female members of the Armed Forces who cannot attend in person.
            (6) Recommendations for legislation to improve or expand 
        the pilot program.
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