§1709 Comprehensive Policy on Reporting and Tracking Sexual Assault Incidents and Other Safety Incidents

Summary

Require the Secretary to create and put in place one central policy by September 30, 2012 for reporting and tracking sexual assaults and other safety incidents at every VA medical facility. The policy must cover suspected, alleged, attempted, or confirmed sexual assaults (even if there is no prosecution), criminal or purposely unsafe acts, alcohol or drug-related incidents (including by VA employees), and any suspected or alleged patient abuse. The Secretary must think about how the policy affects veterans’ use of mental health and substance abuse care and the VA’s ability to refer veterans to that care. The policy must do several things. It must define three key terms: safety incident, sexual assault, and sexual assault incident. It must use risk-assessment tools to check whether a veteran might be a danger while receiving care and say what legal and medical history to collect. It must require security training for staff and regular use and testing of physical security like cameras and panic alarms. It must give clear rules for staff to report incidents up the chain, to VA law enforcement, and to the Office of Inspector General when an incident meets criminal reporting rules. It must set up oversight, shared information, and a centralized system to track and monitor incidents. It must require consistent procedures for investigations and guidance for treating assaults reported more than 72 hours after they happen. The Secretary must review and update the policy as needed. Within 60 days after making the policy, and by October 1 each year after that, the Secretary must report to the House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees with the number and types of incidents by facility, how the policy was put into practice and any changes, and how well the policy is working using performance measures.