S. 1062 — Suicide Prevention Act

This section establishes a new syndromic surveillance program for self-harm behaviors (section 317W of the Public Health Service Act) under which the Secretary of Health and Human Services awards grants to state, local, tribal, and territorial public health departments to expand surveillance of self-harm, requiring grantees to share real-time data on suicides and self-harm with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Grantee data must be disaggregated by categories of nonfatal self-harm (of any intent), suicidal ideation, self-harm with/without evidence of suicidal intent, and cases where intent is unclear; grant priorities go to high-rate states or tribes and areas with high emergency department coverage; awards seek geographic distribution with attention to rural needs, high-incidence communities, service shortages, and social determinants of health; recipients must participate for at least four years; and the Secretary must provide technical assistance and integrate data into platforms such as the National Syndromic Surveillance Program (ESSENCE), National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS), or other relevant systems (without limiting privacy protections). The section further requires the Secretary to submit a report to Congress within three years of enactment evaluating federal, state, and local surveillance systems, including data findings (consistent with privacy laws), challenges, recommendations, and public health responses. The section authorizes $30 million for each of FY2026 through 2030.

This section establishes a grant program to enable hospital emergency departments to implement protocols for preventing suicide attempts after patient discharge, including screening patients for self-harm and suicide risk, providing short-term prevention services, referring patients for long-term care, and offering follow-up (authorizing $30 million annually for FY2026 through FY2030). Grantees may use funds to hire and train clinical social workers, mental and behavioral health professionals, and support staff; grants are for three years and renewable. Not later than 180 days after enactment, the Secretary of HHS must develop screening standards of practice in consultation with experts, and grantees must submit quarterly reports to the Secretary on program activities and outcomes (with the Secretary reporting to Congress two years after enactment and biennially thereafter).