Honor Our Commitment Act of 2017

Honor Our Commitment Act of 2017

This bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to furnish mental and behavioral health care to individuals who:

• served in the active military, naval, or air service for more than 180 days and were deployed in a theater of combat operations or an area at a time during which hostilities occurred in that area for more than 30 days;
• were discharged or released from such service, by reason of committing a covered offense, under conditions other than honorable but not dishonorable or by court-martial; and either
• were diagnosed by a qualified mental health care provider with a mental or behavioral health condition before committing such offense; or
• are diagnosed with such a condition after committing such offense but before the expiration of five years after the later of the date of enactment of this bill or the date the individual is discharged or released from service, if a provider certifies such condition may have led to such offense and if the VA determines such individual had such condition at the time of the offense.

The VA: (1) may furnish initial mental health screenings within five years after this bill's enactment or five years after the date of discharge or release from service, at no cost to the individual; and (2) shall notify each eligible individual about eligibility for covered mental and behavioral health care within 180 days of discharge or release from active service.

Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov