Trio of newly introduced bills align with recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month

While Congress and the White House struggle with raising the debt ceiling and getting the appropriations process back on track, legislation continues to be introduced in both the House and Senate. Beginning in late April, a trio of bills have been introduced that provide critical supports for mental wellbeing and could benefit the work of local afterschool and summer learning providers in supporting young people:

RISE from Trauma Act - The bipartisan RISE (Resilience Investment, Support, and Expansion) from Trauma Act was re-introduced on May 3 by Sens. Durbin (D-Ill.), Capito (R-W.Va.), Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Murkowski (R-Alaska). The bill is being introduced as nearly identical to the previous version and would expand the trauma-informed workforce in schools and afterschool, health care settings, social services, first responders, and the justice system, and increase resources for communities to address the impact of trauma. Specifically, the bill: 

• Creates a new, $600 million HHS grant program to fund community-based coalitions that coordinate stakeholders and deliver targeted local services to address trauma;
• Creates a new HHS grant program to support hospital-based trauma interventions, such as for patients that suffer violent injuries, to address mental health needs, prevent re-injury, and improve long-term outcomes; 
• Increases funding for the National Health Service Corps loan repayment program, in order to recruit more mental health clinicians—including from under-represented populations—to serve in schools;
• Enhances federal training programs at HHS, the U.S. Department of Justice, and the U.S. Department of Education to provide more tools for early childhood clinicians, teachers, school leaders, first responders, and community leaders; and
• Reauthorizes four critical federal programs passed in 2018: the Interagency Task Force on Trauma-Informed Care, National Child Traumatic Stress Network, the CDC’s ACEs Data Collection program, and SAMHSA’s Trauma Support in Schools grant program. In Fiscal Year 2023, these four programs received $117 million in federal funding to support trauma research, training, coordination, and mental health services, a $20 million increase from the prior year. 

Bruce’s Law – On April 25, Sen. Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Rep. Trone (D-Md.) reintroduced the bipartisan Bruce’s Law (S.1325/HR 2867), which seeks to facilitate government cooperation and public awareness about the dangers of fentanyl, while allocating additional funding to community organizations and coalitions. This bill focuses on promoting substance use awareness among school-aged children and youth to address the rise in use and fatalities impacting young people. The bill aims to address the rise in fentanyl use and the incidence of fatalities impacting young people like Bruce Snodgrass of Anchorage, who tragically passed away in 2021 at the age of 22 from fentanyl poisoning, by:

• Authorizing an interagency public awareness campaign led by the HHS Secretary on synthetic opioids and substance use.
• Establishing a federal interagency working group under the HHS Secretary to review federal efforts to reduce synthetic opioid overdoses and establish recommendations on youth-targeted education.
• Creating new Community-Based Coalition Enhancement Grants focused on youth-based prevention efforts. This program would allow Drug-Free Communities Coalitions to access new funding specifically to focus on the dangers of drugs containing synthetic opioids. 

Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act – On May 4, the bipartisan “Community Mental Wellness and Resilience Act of 2023” (CMWRA – HR 3073) was introduced in the House by co-sponsors Reps. Paul Tonko (D-N.Y.), Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Pa.), Don Bacon (R-Neb.), Mary Peltola (D-Alaska) and Kathy Castor (D-Fla.), and by Sens. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) in the Senate. The bill includes the following provisions:

• Establish a competitive grant program at the CDC to create, operate, or expand community-based programs that use a public health approach to build mental wellness and resilience
• Utilize programs that work to enhance the capacity of all residents for mental wellness and resilience to prevent and heal mental health problems generated by disasters and toxic stresses
  • Incorporate a set-aside to help address rural mental health disparities
• Encourage community initiatives to build their own developmental and culturally appropriate strategies to enhance and sustain population-level mental wellness and resilience, with specific attention to high-risk individuals

With the nation struggling to help support young people’s mental wellbeing, it’s clear that we must think beyond the traditional approaches and embrace a broader set of partners who can help youth navigate the challenges they are facing. Afterschool and summer learning programs are linked with protective factors for young people, including access to caring adults; a safe and supportive environment; opportunities to build problem solving, decision making, and interpersonal skills; and enhanced feelings of belonging and connectedness – key factors that can positively promote one’s health and well-being. It’s good to see Congress recognizing the role that afterschool and summer programs, and other community partners, can play in supporting the healthy development of young people.