[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3680 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3680

   To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for a national 
outreach and education strategy and research to improve the behavioral 
 and mental health of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific 
  Islander population, while addressing stigma within such population 
            against behavioral and mental health treatment.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 25, 2023

 Ms. Chu (for herself, Mrs. Napolitano, Mr. Case, Ms. DelBene, Mr. Kim 
of New Jersey, Mr. Lieu, Ms. Meng, Ms. Strickland, Ms. Tokuda, and Mrs. 
 Watson Coleman) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                  the Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Public Health Service Act to provide for a national 
outreach and education strategy and research to improve the behavioral 
 and mental health of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific 
  Islander population, while addressing stigma within such population 
            against behavioral and mental health treatment.

    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 ``Stop Mental Health Stigma in Our 
Communities Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) The term ``AANHPI'' means Asian American, Native 
        Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander.
            (2) Except as otherwise specified, the term ``Secretary'' 
        means the Secretary of Health and Human Services.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The AANHPI community is among the fastest growing 
        population groups in the United States. It is a diverse 
        population representing over 30 countries, making up more than 
        50 distinct ethnic groups, and speaking more than 100 languages 
        and dialects.
            (2) There is a growing mental health crisis in the United 
        States, particularly for AANHPI individuals. AANHPI individuals 
        with mental health problems have the lowest rates of mental 
        health service utilization compared to other racial or ethnic 
        populations. In 2021, only 25 percent of Asian adults with a 
        mental health problem received treatment in the past year. 
        Although suicide is the tenth leading cause of death, it is the 
        leading cause of death for AANHPI youth. From 2018 to 2020, 
        AANHPI youth between the ages of 10- to 24-years old were the 
        only racial or ethnic population in this age category where 
        suicide was the leading cause of death.
            (3) Such mental health disparities within the AANHPI 
        community may be attributed to systemic barriers to accessing 
        mental health services, including stigma attached to mental 
        health, limited availability of and access to culturally and 
        linguistically appropriate services, and insufficient research.
            (4) Insufficient research on AANHPI communities often leads 
        to an inaccurate representation of their experiences and needs. 
        It is imperative to disaggregate AANHPI population data to 
        better understand the range of mental health issues for each 
        subpopulation so specific culturally and linguistically 
        appropriate solutions can be developed.
            (5) Critical investments are necessary to reduce stigma and 
        improve mental health within AANHPI communities, including--
                    (A) increasing culturally and linguistically 
                appropriate outreach, education, and mental health 
                services;
                    (B) improving representation of AANHPI individuals 
                among behavioral health providers; and
                    (C) strengthening data collection in research.

SEC. 4. NATIONAL ASIAN AMERICAN, NATIVE HAWAIIAN, AND PACIFIC ISLANDER 
              BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL HEALTH OUTREACH AND EDUCATION 
              STRATEGY.

    Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290dd 
et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following new section:

``SEC. 553. NATIONAL AANHPI BEHAVIORAL AND MENTAL HEALTH OUTREACH AND 
              EDUCATION STRATEGY.

    ``(a) In General.--The Secretary, acting through the Assistant 
Secretary, shall, in coordination with the Deputy Assistant Secretary 
for Minority Health and the Director of the National Institute on 
Minority Health and Health Disparities and in consultation with 
advocacy and behavioral and mental health organizations serving 
populations of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander 
individuals or communities, develop and implement a national outreach 
and education strategy to promote behavioral and mental health and 
reduce stigma associated with mental health conditions and substance 
use disorder within the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific 
Islander population. Such strategy shall--
            ``(1) be designed to meet the diverse cultural and language 
        needs of the various Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and 
        Pacific Islander subpopulations;
            ``(2) be developmentally and age-appropriate;
            ``(3) increase awareness of symptoms of mental illnesses 
        common among such subpopulations, taking into account 
        differences within subgroups such as gender, gender identity, 
        age, sexual orientation, or ethnicity;
            ``(4) provide information on evidence-based, culturally and 
        linguistically appropriate and adapted interventions and 
        treatments;
            ``(5) ensure full participation of, and engage, both 
        consumers and community members in the development and 
        implementation of materials; and
            ``(6) seek to broaden the perspective among both 
        individuals in Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific 
        Islander communities and stakeholders serving such communities 
        to use a comprehensive public health approach to promoting 
        behavioral and mental health that addresses a holistic view of 
        health by focusing on the intersection between behavioral and 
        mental health and physical health.
    ``(b) Reports.--Beginning not later than one year after the date of 
enactment of the Stop Mental Health Stigma in Our Communities Act, and 
annually thereafter, the Secretary, acting through the Assistant 
Secretary, shall submit to the Congress, and make publicly available, a 
report on the extent to which the strategy under subsection (a) 
improved behavioral and mental health outcomes associated with mental 
health conditions and substance use disorders within the Asian 
American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander population.
    ``(c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section $3,000,000 for each of fiscal 
years 2024 through 2028.''.

