42 U.S.C. § 290dd–2a — Promoting access to information on evidence-based programs and practices

(a) In general The Assistant Secretary must work to make reliable, valid information about evidence-based mental health and substance use disorder programs and practices easier to find, including information about how strong the evidence is for each one. The Assistant Secretary does this by posting programs and practices that have been reviewed under this section on the Administration's website, for states, local communities, nonprofits, and other stakeholders to use. (b) Applications (1) Application period The Assistant Secretary may set a period during which people can apply to have their evidence-based programs or practices posted publicly. (2) Notice The Assistant Secretary must publish notice of that application period in the Federal Register. The notice can ask specifically for programs that fill gaps identified by the Assistant Secretary, the National Mental Health and Substance Use Policy Laboratory, or the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation — including gaps found through the evaluation and recommendations under section 6021 of the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Reform Act of 2016, or priorities in the strategic plan under section 290aa(l). (c) Requirements The Assistant Secretary may set minimum requirements for applications, including requirements about submitting supporting research and evaluation data. (d) Review and rating (1) In general The Assistant Secretary reviews applications before posting them publicly, and may prioritize reviewing applications tied to the topics named in the (b)(2) notice. (2) System The Assistant Secretary may use a rating and review system that looks at the strength of the evidence and the rigor of the research methods behind each application. (3) Public access to metrics and rating The Assistant Secretary must make the scoring rules used to judge applications, and the ratings that result, publicly available.