This Act may be cited as the “Pursuing Equity in Mental Health Act”.

The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.

Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290dd et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

Not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the National Institutes of Health shall enter into an arrangement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (or, if the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine decline to enter into such an arrangement, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, or another appropriate entity)—

(1) to conduct a study with respect to mental health disparities in racial and ethnic minority groups (as defined in section 1707(g) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u–6(g))); and

(2) to submit to the Congress a report on the results of such study, including—

(A) a compilation of information on the dynamics of mental disorders in such racial and ethnic minority groups; and

(B) a compilation of information on the impact of exposure to community violence, adverse childhood experiences, structural racism, and other psychological traumas on mental disorders in such racial and minority groups.

(a) In general.—The Secretary of Health and Human Services shall award grants to qualified national organizations for the purposes of—

(1) developing, and disseminating to health professional educational programs best practices or core competencies addressing mental health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups for use in the training of students in the professions of social work, psychology, psychiatry, marriage and family therapy, mental health counseling, and substance misuse counseling; and

(2) certifying community health workers and peer wellness specialists with respect to such best practices and core competencies and integrating and expanding the use of such workers and specialists into health care to address mental health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups.

(b) Best practices; core competencies.—Organizations receiving funds under subsection (a) may use the funds to engage in the following activities related to the development and dissemination of best practices or core competencies described in subsection (a)(1):

(1) Formation of committees or working groups comprised of experts from accredited health professions schools to identify best practices and core competencies relating to mental health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups.

(2) Planning of workshops in national fora to allow for public input into the educational needs associated with mental health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups.

(3) Dissemination and promotion of the use of best practices or core competencies in undergraduate and graduate health professions training programs nationwide.

(4) Establishing external stakeholder advisory boards to provide meaningful input into policy and program development and best practices to reduce mental health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups.

(c) Definitions.—In this section:

(1) QUALIFIED NATIONAL ORGANIZATION.—The term “qualified national organization” means a national organization that focuses on the education of students in one or more of the professions of social work, psychology, psychiatry, marriage and family therapy, mental health counseling, and substance misuse counseling.

(2) RACIAL AND ETHNIC MINORITY GROUP.—The term “racial and ethnic minority group” has the meaning given to such term in section 1707(g) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 300u–6(g)).

Part D of title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290dd et seq.), as amended by section 101, is further amended by adding at the end the following new section:

(a) In general.—In addition to amounts otherwise authorized to be appropriated to the National Institutes of Health, there is authorized to be appropriated to such Institutes $100,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025 to build relations with communities and conduct or support clinical research, including clinical research on racial or ethnic disparities in physical and mental health.

(b) Definition.—In this section, the term “clinical research” has the meaning given to such term in section 409 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 284d).

In addition to amounts otherwise authorized to be appropriated to the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, there is authorized to be appropriated to such Institute $650,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025.

Section 597(c) of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 297ll(c)) is amended by striking “$12,669,000 for each of fiscal years 2018 through 2022” and inserting “$25,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2025”.

(a) In general.—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall conduct or support research on—

(1) smartphone and social media use by adolescents; and

(2) the effects of such use on—

(A) emotional, behavioral, and physical health and development; and

(B) disparities in minority and underserved populations.

(b) Report.—Not later than 5 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Congress, and make publicly available, a report on the findings of research described in this section.

Title V of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 290aa et seq.) is amended—

(1) by redesignating the second section 550 (42 U.S.C. 290ee–10) (relating to Sobriety Treatment And Recovery Teams) as section 553; and

(2) by moving such section, as so redesignated, so as to appear after section 552 (42 U.S.C. 290ee–7).