SEC. 5. STUDY AND REPORT ON THE AANHPI YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS.

    (a) Study.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the 
        Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, in 
        coordination with the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority 
        Health and the Director of the National Institute on Minority 
        Health and Health Disparities, shall conduct a study on mental 
        health among AANHPI youth.
            (2) Elements.--The study required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include assessment of--
                    (A) the prevalence of mental health conditions and 
                substance use disorders among AANHPI youth;
                    (B) AANHPI youth who attempted suicide or died by 
                suicide or substance use overdose; and
                    (C) AANHPI youth who received treatment for a 
                mental health condition or substance use disorder.
    (b) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, and make publicly 
available, a report on the findings of the study conducted under 
subsection (a), including--
            (1) identification of the barriers to behavioral and mental 
        health services that are faced by AANHPI youth;
            (2) identification of root causes of mental health issues 
        among AANHPI youth;
            (3) recommendations for actions to be taken by the 
        Secretary to improve mental health among AANHPI youth;
            (4) recommendations for legislative or administrative 
        actions to improve mental health among AANHPI youth and reduce 
        the prevalence of AANHPI youth experiencing depression or 
        suicide; and
            (5) such other recommendations as the Secretary determines 
        appropriate.
    (c) Data.--Any data included in the study or report under this 
section shall be disaggregated by race, ethnicity, age, sex, gender 
identity, sexual orientation, geographic region, disability status, and 
other relevant factors.
    (d) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there is authorized to be appropriated $1,500,000 for fiscal year 2024.

SEC. 6. STUDY AND REPORT ON STRATEGIES ON THE AANHPI BEHAVIORAL AND 
              MENTAL HEALTH WORKFORCE SHORTAGE.

    (a) Study.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary, acting through the 
        Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use, in 
        coordination with the Secretary of Labor and the Deputy 
        Assistant Secretary for Minority Health, shall conduct a study 
        on strategies for increasing the behavioral and mental health 
        professional workforce that identify as AANHPI.
            (2) Elements.--The study required by paragraph (1) shall 
        include--
                    (A) the total number of licensed behavioral and 
                mental health providers in the United States who 
                identify as AANHPI;
                    (B) information regarding each such provider's 
                current type of license, geographic area of practice, 
                and type of employer (such as a hospital, a Federally 
                qualified health center, a school, or private 
                practice); and
                    (C) information regarding the cultural and 
                linguistic capabilities of such providers, including 
                languages spoken proficiently.
    (b) Report.--Not later than one year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Health, 
Education, Labor, and Pensions of the Senate and the Committee on 
Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives, and make publicly 
available, a report on the findings of the study under subsection (a), 
including--
            (1) identification of AANHPI licensed behavioral and mental 
        health care providers' knowledge and awareness of the barriers 
        to high-quality behavioral and mental health care services 
        faced by AANHPI individuals, including stigma, limited English 
        proficiency, and lack of health insurance coverage;
            (2) recommendations for actions to be taken by the 
        Secretary to increase the number of AANHPI licensed behavioral 
        and mental health professionals;
            (3) recommendations for legislative or administrative 
        action to improve the enrollment of AANHPI individuals in 
        behavioral and mental health professional education programs; 
        and
            (4) such other recommendations as the Secretary determines 
        appropriate.
    (c) Data.--Any data included in the study or report under this 
section shall be disaggregated by race, ethnicity, age, sex, gender 
identity, sexual orientation, geographic region, disability status, and 
other relevant factors.
    (d) Definition.--In this section, the term ``licensed behavioral 
and mental health provider'' means any individual licensed to provide 
mental health and substance use disorder services, such as in the 
professions of social work, psychology, psychiatry, marriage and family 
therapy, mental health counseling, and substance use disorder 
counseling.
    (e) Authorization of Appropriations.--To carry out this section, 
there is authorized to be appropriated $1,500,000 for fiscal year 2024.
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