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Standard Summary
Comprehensive overview in 1-2 paragraphs
H.R. 1902, the Helping Emergency Responders Overcome Act (HERO Act), would require the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to take a multi-faceted approach to mental health for public safety personnel (police, firefighters, EMTs, and related telecommunicators). Key elements include creating a new national data system to track suicides among public safety officers, funding peer-support and wellness programs in fire departments and emergency medical services (EMS) agencies, supporting behavioral health programs for health care providers, producing educational resources for mental health professionals about treating fire/EMS personnel, and developing best-practice guidance for addressing posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and related conditions. The act also emphasizes privacy protections and public reporting of findings. If enacted, the bill could lead to more standardized data, more peer-based mental health support options, and broader training and resources aimed at reducing suicide and improving mental health among public safety workers.
Key Points
- 1Data system to track public safety officer suicide incidence (Sec. 2)
- 2- Creates the Public Safety Officer Suicide Reporting System to collect national data on suicides and rates, disaggregated by age, gender, state, occupation, status (volunteer, paid-on-call, career), and active/retired status.
- 3- Plans to integrate into the National Violent Death Reporting System if compatible.
- 4- Requires annual (and biannual) Congress reports with detailed statistics, contributing factors, intervention options, and confidentiality safeguards; reports must be publicly posted on the CDC website.
- 5- Includes strong privacy protections to protect families and to ensure data cannot be used to deny benefits; defines who counts as a “public safety officer” for the purposes of the system.
- 6- Prohibits using the data to deny life insurance or survivor benefits.
- 7Peer-support behavioral health and wellness programs in fire/EMS (Sec. 3)
- 8- Grants to eligible entities to establish or enhance peer-support programs, where trained peer counselors (career and/or volunteer) assist colleagues.
- 9- Training for members to serve as peer counselors; provision of training materials and dissemination of program information.
- 10- Eligible entities are nonprofit organizations with expertise in firefighter/EMS health and life safety.
- 11Health care provider behavioral health and wellness programs (Sec. 4)
- 12- Grants to eligible health care facilities (hospitals, FQHCs, etc.) to offer confidential support services, peer counseling, and related training and materials for health care providers dealing with stressful or traumatic patient events.
- 13Resources to educate mental health professionals about treating fire/EMS personnel (Sec. 5)
- 14- The U.S. Fire Administration, with HHS, will develop publicly available resources about the culture, stressors, and treatment options for firefighters and EMS personnel, including challenges faced by retirees.
- 15- Consultation with national fire/EMS organizations in development.
- 16Best practices and other PTSD resources for public safety officers (Sec. 6)
- 17- HHS (Secretary) will develop and periodically update evidence-based best practices and resources for identifying, preventing, and treating PTSD and co-occurring disorders in public safety officers.
- 18- Requires consultation with public health and mental health experts and relevant national associations; make these practices available to federal, state, and local agencies and incorporate them into federal training programs for public safety officers.
Impact Areas
Primary group/area affected- Public safety officers (police, firefighters, EMS personnel) and their families, including those who are volunteers, paid-on-call, or career, as well as public safety telecommunicators.Secondary group/area affected- Fire and EMS departments and agencies (at federal, state, tribal, and local levels) and health care facilities that employ or serve public safety personnel.- Mental health professionals and organizations that treat or advise public safety personnel.- Federal training and development programs and the agencies that administer them.Additional impacts- Researchers and public health officials who study suicide, PTSD, and occupational stress in public safety professions.- Potential funding shifts toward mental health services and wellness programs within public safety and health care settings.- Increased emphasis on privacy protections and safeguards around sensitive data related to suicide and mental health.“Public safety officer” includes traditional police, firefighters, and EMS personnel, and also public safety telecommunicators. The bill uses definitions drawn from existing U.S. law and standards to determine who falls into this category.The National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) is a national data system that collects information about violent deaths; the HERO Act envisions integrating the new data system with NVDRS if appropriate.The bill emphasizes privacy and confidentiality to protect families and ensure data cannot be used to withhold benefits.Many provisions authorize grants to eligible entities (typically nonprofits or healthcare facilities) rather than creating direct federal employment programs.
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