Sec. 101. Assistant Secretary for mental health and substance use disorders
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There shall be in the Department of Health and Human Services an official to be known as the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders, who shall— report directly to the Secretary; be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate; and be selected from among individuals who— have a doctoral degree in medicine or osteopathic medicine; have clinical, research, and policy experience in psychiatry; graduated from an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education-accredited psychiatric residency program; and have an understanding of biological, psychosocial, and pharmaceutical treatments of mental illness and substance use disorders; have a doctoral degree in psychology and— clinical, research, and policy experience regarding mental illness and substance use disorders; have completed an internship with an organization that is a member of the Association of Psychology Post-doctoral and Internship Centers as part of doctoral degree completion; and an understanding of biological, psychosocial, and pharmaceutical treatments of mental illness and substance use disorders; or have a doctoral degree in social work and— clinical, research, and policy experience regarding mental illness and substance use disorders; and an understanding of biological, psychosocial, and pharmaceutical treatments of mental illness and substance use disorders.
Section 501(c)(1) of the Public Health Service Act ( 42 U.S.C. 290aa(c)(1) ) is amended by striking the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and inserting , and serve under, the Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders . The Assistant Secretary shall— promote, evaluate, organize, integrate, and coordinate research, treatment, and services across departments, agencies, organizations, and individuals with respect to the problems of individuals suffering from substance use disorders or mental illness; carry out any functions within the Department of Health and Human Services— to improve services for individuals with substance use disorders or mental illness, including services related to the prevention of, diagnosis of, intervention in, and treatment and rehabilitation of, substance use disorders or mental illness; to ensure access to effective, evidence-based diagnosis, prevention, intervention, treatment and rehabilitation for individuals with mental illnesses and individuals with a substance use disorder; to ensure that all grants with respect to serious mental illness or substance use disorders, are consistent with the grant management standards set forth by the Department, and that such grants are evidence-based, have scientific merit and avoid duplication; to develop and implement initiatives to encourage individuals to pursue careers (especially in underserved areas and populations) as psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, clinical social workers, and other licensed mental health professionals specializing in the diagnosis, evaluation, and treatment of individuals with severe mental illness; to consult, coordinate with, facilitate joint efforts among, and support State, local, and tribal governments, nongovernmental entities, and individuals with a mental illness, particularly individuals with a serious mental illness and children and adolescents with a serious emotional disturbance, with respect to improving community-based and other mental health services; to disseminate evidenced-based and promising best practices developed by the National Mental Health Policy Lab established under section 201 and other qualified research organizations that are culturally and linguistically indicated treatment and prevention services related to a mental illness, particularly individuals with a serious mental illness and children and adolescents with a serious emotional disturbance; and to develop criteria for the application of best practices within the mental health and substance use disorder service delivery system; within the Department of Health and Human Services, oversee and coordinate all programs and activities relating to— diagnosis, prevention, intervention, treatment, rehabilitation with respect to mental health or substance use disorders; parity in health insurance benefits and conditions relating to mental health and substance use disorders; or the reduction of homelessness and incarceration among individuals with mental health and substance use disorders; make recommendations to the Secretary of Health and Human Services regarding public participation in decisions relating to mental health, including serious mental illness, and serious emotional disturbances across the lifespan; review and make recommendations with respect to the Department of Health and Human Services budget to ensure the adequacy of such budget; across the Federal Government, in conjunction with the Interagency Serious Mental Illness Coordinating Committee under section 501A of the Public Health Service Act (as added by section 401)— review all programs and activities relating to the diagnosis or prevention of, or treatment or rehabilitation for, mental illness or substance use disorders; identify any such programs and activities that are duplicative; identify any such programs and activities that are not evidence-based, effective, or efficient; and formulate recommendations for expanding, coordinating, eliminating, and improving programs and activities identified pursuant to subparagraphs
(B)and
(C)and merging such programs and activities into other, successful programs and activities; identify evidence-based and promising best practices across the Federal Government for treatment and services for individuals with mental health and substance use disorders by reviewing practices for efficiency, effectiveness, quality, coordination, and cost effectiveness; and not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act and every 2 years thereafter, submit to Congress a report containing a nationwide strategy to recruit, train, and increase the mental health workforce for the treatment of individuals with mental illness, serious mental illness, substance use disorders, and co-occurring disorders. The Assistant Secretary shall ensure that the nationwide strategy in the report under subsection (c)(8) is designed— to encourage and incentivize students enrolled in an accredited medical or osteopathic school, or nursing, psychology, or social work graduate program, to specialize in the mental health field; to promote greater research-oriented psychiatric, psychological, nursing, and social work training on evidence-based service delivery models for individuals with mental illness or substance use disorders, including models with family participation; to promote appropriate Federal administrative and fiscal mechanisms that support— evidence-based collaborative care models; and the necessary mental health workforce capacity for the models under subparagraph (A), including psychiatrists, child and adolescent psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, clinical social workers, and mental health, peer-support specialists; to increase access to child and adolescent psychiatric services in order to promote early intervention for prevention and mitigation of mental illness; to identify populations and locations that are the most underserved by mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, child and adolescent psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, clinical social workers, other licensed mental health professionals, and peer-support specialists; and to identify means of alleviating the strain on the budgets of the criminal justice and correctional systems and the capacity of such systems with respect to mental health and substance use disorders. In carrying out the duties described in subsection (c), the Assistant Secretary— shall prioritize— the integration of mental health, substance use, and physical health services for the purpose of diagnosing, preventing, treating, and providing rehabilitation for mental illness or substance use disorders, including any such services provided through the justice system (including departments of correction) or entities other than the Department of Health and Human Services; the early diagnosis and intervention services for the prevention of, or crisis intervention for, and treatment or rehabilitation for, serious mental health disorders or substance use disorders, in selecting evidence-based practices and service delivery models for evaluation and dissemination under section 201(a)(2)(C); and workforce development for— appropriate treatment of serious mental illness or substance use disorders; research activities that advance scientific and clinical understandings of serious mental illness or substance use disorders; and increasing the number of mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, child and adolescent psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, clinical social workers, and mental health peer support specialists; shall give preference to models that improve the coordination, quality, and efficiency of health care services furnished to individuals with serious mental illness; and may include clinical protocols and practices used in the Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode project of the National Institute of Mental Health or similar models, such as the Specialized Treatment Early in Psychosis program.
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Sec. 101
Assistant Secretary for mental health and substance use disorders
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