“A bill to establish the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Program, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section establishes the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Program within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) office overseen by the Chief Medical Officer to provide a comprehensive approach to the mental health and wellness of DHS law enforcement agents and officers in specified components (i.e., U.S. Customs and Border Protection, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, DHS Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Secret Service, Transportation Security Administration, and other components with law enforcement officers or agents). The program requires DHS to (1) develop policies and standard operating procedures; (2) collect and research data on mental health, suicides, and attempted suicides in compliance with the Privacy Act, Rehabilitation Act (§501, 29 U.S.C. 791), and other laws; (3) track trends and practices; (4) evaluate existing programs; (5) promote education, training, and awareness on mental health, resilience, and suicide prevention; (6) form partnerships with organizations for support services; (7) create a Peer-to-Peer Support Program Advisory Council to evaluate, improve, and network peer support across components; (8) develop suicide prevention and resiliency programs for families of law enforcement personnel and surviving families; (9) implement new policies based on findings; and (10) conduct outreach on resources. The program prohibits publication or compelled disclosure of personally identifiable information, limits its use to program implementation, and subjects data to applicable nondisclosure requirements; the DHS Workplace Health and Wellness Coordinator, under the Chief Medical Officer, manages the program.