# 119-hr-1290: Veterans Mental Health Crisis Referral Enhancement Act of 2025

119-hr-1290, Veterans Mental Health Crisis Referral Enhancement Act of 2025, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Buchanan, Vern [R-FL-16] (R-FL); status in_committee; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2025-12-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1290
- As of: 2025-12-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-1290
- Congress: 119
- Title: Veterans Mental Health Crisis Referral Enhancement Act of 2025
- Status: in_committee
- Introduced: 2025-02-13
- Sponsor: Rep. Buchanan, Vern [R-FL-16] (R-FL)
- Cosponsors: 1
- Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2025-12-21

## Summary

**A three-year pilot to refer veterans in mental health crisis to approved non-VA mental health providers.** The bill would require the VA to create a fast referral system, set criteria for approving outside providers, hire staff if needed, and train VA and Vet Center employees on the system. - Veterans: Veterans in crisis would receive referrals to approved non-VA mental health providers with a goal of getting care within one week. The pilot must operate in at least three geographic locations over three years. - VA staff and operations: VA and Vet Center staff would get training and the VA could hire additional employees to develop and maintain the referral system and manage referrals. - Oversight and funding: The Secretary must submit annual reports on the number of referrals, average wait times, and veteran satisfaction, plus a final evaluation with recommendations. The bill authorizes $3.0 million for each of fiscal years 2025, 2026, and 2027 to carry out the pilot.

## Cosponsors (1)

- Rep. Murphy, Gregory F. [R-NC-3] (R-NC), 2025-02-13T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Faster crisis care referrals for veterans: benefit, low. If enacted, the VA would run a three-year pilot to refer veterans in mental health crisis to approved non-VA providers. Vet Centers and VA medical facilities would offer these referrals. The pilot would start within 180 days and operate in at least three locations. Referred veterans would be connec…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-9237: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act
- 119-hr-2725: Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2025
- 119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025
- 119-hr-833: Educational Choice for Children Act of 2025
- 119-hr-137: TCJA Permanency Act
- 119-hr-740: Veterans’ ACCESS Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-hr-1290 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/1290)

## Related
- [119-hr-9237: Take Care of America’s Veterans Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9237)
- [119-hr-2725: Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2725)
- [119-hr-4669: FEMA Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4669)
- [119-hr-833: Educational Choice for Children Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-833)
- [119-hr-137: TCJA Permanency Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-137)
- [119-hr-740: Veterans’ ACCESS Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-740)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1290 (as of 2025-12-21).