This bill directs the Secretary of Defense to run a grant program to increase U.S.–Israel cooperative research on post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The program is to be carried out through the Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury Research Program and coordinated with the Secretaries of Veterans Affairs and State. Grants are awarded to U.S. academic institutions or nonprofit entities that conduct joint research projects with Israeli entities under a joint research agreement. Projects must address PTSD research needs the Secretary identifies. The program must follow the 1972 Agreement on the United States–Israel Binational Science Foundation. The Secretary may accept gifts of money for the program; those gifts are deposited in the Department of Defense General Gift Fund and are available subject to appropriation. The authority to award grants ends seven years after the first grant is awarded. The Secretary must submit a report to Congress within 180 days after an eligible entity completes a project describing how the grant was used and evaluating the project's success. The bill text includes findings on PTSD prevalence among veterans and the general population and notes Israeli research and treatment experience.
No publicly available information on total program cost or specific appropriations. The bill allows the Department of Defense to accept gifts for the program; accepted gifts are deposited in the DoD General Gift Fund and are available subject to appropriation.
The bill’s findings state that many U.S. veterans and other Americans experience PTSD and that current treatments may not be fully effective. It notes that Israeli hospitals and research institutions have experience treating PTSD. Supporters aim to increase scientific collaboration to develop more effective PTSD research and treatments.
No publicly available information.