text: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
  
      This Act may be cited as the ``Psychological Kevlar Act of 2006''.
  
  SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
  
      The purpose of this Act is to reduce the number of psychological 
  casualties among military personnel by providing members of the Armed 
  Forces entering combat with the training, supports, and other evidence-
  based measures necessary to improve their psychological resilience and 
  reduce their susceptibility to post-traumatic stress disorder and other 
  stress-related psychopathologies.
  
  SEC. 3. PLANS FOR REDUCING POST TRAUMATIC STRESS DISORDER.
  
      (a) Plan for Prevention.--
              (1) In general.--The Secretary of Defense shall develop and 
          implement a plan to incorporate evidence-based preventive and 
          early-intervention measures, practices, or procedures that 
          reduce the likelihood that personnel in combat will develop 
          post-traumatic stress disorder or other stress-related 
          psychopathologies (including substance use conditions) into--
                      (A) basic and pre-deployment training for enlisted 
                  members of the Armed Forces, noncommissioned officers, 
                  and officers;
                      (B) combat theater operations; and
                      (C) post-deployment service.
              (2) Updates.--The Secretary of Defense shall update the 
          plan under paragraph (1) periodically to incorporate, as the 
          Secretary considers appropriate, the results of relevant 
          research, including research conducted pursuant to section 4.
      (b) Research.--Subject to section 4, the Secretary of Defense shall 
  conduct and fund, in consultation with the Department of Veterans 
  Affairs, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Academy of 
  Sciences, such research as is necessary to develop the plan described 
  in subsection (a).
      (c) Outreach and Education.--
              (1) Training program for officers.--The Secretary of 
          Defense shall develop and implement a training program to 
          educate and promote understanding and awareness among 
          commissioned officers and non-commissioned officers about the 
          signs and risks of combat stress as well as the signs and risks 
          of stress-related psychopathology (including substance use 
          conditions). Training should include decisions-making tools for 
          making a referral for follow-up care.
              (2) Training program for medical professionals.--The 
          Secretary of Defense shall develop and implement a training 
          program to educate front-line medical professionals and primary 
          care providers about the signs and risks of combat stress as 
          well as the signs and risks of stress-related psychopathology 
          (including substance use conditions).
              (3) Education of members of armed forces.--The Secretary of 
          Defense shall educate members of the Armed Forces and their 
          families to recognize signs of combat stress, provide members 
          pre-deployment combat stress management training, and increase 
          outreach and access to members and their families about 
          programs and treatment options (such as individual and family 
          therapy) that mitigate the negative impact of combat stress on 
          the returning member.
              (4) Information dissemination.--The Secretary of Defense 
          shall work with the Department of Veterans Affairs and the 
          National Institutes of Health to research and implement best 
          practices for information dissemination to enlisted personnel, 
          officers, unit commanders, primary care providers and other 
          medical personnel, and families of members of the Armed Forces.
  
  SEC. 4. EVIDENCE-BASED RESEARCH AND TRAINING.
  
      (a) Working Group.--The Secretary of Defense shall establish, in 
  coordination with the Department of Veterans Affairs, the National 
  Institutes of Health, and the National Academy of Sciences' Institute 
  of Medicine, a working group tasked with researching and developing 
  evidence-based measures, practices, or procedures that reduce the 
  likelihood that personnel in combat will develop post-traumatic stress 
  disorder or other stress-related psychological pathologies (including 
  substance use conditions). The working group shall include personnel 
  with experience in a combat theater, and behavioral health personnel 
  who have experience providing treatment to individuals with experience 
  in a combat theater.
      (b) Peer-Reviewed Research Program.--The Secretary of Defense shall 
  establish a new Peer-Reviewed Research program within the Defense 
  Health Program's research and development function to research and 
  develop evidence-based preventive and early intervention measures, 
  practices, or procedures that reduce the likelihood that personnel in 
  combat will develop post-traumatic stress disorder or other stress-
  related psychopathologies (including substance use conditions). There 
  is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection 
  $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2007 and such sums as may be necessary 
  thereafter.
      (c) Report.--The Secretary of Defense shall submit to Congress 
  annually a report on the following:
              (1) The status of research conducted under this section.
              (2) The status of the plan required under section 3(a) and 
          the expected timeline for the implementation of the plan.
              (3) After the plan under section 3(a) has been implemented, 
          the status of the implementation, including measures of the 
          plan's impact on psychological casualty rates.
      (d) Facilitation.--The Secretary of Defense shall take such steps 
  as practicable to facilitate the ability of investigators funded under 
  this section to work with active-duty military personnel in the course 
  of their research.
target: Psychological Kevlar Act of 2006 - Directs the Secretary of Defense to develop and implement a plan to incorporate preventive and early-intervention measures, practices, or procedures that reduce the likelihood that personnel in combat will develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or other stress-related psychopathologies, including substance use conditions.
  
  Requires the Secretary to: (1) update the plan periodically; (2) develop and implement a training program to educate and promote awareness among commissioned and noncommissioned officers, front-line medical professionals and primary care providers, and military personnel and their families about the signs and risks of combat stress and stress-related psychopathology; (3) establish a working group to research and develop measures that reduce the likelihood of PTSD or other pathologies in combat veterans; and (4) establish a new Peer-Reviewed Research program for such research and development.
feat_title: To reduce post traumatic stress disorder and other combat-related stress disorders among military personnel, and for other purposes.