Baltic Defense and Deterrence Act This bill requires the Department of State to establish and implement an initiative to increase security and economic ties with the Baltic countries (i.e., Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania). The bill also requires the Department of Defense to establish and implement an initiative to deepen security cooperation with the Baltic countries.
9-8-8 and Parity Assistance Act of 2022 This bill modifies provisions to increase access to behavioral health services, with a focus on crisis services and the 9-8-8 telecommunication system. (The 9-8-8 system provides callers with mental health or suicide crisis support and resources through the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and is scheduled to take effect by July 16, 2022.) The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) must award grants to crisis call centers for hiring and training staff and otherwise improving operations. Further, SAMHSA must establish standards for a behavioral health crisis continuum of care that health care providers and communities may use in responding to individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis. The continuum must include emergency treatment, stabilization, and related services. Additionally, the bill (1) sets up an office within SAMHSA to coordinate behavioral health activities, (2) requires a national suicide prevention media campaign, and (3) establishes various grants. The grants include a pilot program for mobile crisis care teams that respond to behavioral health crises rather than law enforcement, a capital improvement program for certain behavioral health facilities, and a program for supporting the implementation of federal mental health parity provisions that require health insurance issuers to provide equivalent coverage for mental health services as they provide for medical and surgical services. The bill also expands certain behavioral health education and training programs to encompass education and training related to crisis management.
Strengthen Kids' Mental Health Now Act of 2022 This bill establishes several requirements to support the provision of behavioral health services under Medicaid and other programs, particularly for children. For example, the bill temporarily requires payment for pediatric mental, emotional, and behavioral health services under Medicaid to align with Medicare payments to providers. The bill provides for a 100% Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (i.e., federal matching rate) for any associated additional expenditures. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must issue guidance on how state Medicaid programs may expand the availability of telehealth services and mental, emotional, and behavioral health services. In addition, the Health Resources and Services Administration must award grants to support (1) pediatric behavioral health care integration in communities, (2) pediatric mental health and substance use disorder workforce training, and (3) the infrastructure of pediatric hospitals and rural health clinics with respect to behavioral health services.
Anna Westin Legacy Act of 2022 This bill requires the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to maintain the National Center of Excellence for Eating Disorders (NCEED). The bill specifies required activities for NCEED, including providing training for frontline health care providers and other professionals.
READ Act Reathorization [ sic ] Act of 2022 This bill reauthorizes a law that requires the implementation of a strategy to promote quality basic education in partner countries by (1) expanding access to basic education for all children, particularly marginalized children and vulnerable groups; and (2) improving the quality of basic education and learning outcomes.
9-8-8 Implementation Act of 2022 This bill modifies provisions to increase access to behavioral health services, with a focus on crisis services and the 9-8-8 telecommunication system. (The 9-8-8 system provides callers with mental health or suicide crisis support and resources through the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and is scheduled to take effect by July 16, 2022.) The bill reauthorizes through FY2027 and revises the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline program and requires a national suicide prevention media campaign. In addition, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) must establish standards for a behavioral health crisis continuum of care that health care providers and communities may use in responding to individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis. The continuum must include emergency treatment, stabilization, and related services. The bill expands Medicaid and other insurance coverage for such services. The bill further expands Medicaid coverage for behavioral health services. This includes permanently allowing coverage of certain community-based mobile crisis services and exempting some short-term stabilization services from coverage restrictions that apply to institutions for mental diseases. Additionally, the bill establishes (1) an office within SAMHSA to coordinate behavioral health activities; and (2) various grants, including a pilot program for mobile crisis care teams that respond to behavioral health crises rather than law enforcement and a capital improvement program for certain behavioral health facilities. The bill also reauthorizes through FY2027 and expands certain workforce programs for behavioral health providers. It also addresses training for emergency services dispatchers and coordination of the 9-1-1 system with the 9-8-8 system.
Military Spouse Hiring Act This bill expands the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) to include the hiring of a qualified military spouse. (The WOTC permits employers who hire individuals who are members of a targeted group such as qualified veterans, ex-felons, or long-term unemployment recipients to claim a tax credit equal to a portion of the wages paid to those individuals.) A qualified military spouse is any individual who is certified by the designated local agency as being (as of the hiring date) a spouse of a member of the Armed Forces.
This resolution expresses that the House of Representatives condemns the continued use of unlawful and indiscriminate violence against civilian populations by Russia, its allies, and any other parties to the military invasion of Ukraine by Russia; urges that the global community hold Vladimir Putin and the Russian government accountable for war crimes committed during the invasion of Ukraine; urges the United States and its allies to continue providing defense security assistance and humanitarian aid to Ukraine as Ukrainians defend themselves against Russia's invasion of their country; supports the continued use of sanctions against Russia and its allies until Russia ends its invasion of Ukraine and recognizes Ukraine's internationally recognized borders and political independence; and stands in solidarity with the people of Ukraine who are fighting for their freedom and democracy.
This resolution expresses that the House of Representatives declares its gratitude on behalf of the people of the United States to the journalists and news staff who continue to put themselves in harm's way to report on the humanitarian crisis and ongoing war on the ground in Ukraine following Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine; and honors the contributions of journalists and news staff reporting from the war in Ukraine as essential in the ongoing struggle for the rights of a free press and free speech internationally, pivotal in pushing back against false propaganda by tyrants, and crucial to informing Americans and the world of the horrors being wrought against the Ukrainian people.
Elizabeth Dole Home and Community Based Services for Veterans and Caregivers Act of 2022 or the Elizabeth Dole Home Care Act This bill addresses home care and caregiver programs for veterans.
Into the Light for Maternal Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders Act of 2022 or the Into the Light for MMH and SUD Act of 2022 This bill reauthorizes through FY2028 a program that addresses maternal depression and, among other changes, expands its scope to include mental health and substance use disorders. It also requires the Department of Health and Human Services to maintain a national hotline to provide mental health and substance use disorder resources to pregnant and postpartum women and their families.
Autonomy for Disabled Veterans Act This bill increases the maximum amount authorized under the Home Improvements and Structural Alterations (HISA) grant program to $10,000 for veterans with a service-connected disability and $5,000 for those with disabilities that are not service-connected. The HISA grant program provides medically necessary improvements and structural alterations to veterans' (or service members') primary residence for specified purposes (e.g., allowing for entrance to their home). The bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to increase the dollar amount of the grant in accordance with inflation as determined by the Consumer Price Index.
