Sec. 158. Coast Guard embedded behavioral health technician program
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Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commandant, in coordination with the Assistant Commandant for Health, Safety, and Work Life, shall establish and conduct a pilot program, to be known as the Coast Guard Embedded Behavioral Health Technician Program (referred to in this section as the Pilot Program ), to integrate behavioral health technicians serving at Coast Guard units for the purposes of— facilitating, at the clinic level, the provision of integrated behavioral health care for members of the Coast Guard; providing, as a force extender under the supervision of a licensed behavioral health care provider, at the clinic level— psychological assessment and diagnostic services, as appropriate; behavioral health services, as appropriate; education and training related to promoting positive behavioral health and well-being; and information and resources, including expedited referrals, to assist members of the Coast Guard in dealing with behavioral health concerns; improving resilience and mental health care among members of the Coast Guard who respond to extraordinary calls of duty, with the ultimate goals of preventing crises and addressing mental health concerns before such concerns evolve into more complex issues that require care at a military treatment facility; increasing— the number of such members served by behavioral health technicians; and the proportion of such members returning to duty after seeking behavioral health care; and positively impacting the Coast Guard in a cost-effective manner by extending behavioral health services to the workforce and improving access to care.
Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall provide the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives with a briefing regarding a plan to establish and conduct the Pilot Program. The Commandant shall select, for participation in the Pilot Program, 3 or more Coast Guard clinics that support units that have significantly high operational tempos or other force resiliency risks, as determined by the Commandant.
Under the Pilot Program, a Coast Guard health services technician with a grade of E–5 or higher, or an assigned civilian behavioral health specialist, shall be— assigned to each selected Coast Guard clinic; and located at a unit with high operational tempo. Before commencing an assignment at a Coast Guard clinic under paragraph (1), a Coast Guard health services technician shall complete behavioral health technician training and independent duty health services training. To qualify for an assignment at a Coast Guard clinic under paragraph (1), a civilian behavioral health specialist shall have at least the equivalent behavioral health training as the training required for a Coast Guard behavioral health technician under subparagraph (A).
The Commandant, in coordination with the Assistant Commandant for Health, Safety, and Work Life, shall administer the Pilot Program through the Health, Safety, and Work-Life Service Center. The Commandant shall collect and analyze data concerning the Pilot Program for purposes of— developing and sharing best practices for improving access to behavioral health care; and providing information to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives regarding the implementation of the Pilot Program and related policy issues.
Not later than 270 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commandant shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a plan for carrying out paragraph (1). Not later than September 1 of each year until the date on which the Pilot Program terminates under subsection (g), the Commandant shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a report on the Pilot Program that includes the following:
An overview of the implementation of the Pilot Program at each applicable Coast Guard clinic, including— the number of members of the Coast Guard who received services on site by a behavioral health technician assigned to such clinic; feedback from all members of the Coast Guard empaneled for their medical care under the Pilot Program; an assessment of the deployability and overall readiness of members of the applicable operational unit; and an estimate of potential costs and impacts on other Coast Guard health care services of supporting the Pilot Program at such units and clinics.
The data and analysis required under subsection (e)(1). A list and detailed description of lessons learned from the Pilot Program as of the date of on which the report is submitted. The feasibility, estimated cost, and impacts on other Coast Guard health care services of expanding the Pilot Program to all Coast Guard clinics, and a description of the personnel, fiscal, and administrative resources that would be needed for such an expansion. The Pilot Program shall terminate on September 30, 2028.