By: Van de Putte S.B. No. 898
(In the Senate - Filed February 27, 2013; March 5, 2013,
read first time and referred to Committee on Veteran Affairs and
Military Installations; April 8, 2013, reported adversely, with
favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote:
Yeas 5, Nays 0; April 8, 2013, sent to printer.)
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 898 By: Van de Putte
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the mental health program for veterans.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 1001.071, Health and Safety Code, is
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 1001.071. GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES OF DEPARTMENT
RELATED TO HEALTH CARE. The department is responsible for
administering human services programs regarding the public health,
including:
(1) implementing the state's public health care
delivery programs under the authority of the department;
(2) administering state health facilities, hospitals,
and health care systems;
(3) developing and providing health care services, as
directed by law;
(4) providing for the prevention and control of
communicable diseases;
(5) providing public education on health-related
matters, as directed by law;
(6) compiling and reporting health-related
information, as directed by law;
(7) acting as the lead agency for implementation of
state policies regarding the human immunodeficiency virus and
acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and administering programs
related to the human immunodeficiency virus and acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome;
(8) investigating the causes of injuries and methods
of prevention;
(9) administering a grant program to provide
appropriated money to counties, municipalities, public health
districts, and other political subdivisions for their use to
provide or pay for essential public health services;
(10) administering the registration of vital
statistics;
(11) licensing, inspecting, and enforcing regulations
regarding health facilities, other than long-term care facilities
regulated by the Department of Aging and Disability Services;
(12) implementing established standards and
procedures for the management and control of sanitation and for
health protection measures;
(13) enforcing regulations regarding radioactive
materials;
(14) enforcing regulations regarding food, bottled
and vended drinking water, drugs, cosmetics, and health devices;
(15) enforcing regulations regarding food service
establishments, retail food stores, mobile food units, and roadside
food vendors; [and]
(16) enforcing regulations controlling hazardous
substances in households and workplaces; and
(17) implementing a mental health program for
veterans.
SECTION 2. Chapter 1001, Health and Safety Code, is amended
by adding Subchapter H to read as follows:
SUBCHAPTER H. MENTAL HEALTH PROGRAM FOR VETERANS
Sec. 1001.201. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
(1) "Peer" means a person who is a veteran or a
veteran's family member.
(2) "Veteran" means a person who has served in:
(A) the army, navy, air force, coast guard, or
marine corps of the United States;
(B) the state military forces as defined by
Section 431.001, Government Code; or
(C) an auxiliary service of one of those branches
of the armed forces.
(3) "Volunteer coordinator" means a person who
recruits and retains veterans, peers, and volunteers to participate
in the mental health program for veterans and related activities.
Sec. 1001.202. GENERAL POWERS AND DUTIES. (a) The
department shall develop a mental health intervention program for
veterans. The program must include:
(1) peer-to-peer counseling;
(2) access to licensed mental health professionals for
volunteer coordinators and peers;
(3) training approved by the department for peers;
(4) technical assistance for volunteer coordinators
and peers;
(5) grants to regional and local organizations
providing services under this subchapter;
(6) recruitment, retention, and screening of
community-based therapists;
(7) suicide prevention training for volunteer
coordinators and peers; and
(8) veteran jail diversion services, including
veterans courts.
(b) The department shall solicit and ensure that
specialized training is provided to persons who are peers and who
want to provide peer-to-peer counseling or other peer-to-peer
services under the program.
(c) The department may adopt rules necessary to implement
this subchapter.
Sec. 1001.203. GRANTS. (a) The department shall establish
a grant program through which the department may award grants to
regional and local organizations for the delivery of programs or
services described by this subchapter.
(b) A grant awarded under this section must:
(1) emphasize direct services to veterans provided by
peers;
(2) leverage additional local resources to provide
funding for programs or services for veterans; and
(3) increase the capacity of the mental health program
for veterans.
(c) A grant awarded under this section may not be used to
supplant existing expenditures associated with programs or
services within the department.
Sec. 1001.204. ANNUAL REPORT. Not later than December 1 of
each year, the department shall submit a report to the governor and
the legislature that includes:
(1) the number of veterans who received services
through the mental health program for veterans;
(2) the number of peers and volunteer coordinators
trained;
(3) a summary of the grants awarded and services
provided through those grants;
(4) an evaluation of the services provided under this
subchapter; and
(5) recommendations for program improvements.
SECTION 3. Section 1001.076, Health and Safety Code, is
repealed.
SECTION 4. Not later than January 1, 2014, the Department of
State Health Services shall modify the mental health intervention
program for veterans as required by Subchapter H, Chapter 1001,
Health and Safety Code, as added by this Act.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.
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