[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 200 (Wednesday, December 19, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7945-S7946]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 4173. Mr. BOOZMAN (for Mr. Alexander) proposed an amendment to the
bill H.R. 767, to establish the Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond to
Health and Wellness Training pilot program to address human trafficking
in the health care system; as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Stop, Observe, Ask, and
Respond to Health and Wellness Act of 2018'' or the ``SOAR to
Health and Wellness Act of 2018''.
SEC. 2. PROGRAM ESTABLISHMENT.
Part E of title XII of the Public Health Service Act (42
U.S.C. 300d-51 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``SEC. 1254. STOP, OBSERVE, ASK, AND RESPOND TO HEALTH AND
WELLNESS TRAINING PROGRAM.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish a program
to be known as the Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond to Health
and Wellness Training Program or the SOAR to Health and
Wellness Training Program (in this section referred to as the
`Program') to provide training to health care and social
service providers on human trafficking in accordance with
this section.
``(b) Activities.--
``(1) In general.--The Program shall include the Stop,
Observe, Ask, and Respond to Health and Wellness Training
Program's activities existing on the day before the date of
enactment of this section and the authorized initiatives
described in paragraph (2).
``(2) Authorized initiatives.--The authorized initiatives
of the Program shall include--
``(A) engaging stakeholders, including victims of human
trafficking and Federal, State, local, and tribal partners,
to develop a flexible training module--
``(i) for supporting activities under subsection (c); and
``(ii) that adapts to changing needs, settings, health care
providers, and social service providers;
``(B) providing technical assistance to grantees related to
implementing activities described in subsection (c) and
reporting on any best practices identified by the grantees;
``(C) developing a reliable methodology for collecting
data, and reporting such data, on the number of human
trafficking victims identified and served by grantees in a
manner that, at a minimum, prevents disclosure of
individually identifiable information consistent with all
applicable privacy laws and regulations; and
``(D) integrating, as appropriate, the training described
in paragraphs (1) through (4) of subsection (c) with training
programs, in effect on the date of enactment of this section,
for health care and social service providers for victims of
intimate partner violence, sexual assault, stalking, child
abuse, child neglect, child maltreatment, and child sexual
exploitation.
``(c) Grants.--The Secretary may award grants to
appropriate entities to train health care and social service
providers to--
``(1) identify potential human trafficking victims;
``(2) implement best practices for working with law
enforcement to report and facilitate communication with human
trafficking victims, in accordance with all applicable
Federal, State, local, and tribal laws, including legal
confidentiality requirements for patients and health care and
social service providers;
``(3) implement best practices for referring such victims
to appropriate health care, social, or victims service
agencies or organizations; and
``(4) provide such victims with coordinated, age-
appropriate, culturally relevant, trauma-informed, patient-
centered, and evidence-based care.
``(d) Consideration in Awarding Grants.--The Secretary, in
making awards under this section, shall give consideration
to--
``(1) geography;
``(2) the demographics of the population to be served;
``(3) the predominant types of human trafficking cases
involved; and
``(4) health care and social service provider profiles.
``(e) Data Collection and Reporting.--
``(1) In general.--The Secretary shall collect data and
report on the following:
``(A) The total number of entities that received a grant
under this section.
``(B) The total number and geographic distribution of
health care and social service providers trained through the
Program.
[[Page S7946]]
``(2) Initial report.--In addition to the data required to
be collected under paragraph (1), for purposes of the initial
report to be submitted under paragraph (3), the Secretary
shall collect data on the total number of facilities and
health care professional organizations that were operating
under, and the total number of health care and social service
providers trained through, the Stop, Observe, Ask, and
Respond to Health and Wellness Training Program existing
prior to the establishment of the Program under this section.
``(3) Annual report.--Not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, the
Secretary shall submit an annual report to Congress on the
data collected under this subsection in a manner that, at a
minimum, prevents the disclosure of individually identifiable
information consistent with all applicable privacy laws and
regulations.
``(f) Sharing Best Practices.--The Secretary shall make
available, on the Internet website of the Department of
Health and Human Services, a description of the best
practices and procedures used by entities that receive a
grant for carrying out activities under this section.
``(g) Definition.--In this section, the term `human
trafficking' has the meaning given the term `severe forms of
trafficking in persons' as defined in section 103 of the
Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000.
``(h) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized
to be appropriated to carry out this Act, $4,000,000 for each
of fiscal years 2020 through 2024.''.
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