Bill Sponsor
Senate Bill 1277
117th Congress(2021-2022)
Lethal Means Safety Training Act
Introduced
Introduced
Introduced in Senate on Apr 21, 2021
Overview
Text
Introduced
Apr 21, 2021
Latest Action
Apr 21, 2021
Origin Chamber
Senate
Type
Bill
Bill
The primary form of legislative measure used to propose law. Depending on the chamber of origin, bills begin with a designation of either H.R. or S. Joint resolution is another form of legislative measure used to propose law.
Bill Number
1277
Congress
117
Policy Area
Armed Forces and National Security
Armed Forces and National Security
Primary focus of measure is military operations and spending, facilities, procurement and weapons, personnel, intelligence; strategic materials; war and emergency powers; veterans’ issues. Measures concerning alliances and collective security, arms sales and military assistance, or arms control may fall under International Affairs policy area.
Sponsorship by Party
Democrat
Connecticut
Senate Votes (0)
House Votes (0)
No Senate votes have been held for this bill.
Summary

Lethal Means Safety Training Act

This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to update its Lethal Means Safety and Suicide Prevention training course at least once a year to ensure it is culturally appropriate and uses best practices identified by subject matter experts (e.g., veterans service organizations).

The bill requires certain VA employees and care providers to take the most recently updated version of the training course within 90 days after the person is hired, agrees to furnish care, or receives support and at least annually thereafter. Specifically, the bill requires the following categories of VA employees or care providers to take the training course:

  • employees of the Veterans Health Administration or Veterans Benefits Administration who regularly interact with veterans,
  • compensation and pension examiners,
  • employees of Vet Centers or vocational rehabilitation facilities,
  • employees of Veterans Community Care Providers who provide care to veterans, and
  • caregivers receiving support under the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers or the Program of General Caregiver Support Services.

The VA must publish the training course on a publicly available VA website. Additionally, the VA must publish a report on its website that includes the percentage of individuals in each category who have completed such training.

Text (1)
April 21, 2021
Actions (2)
04/21/2021
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
04/21/2021
Introduced in Senate
Public Record
Record Updated
Mar 8, 2023 7:59:17 PM