[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2077 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2077
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish the Veteran
Family Resource Program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 11, 2025
Ms. Perez (for herself and Mr. James) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish the Veteran
Family Resource Program, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Helping Heroes Act''.
SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF VETERAN FAMILY RESOURCE PROGRAM.
(a) Establishment.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall,
acting through the Under Secretary for Health and the Office of
Patient Care Services and Care Management and Social Work
Services of the Veterans Health Administration, establish a
program--
(A) to enhance the resilience, health, and well-
being of veterans by addressing social determinants of
health challenges experienced in their family units
through person-centered clinical integrations,
connections to benefits furnished by the Department of
Veterans Affairs, and community resource engagement;
and
(B) to ensure veterans and their families have
access to a continuum of services and resources needed
to support wellness within their family units as they
define the family units.
(2) Designation.--The program established pursuant to
paragraph (1) shall be known as the ``Veteran Family Resource
Program'' (in this section referred to as the ``Program'').
(b) Family Coordinators and Staffing.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary shall carry out the Program
by, not later than the date that is five years after the date
of the enactment of this Act--
(A) appointing at least one family coordinator in
each Veterans Integrated Service Network; and
(B) ensuring adequate staffing and resources to
ensure family coordinators are able to carry out their
functions and duties under the Program.
(2) Functions.--The functions of a family coordinator under
paragraph (1) are as follows:
(A) To serve at medical centers of the Department
as point persons who understand and have a good working
knowledge of--
(i) all resources that families,
caregivers, and survivors may be eligible for
under provisions of law administered by the
Secretary; and
(ii) community resources available to such
families, caregivers, and survivors when they
have needs that are not met by the resources
described in clause (i).
(B) To help veterans, their families, their
caregivers, and their survivors access and navigate the
public and private resources described in subparagraph
(A).
(3) Duties.--Each family coordinator appointed under
paragraph (1) shall, to the extent practicable--
(A) assess the needs of veterans and the family
members of veterans using evidence-based strategies;
(B) build positive relationships with veterans and
such family members;
(C) refer veterans and such family members to
local, State, Federal, and non-Department resources to
support the overall health, well-being, and treatment
goals of such veterans; and
(D) develop and maintain a list of--
(i) supportive services offered by the
Department; and
(ii) supportive services offered by non-
Department providers;
(c) Goals and Metrics.--
(1) Goals.--The goals of the Program shall be as follows:
(A) To connect veterans to family resources to
increase their well-being and resiliency.
(B) To develop internal partnerships to improve
health care furnished by the Department.
(C) To capture and maintain data to enhance
understanding of process improvement opportunities and
impact.
(D) To function as a community liaison to bolster
existing partnerships and conduct due diligence to form
new partnerships.
(2) Metrics.--The Secretary shall establish metrics for
assessment of the Program, including metrics relating to the
following:
(A) Department referrals into the Program.
(B) Non-Department referrals into the Program.
(C) Health factors.
(D) Veteran and staff satisfaction.
(d) Expansion of Program.--The Secretary may expand the Program to
additional medical centers of the Department or otherwise expand the
Program to carry out the purposes specified in subsection (a)(1) as the
Secretary determines appropriate.
(e) Report to Congress.--
(1) In general.--Not later than two years after the
commencement of the Program, the Secretary shall submit to the
appropriate committees of Congress a report on the progress of
the Program.
(2) Contents.--The report required by paragraph (1) shall
include--
(A) the number of veterans and children who
received supportive services under the Program;
(B) the demographic data of veterans and family
members in receipt of supportive services under the
Program, including--
(i) the relationship to the veteran;
(ii) age;
(iii) race;
(iv) ethnicity;
(v) gender;
(vi) disability; and
(vii) English proficiency and whether a
language other than English is spoken at home;
(C) a summary of the supportive services carried
out under the Program and the costs to the Department
of such supportive services; and
(D) an assessment, measured by a survey of
participants, of whether, and how, participation in the
Program--
(i) resulted in positive outcomes for
veterans and children; and
(ii) contributed to the overall health,
well-being, and treatment goals of the veteran.
(3) Appropriate committees of congress defined.--In this
subsection, the term ``appropriate committees of Congress''
means--
(A) the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the
Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans
Affairs, and Related Agencies of the Committee on
Appropriations of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Veterans' Affairs and the
Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans
Affairs, and Related Agencies of the Committee on
Appropriations of the House of Representatives.
(f) Supportive Services Defined.--In this section, the term
``supportive services'' means services that address the social,
emotional, and mental health, career-readiness, and other needs of
children, including--
(1) wellness services, including mental, emotional,
behavioral, and physical health;
(2) peer-support programs for children; and
(3) any other services or activities the Secretary
considers appropriate to support the needs of children.
SEC. 3. SURVEY OF DISABLED VETERANS AND THEIR FAMILIES.
(a) In General.--Not later than one year after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than once every five
years thereafter as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs determines
appropriate, the Secretary shall conduct a survey of disabled veterans
and their families to identify and better understand the needs of such
disabled veterans and their families.
(b) Content.--The survey required under subsection (a) shall
include questions with respect to--
(1) the types and quality of support disabled veterans
receive for their children; and
(2) the unmet needs of such children.
SEC. 4. NONDISCRIMINATION.
The following provisions of law shall apply to any program or
activity that receives funds provided under this Act:
(1) Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.).
(2) Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C.
2000d et seq.).
(3) Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. 794).
(4) The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C.
12101 et seq.).
(5) The Age Discrimination Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et
seq.).
(6) Any other Federal law prohibiting discrimination under
an applicable program or activity receiving Federal financial
assistance.
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