VA Precision Medicine Act
Latest action (1 Sep 2020): Introduced
What this bill does
H.R. 8149, the VA Precision Medicine Act, would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to create an initiative to identify and validate brain and mental health biomarkers among veterans, with particular attention to depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, and traumatic brain injury. The program, to begin within two years of enactment, would be modeled on the National Institutes of Health's All of Us Precision Medicine Initiative, emphasizing large-scale, standardized data collection and open data sharing. The bill requires strong privacy and security protections, bars the sale of collected data, mandates that any brain-related measurements use FDA-approved devices, and calls for data standardization developed in consultation with NIH and the FDA. De-identified data would be shared for research both inside and outside the VA, including with NIH and the Department of Energy. The Secretary would also study whether the initiative could be coordinated with the VA's existing Million Veterans Program.
The bill primarily affects veterans, particularly those with mental health conditions or brain injuries, as well as VA researchers and outside scientific institutions that might access the resulting data.
Introduced September 1, 2020, by Rep. Conor Lamb with Rep. Mike Bost, the bill was referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs. According to the Congressional Research Service, its provisions were not enacted as a standalone bill but were incorporated into other legislation that was later enacted.
Plain-English summary generated by Bill100 AI from the official record. Always verify against the source below.
Official summary
VA Precision Medicine Act
This bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to implement the Precision Medicine for Veterans Initiative to identify and validate brain and mental health biomarkers among veterans, with specific consideration for depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, and traumatic brain injury.
The VA must develop data privacy and security measures to ensure the information of veterans participating in the initiative is kept private and secure. Additionally, the VA must make de-identified data collected under the initiative available for research purposes both within and outside of the VA. Data collected under the initiative may not be sold.
The VA must also assess the feasibility and advisability of coordinating efforts of the initiative with the Million Veterans Program.
Common questions
- What does H.R. 8149 do?
- H.R. 8149, the VA Precision Medicine Act, would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to create an initiative to identify and validate brain and mental health biomarkers among veterans, with particular attention to depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, and traumatic brain injury. The program, to begin within two years of enactment, would be modeled on the National Institutes of Health's All of Us Precision Medicine Initiative, emphasizing large-scale, standardized data collection and open data sharing. The bill requires strong privacy and security protections, bars the sale of collected data, mandates that any brain-related measurements use FDA-approved devices, and calls for data standardization developed in consultation with NIH and the FDA. De-identified data would be shared for research both inside and outside the VA, including with NIH and the Department of Energy. The Secretary would also study whether the initiative could be coordinated with the VA's existing Million Veterans Program. The bill primarily affects veterans, particularly those with mental health conditions or brain injuries, as well as VA researchers and outside scientific institutions that might access the resulting data. Introduced September 1, 2020, by Rep. Conor Lamb with Rep. Mike Bost, the bill was referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs. According to the Congressional Research Service, its provisions were not enacted as a standalone bill but were incorporated into other legislation that was later enacted.
- Has H.R. 8149 become law?
- Not yet. As of 1 Sep 2020, H.R. 8149 is introduced.
- Who sponsored H.R. 8149?
- H.R. 8149 was sponsored by Rep. Conor Lamb [D-PA17, 2019-2022] (Democrat-PA), with 3 cosponsors.
- What's the latest action on H.R. 8149?
- Introduced (1 Sep 2020).
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