H.R. 6454

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6454 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6454

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish the Zero 
Suicide Initiative pilot program of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

December 4, 2025

Ms. Lee of Nevada (for herself, Mr. Tony Gonzales of Texas, Ms. 
Pettersen, Mr. Fleischmann, Mr. Keating, Mr. Davis of North Carolina, 
and Mr. Mann) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to establish the Zero 
Suicide Initiative pilot program of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

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 ``VA Zero Suicide Demonstration 
Project Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. ZERO SUICIDE INITIATIVE PILOT PROGRAM.

(a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall 
establish a pilot program called the ``Zero Suicide Initiative'' 
(referred to in this section as the ``program'').
(b) Curriculum.--The program shall implement the curriculum of the 
Zero Suicide Institute of the Education Development Center (referred to 
in this section as the ``Institute'') to improve safety and suicide 
care for veterans, thereby significantly reducing rates of suicide.
(c) Development.--
(1) In general.--The first year of the program shall be 
dedicated to program development, including planning and site 
selection.
(2) Consultation.--In developing the program, the Secretary 
shall consult with--
(A) the Secretary of Health and Human Services;
(B) the National Institutes of Health;
(C) public and private institutions of higher 
education;
(D) educators;
(E) experts in suicide assessment, treatment, and 
management;
(F) veterans service organizations; and
(G) professional associations the Secretary of 
Veterans Affairs determines relevant to the purposes of 
the program.
(d) Staff Leaders; Program Elements.--The program shall consist of 
not less than ten weeks of education regarding suicide care, beginning 
with the selection of five to ten staff leaders from each site selected 
under subsection (e) who shall carry out the following program 
elements:
(1) Complete the organizational self-study of the Institute 
as a team.
(2) Attend the two-day Zero Suicide Academy of the 
Institute.
(3) Formulate a plan to collect data to support evaluation 
and quality improvement using the data elements worksheet of 
the Institute.
(4) Communicate to staff at the respective site the 
adoption of a specific suicide care approach.
(5) Administer the workforce survey of the Institute to all 
staff at the respective site to learn more about perceived 
comfort with and competence in caring for patients at risk of 
suicide.
(6) Review, develop, and implement training on processes 
and policies regarding patients at risk of suicide, including--
(A) screening;
(B) assessment;
(C) use of electronic health records;
(D) risk formulation;
(E) treatment; and
(F) care transition.
(e) Sites.--
(1) Number.--The Secretary shall carry out the program at 
five medical centers of the Department of Veterans Affairs, one 
of which primarily serves veterans who live in rural and remote 
areas as determined by the Secretary.
(2) Timeline.--The Secretary shall select--
(A) 15 candidate sites for the program not later 
than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act; and
(B) the final five sites not later than 270 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(3) Consultation.--In selecting sites at which to carry out 
the program, the Secretary shall consult with experts including 
officials of--
(A) the National Institute of Mental Health;
(B) the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services 
Administration of the Department of Health and Human 
Services;
(C) the Office of Mental Health and Suicide 
Prevention of the Department of Veterans Affairs;
(D) the Health Services Research Division of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs;
(E) the Office of Health Care Transformation of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs; and
(F) the Zero Suicide Institute.
(4) Factors.--In selecting sites for the program, the 
Secretary shall consider the following factors:
(A) Interest in, and capacity of, the staff of the 
medical centers to implement the program.
(B) Geographic variation.
(C) Variations in size of medical centers.
(D) Regional suicide rates of veterans.
(E) Demographic and health characteristics of 
populations served by each medical center.
(f) Annual Progress Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than two years after the date on 
which the Secretary establishes the program, and annually 
thereafter until termination of the program, the Secretary 
shall submit to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the 
Senate and the Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the House of 
Representatives a report on the program.
(2) Elements.--Each report under paragraph (1) shall 
include the following:
(A) Progress of staff leaders at each site in 
carrying out tasks under paragraphs (1) through (5) of 
subsection (d).
(B) The percentage of staff at each site trained 
under paragraph (6) of subsection (d).
(C) An assessment of whether policies and 
procedures implemented at each site align with 
standards of the Institute with regard to--
(i) suicide screening;
(ii) lethal means counseling;
(iii) referrals for comprehensive 
assessment of suicidality;
(iv) safety planning for patients receiving 
referrals under clause (iii);
(v) risk management during care 
transitions; and
(vi) outreach to high-risk patients.
(D) A comparison of the suicide-related outcomes at 
program sites and those of other medical centers of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs, including--
(i) the percentage of patients screened for 
suicide risk;
(ii) the percentage of patients counseled 
in lethal means safety;
(iii) the percentage of patients screened 
for suicide risk referred for comprehensive 
assessment of suicidality;
(iv) the percentage of patients referred 
for comprehensive assessment who complete 
safety planning;
(v) emergency department utilization;
(vi) inpatient psychiatric 
hospitalizations;
(vii) the number of suicide attempts among 
all patients and among patients referred for 
comprehensive assessment of suicidality; and
(viii) the number of suicide deaths among 
all patients and among patients referred for 
comprehensive assessment of suicidality.
(g) Final Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than one year after the 
termination of the program, the Secretary shall submit to the 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 
on Veterans' Affairs of the House of Representatives a final 
report.
(2) Elements.--The report under paragraph (1) shall include 
the following:
(A) A detailed analysis of information in the 
annual reports under subsection (f).
(B) An evaluation of the effectiveness and outcomes 
of the program, including an evaluation of all data 
collected during the program.
(C) The determination of the Secretary whether it 
is feasible to continue the program.
(D) The recommendations of the Secretary whether to 
expand the program to additional sites, extend the 
program, or make the program permanent.
(h) Termination; Extension.--
(1) In general.--Subject to paragraph (2), the program 
shall terminate on the date that is five years after the date 
on which the Secretary establishes the program under subsection 
(a).
(2) Authority to extend.--The Secretary may extend the 
program for not more than two years if the Secretary notifies 
Congress in writing of such extension not less than 180 days 
before the termination date under paragraph (1).
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