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[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4819 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4819
To amend title 23, United States Code, to establish an EMS and First
Responder Wellness Grant Program, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 17, 2026
Mr. Whitehouse (for himself, Mr. Hawley, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. King, Mr.
Schiff, Mr. Coons, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Kelly, Mr. Bennet, and Mrs.
Shaheen) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 23, United States Code, to establish an EMS and First
Responder Wellness Grant Program, and for other purposes.
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 ``Lifeline for First Responders Act''.
SEC. 2. EMS AND FIRST RESPONDER WELLNESS GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Chapter 4 of title 23, United States Code, is
amended by inserting after section 408 the following:
``Sec. 409. EMS and First Responder Wellness Grant Program
``(a) Establishment.--The Secretary, acting through the
Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(referred to in this section as the `Secretary'), shall establish a
grant program, to be known as the `EMS and First Responder Wellness
Grant Program' (referred to in this section as the `program'), to
support first responder mental health, stress reduction, family
services, and suicide prevention.
``(b) Placement.--The program shall be carried out through the
Office of Emergency Medical Services of the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration.
``(c) Eligible Entities.--An entity eligible to receive a grant
under the program is--
``(1) a Federal, State, Tribal, or local fire service that
supplies emergency medical services;
``(2) an EMS agency; and
``(3) a dispatch center.
``(d) Authorized Uses.--A grant provided under the program may be
used for--
``(1) evidence-based stress reduction and mental health
services;
``(2) suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention
services;
``(3) confidential counseling, peer support, and behavioral
health services;
``(4) family support services for spouses and children; and
``(5) outreach, stigma reduction, education, training, and
technical assistance.
``(e) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be
appropriated to carry out the program $7,500,000 for each of fiscal
years 2028 through 2032.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 4 of title 23,
United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to
section 408 the following:
``409. EMS and First Responder Wellness Grant Program.''.
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