[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 119 (Tuesday, July 23, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5218-S5219]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 2937. Ms. WARREN (for herself and Ms. Ernst) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed by her to the bill S. 4638, to
authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2025 for military activities
of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for
defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military
personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which
was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:
Strike section 711 and insert the following:
SEC. 711. MODIFICATIONS TO BRAIN HEALTH INITIATIVE OF
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.
Section 735 of the James M. Inhofe National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117-263;
10 U.S.C. 1071 note) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(1)--
(A) by amending subparagraph (B) to read as follows:
``(B) The identification and dissemination of thresholds
for blast exposure and overpressure safety and associated
emerging scientific evidence that--
``(i) cover brain injury and impulse noise;
``(ii) measure impact over 24-hour, 72-hour to 96-hour,
monthly, annual, and lifetime periods;
``(iii) are designed to prevent cognitive deficits after
firing;
``(iv) account for the firing of multiple types of heavy
weaponry and use of grenades in one period of time;
``(v) include minimum safe distances and levels of exposure
for observers and instructors; and
``(vi) address shoulder-fired heavy weapons.''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:
``(H) The establishment of a standardized treatment program
based on interventions that have shown benefit to individuals
with brain health issues after a brain injury and the
provision of that treatment program to individuals with brain
health issues after a brain injury resulting from a potential
brain exposure described in subparagraph (A) or high-risk
training or occupational activities described in subparagraph
(D).
``(I) The establishment of policies to encourage members of
the Armed Forces to seek support for brain health when
needed, prevent retaliation against such members who seek
care, and address other barriers to seeking help for brain
health due to the impact of blast exposure, blast
overpressure, or traumatic brain injury.
``(J) The modification of existing weapons systems to
reduce blast exposure of the individual using the weapon and
those within the minimum safe distance.'';
(2) in subsection (c), by striking ``each of fiscal years
2025 through 2029'' and inserting ``each fiscal year'';
(3) in subsection (d)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``or other remote
measurement technology'' after ``wearable sensors''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(4) Weapons use.--Monitoring activities under a pilot
program conducted pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be carried
out for any member of the Armed Forces firing tier 1 weapons
in training or combat, as identified by the Secretary of
Defense.'';
(4) by striking subsections (e) and (f);
(5) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (h); and
(6) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new
subsections:
``(e) Thresholds for Blast Exposure and Overpressure
Safety.--
``(1) Deadline.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than January 1, 2027, the
Secretary of Defense shall identify and disseminate the
thresholds for blast exposure and overpressure safety
required under subsection (b)(1)(B).
``(B) Update.--Not less frequently than once every five
years following the identification and dissemination under
subparagraph (A) of the thresholds for blast exposure and
overpressure safety required under subsection (b)(1)(B), the
Secretary of Defense shall update those thresholds.
``(2) Formal training requirement.--The Secretary of
Defense shall ensure that training on the thresholds for
blast exposure and overpressure safety is provided to members
of the Armed Forces before training, deployment, or entering
other high-risk environments where exposure to blast
overpressure is likely.
``(3) Central repository.--Not later than January 1, 2027,
the Secretary of Defense shall establish a central repository
of blast-related characteristics, such as pressure profiles
and common blast loads associated with specific systems and
the environments in which they are used.
``(4) Waivers.--
``(A) Protocols.--The Secretary of Defense may establish
and implement protocols to require waivers in cases in which
members of the Armed Forces must exceed the safety thresholds
described in subsection (b)(1)(B), which shall include a
justification for exceeding those safety thresholds.
``(B) Tracking system.--Not later than one year after
establishing protocols for waivers under subparagraph (A),
the Secretary of Defense shall establish a Department of
Defense-wide tracking system for such waivers, which shall
include data contributed by the Secretary of each military
department.
``(C) Report on waivers.--Not later than one year after
establishing protocols for waivers under subparagraph (A),
and annually thereafter for a period of five years, the
Secretary of Defense shall submit to the Committees on Armed
Services of the Senate and the House of Representatives a
report on such waivers that includes--
``(i) the number of waivers issued, disaggregated by
military department; and
``(ii) a description of actions taken by the Secretary
concerned to track the health effects on members of the Armed
Forces of exceeding safety thresholds described in subsection
(b)(1)(B), document those effects in medical records, and
provide care to those members.
``(f) Strategies for Mitigation and Prevention of Blast
Exposure and Overpressure Risk for High-risk Individuals.--
Not later than January 1, 2027, the Secretary of Defense
shall establish strategies for mitigating and preventing
blast exposure and blast overpressure risk for individuals
most at risk for exposure to high-risk training or high-risk
occupational activities, which shall include--
``(1) a timeline and process for implementing those
strategies;
``(2) a determination of the frequency with which those
strategies will be updated, which shall be not less
frequently than once every five years; and
``(3) an assessment of how information regarding those
strategies will be disseminated to such individuals,
including after those strategies are updated.
``(g) Reports on Warfighter Brain Health Initiative.--Not
later than March 31, 2025, and not less frequently than
annually thereafter for a period of five years, the Secretary
of Defense shall submit to the Committees on Armed Services
of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report that
includes the following:
``(1) A description of the activities taken under the
Initiative and resources expended under the Initiative during
the prior fiscal year.
``(2) The number of members of the Armed Forces impacted by
blast overpressure and blast exposure in the prior fiscal
year, including--
``(A) the number of members who reported adverse health
effects from blast overpressure or blast exposure;
``(B) the number of members exposed to blast overpressure
or blast exposure;
``(C) the number of members who received treatment for
injuries related to blast overpressure or blast exposure,
including at facilities of the Department of Defense and at
facilities in the private sector; and
[[Page S5219]]
``(D) the type of care that members receive from facilities
of the Department of Defense and the type of care that
members receive from facilities in the private sector.
``(3) A summary of the progress made during the prior
fiscal year with respect to the objectives of the Initiative
under subsection (b).
``(4) A description of the steps the Secretary is taking to
ensure that activities under the Initiative are being
implemented across the Department of Defense and the military
departments.''.
______