“A bill to reauthorize the Traumatic Brain Injury program.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section revises the prevention of traumatic brain injury program (i.e., CDC grants and activities to monitor incidence and prevalence of TBI, support prevention research, and develop guidelines) by (1) adding prevalence to incidence tracking; (2) expanding purposes to include reduction of associated injuries and fatalities, related risk factors, higher-risk populations (e.g., due to occupational or circumstantial factors), causes and risk factors for TBI, and related mental health conditions; (3) extending a reporting deadline on strategic plans and progress to 2030 (from 2020); and (4) requiring coordination with other relevant federal departments and agencies. This section renames and expands the national traumatic brain injury surveillance program (42 U.S.C. 280b-1d) as the Bill Pascrell, Jr., national program for traumatic brain injury surveillance and registries; strikes the prior subsection (b) on state data systems; enhances data collection to identify higher-risk populations, causes and risk factors for TBI, occupation-related injuries, and short- and long-term outcomes and related disability; requires support for evidence-based practices to identify and address concussion; and directs CDC to publicly post aggregated data—including on higher-risk populations and tailored prevention strategies—on its website. This section reauthorizes appropriations for TBI prevention and surveillance programs at $11 million annually for FY2026 through FY2030 (from FY2020 through FY2024).
This section revises the State Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Grant Program (42 U.S.C. 300d-52) by (1) requiring grant-funded outreach programs to consider populations at higher risk for TBI; (2) adding Tribal entities alongside states as eligible grantees; (3) requiring grantees to maintain non-Federal expenditures for grant activities at prior-year levels (with a waiver of up to 50% of matching funds if needed to enable program implementation); (4) rephrasing requirements for collaboration with professionals (such as third-party payers and schools); (5) defining "American Indian consortium" and "State" by cross-reference to 42 U.S.C. 300d-53 and providing a revised definition of "traumatic brain injury" (i.e., an acquired brain injury from trauma, anoxia, infection, toxicity, surgery, or vascular disorders, excluding congenital, degenerative, or birth-related conditions, subject to future revision by the Secretary after consultation); and (6) reauthorizing the program for FY2026 through FY2030 (from FY2020 through FY2024). The section also reauthorizes the TBI Protection and Advocacy Grant Program (42 U.S.C. 300d-53) for FY2026 through FY2030 (from FY2020 through FY2024). (As background, these programs support state planning, prevention, service delivery, and advocacy for TBI survivors, who number over 2.8 million annually in the United States.)
This section requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to submit to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, not later than two years after the date of enactment, a report containing (1) an overview of populations at higher risk for traumatic brain injury, such as individuals affected by domestic violence or sexual assault and public safety officers (as defined in 34 U.S.C. 10284); (2) an outline of existing Centers for Disease Control and Prevention surveys and activities on traumatic brain injuries and steps taken to address data collection gaps for such populations, including potential use of surveys such as the National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey; (3) an overview of outreach or education efforts for such populations; and (4) challenges associated with reaching such populations.
This section directs the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with stakeholders and other relevant federal agencies as appropriate and either directly or through a contract with a nonprofit entity, to conduct a study that (1) examines the incidence and prevalence of long-term or chronic symptoms or conditions in individuals who have experienced a traumatic brain injury; (2) examines the evidence base of research on the chronic effects of traumatic brain injury across the lifespan; (3) examines correlations between traumatic brain injury and increased risk of other conditions such as dementia and mental health conditions; (4) assesses existing services available for individuals with such symptoms or conditions; and (5) identifies gaps in research related to such symptoms or conditions. Not later than two years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary must submit a report detailing the study's findings, conclusions, and recommendations to the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce and, if the study is conducted directly by the Secretary, make the report publicly available on the Department of Health and Human Services website.