[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 186 (Monday, December 16, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H7164-H7166]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
REAUTHORIZATION OF THE SOAR TO HEALTH AND WELLNESS TRAINING PROGRAM
Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 7224) to amend the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize
the Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond to Health and Wellness Training
Program.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 7224
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. REAUTHORIZATION OF THE SOAR TO HEALTH AND WELLNESS
TRAINING PROGRAM.
Section 1254(h) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C.
300d-54(h)) is amended by striking ``fiscal years 2020
through 2024'' and inserting ``fiscal years 2025 through
2029''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Indiana (Mr. Bucshon) and the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Castor)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Indiana.
General Leave
Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks
and include extraneous material in the Record on the bill.
[[Page H7165]]
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Indiana?
There was no objection.
Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7224, a bill to amend the
Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the Stop, Observe, Ask, and
Respond to Health and Wellness Training Program led by Representatives
Wagner and Cohen.
Individuals who have experienced human trafficking will often
encounter a healthcare or social service provider during or after their
exploitation. The Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond, or SOAR, to Health
and Wellness Training Program was signed into law in 2018 to help local
healthcare professionals receive essential training to identify and
care for victims of human trafficking.
Reauthorizing this program will maintain a vital source of support
for victims of human trafficking by ensuring communities have the
resources available to provide appropriate services.
Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support this bill, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of H.R. 7224, a bill to amend
the Public Health Service Act to reauthorize the Stop, Observe, Ask,
and Respond to Health and Wellness Training Program.
This bipartisan legislation, introduced by Representative Cohen,
would reauthorize the program administered by the Administration of
Children and Families that trains healthcare and social service
providers on human trafficking.
The SOAR program is designed to educate healthcare providers, social
workers, public health professionals, and behavioral health
professionals on how to identify and respond appropriately to
individuals who either have experienced trafficking or are at risk of
it.
This training is targeted at physicians, pharmacists, nurses,
dentists, psychologists, social workers and case managers, school
counselors, public health professionals, and allied health
professionals, as well.
Human trafficking impacts thousands of people in the United States.
According to the Harvard Medical School Center for Primary Care, over
88 percent of human-trafficking victims seek medical care in various
health settings. Ensuring that our health professionals who serve on
the front lines of providing medical care for human-trafficking victims
are appropriately trained and supported is essential.
In 2019, the original SOAR to Health and Wellness Act was signed into
law, which established the SOAR to Health and Wellness Training
Program. This program helps healthcare settings create a plan for
treating human-trafficking victims and support victim recovery.
Since the establishment, over 90 percent of providers who received
SOAR training reported high or very high confidence in identifying and
responding to human trafficking.
With the passage of the reauthorization bill, we can continue to fund
this important training initiative, as well as encourage collaboration
between healthcare providers and law enforcement and social service
providers in the fight against human trafficking.
I thank Representative Cohen for his leadership on this legislation,
as well as Dr. Bucshon and my colleagues on the Energy and Commerce
Committee for working with us to bring this to the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' to
continue a well-rounded national effort to combat human trafficking,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from
Georgia (Mr. Carter).
Mr. CARTER of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for
yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 7224, which reauthorizes
the Stop, Observe, Ask, and Respond to Health and Wellness Act. I am
proud to co-lead this important bill with the gentleman from Tennessee
(Mr. Cohen), and I thank him for his work.
Mr. Speaker, this bill provides healthcare professionals with
training on how to identify and appropriately treat victims of human
trafficking. Every 2 minutes, a child in the United States falls into
the human-trafficking ring.
In 2023, nearly 10,000 cases were reported to the National Human
Trafficking Hotline, with over 600 of those occurring in Georgia. At
some point during their captivity, many of these victims will come into
contact with healthcare professionals. A doctor's visit or an emergency
department trip can offer a critical point of intervention for victims
and a brief chance when a victim may be able to detach from
traffickers.
This legislation will teach healthcare professionals how to properly
identify and respond to victims of human trafficking. That is why I
applaud Representative Cohen for introducing this bill, and I urge my
colleagues to support it.
Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Cohen), the sponsor of
this legislation.
Mr. COHEN. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the recognition and the
cosponsorship and support.
Mr. Speaker, this bill came from a meeting I had in Memphis with
nurses at the University of Tennessee. They were discussing human
trafficking and ways that victims could be identified, and the idea
came to fruition through the work of the University of Tennessee
Nursing School.
Human traffickers exploit tens of thousands of people in the United
States. When we talk about human trafficking here, we are basically
talking about sexual trafficking. I mean, the trafficking of workers,
the trafficking in a variety of occupations, but these are women who
are trafficked for sex.
The actual number is difficult to determine, but it is one of the
reasons we introduced the SOAR Act several years ago. I am pleased it
passed, and it has done much good.
It has shown that, when nurses are trained, they can identify victims
of sexual trafficking. Oftentimes they end up in health facilities
because they get beaten by the people who put them into this position.
They have wounds, and they have to come to emergency rooms. The nurses
are there to observe. If they are trained, they are the initial source.
They can then get these women out of the human trafficking and prevent
this scourge on human society.
This bill expanded the training program under the Department of
Health and Human Services to train these workers, health and social
service providers, to identify potential human-trafficking victims,
work with law enforcement to report and facilitate the communication
with such victims, refer victims to social or victim service agencies
and organizations, and provide victims with coordinated care tailored
to their circumstances.
The program has been successful. In September 2017 and September
2023, the Office of Trafficking in Persons hosted 222 events through
which they trained over 263,000 healthcare professionals. After
receiving the training, 91.4 percent of the participants indicated they
had high or very high confidence in their ability to identify and
respond to human trafficking.
The SOAR to Health and Wellness Program has made tremendous strides
to train healthcare professionals on the signs of human trafficking and
the appropriate steps to be taken once they identify the victim.
As Members of Congress, we should continue to support this program so
that more people could be trained to properly identify and assist
victims of human trafficking. Pass the reauthorization bill here, and
let our constituents know that, if they are being trafficked or are
suspicious that someone they know is being trafficked, help is
available.
The Homeland Security Investigations Tip Line is 866-347-2423, and
the National Human Trafficking Hotline is 888-373-7888.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill to reauthorize
the SOAR Act, and I thank the committee ranking member and the
committee chair for bringing the bill to the floor.
Ms. CASTOR of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I encourage all of my colleagues
to vote in favor of H.R. 7224, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. BUCSHON. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I encourage a ``yes'' vote on
this
[[Page H7166]]
bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Bucshon) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 7224.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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