123STA T . 23 95PUBLIC LA W 111 –84—O CT. 28 , 2 0 09 SEC.726 . IND E P ENDEN T ST U D YO N POST - T RA U M ATIC STRESS DIS- ORDER E F FORTS. (a)STUDYREQ U IR ED .—The Se cr e t ar yofD efe ns e ,i n cons ul tation w ith the Secretary of V eterans A ffairs, shall p ro v i d e for a study on the treat m ent of post - traumatic stress disorder to b e conducted by the I nstitute of M edicine of the N ational Academy of Sciences or such other independent entity as the Secretary shall select for purposes of the study. (b) EL E M E N T S .—The study re q uired by subsection (a) shall include the followin g: ( 1 ) A list of each operative program and method available for the prevention, screening, diagnosis, treatment, or rehabilitation of post-traumatic stress disorder, including— (A) the rates of success for each such program or method (including an operational definition of the term ‘ ‘success ’ ’ and a discussion of the process used to quantify such rates)
( B ) based on the incidence of actual diagnoses, an estimate of the number of members of the Armed F orces and veterans diagnosed by the Department of Defense or the Department of Veterans Affairs as having post-trau- matic stress disorder and the number of such veterans who have been successfully treated; and ( C ) any collaborative efforts between the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs to pre- vent, screen, diagnose, treat, or rehabilitate post-traumatic stress disorder. ( 2 ) The status of studies and clinical trials involving innova- tive treatments of post-traumatic stress disorder that are con- ducted by the Department of Defense, the Department of Vet- erans Affairs, or the private sector, including— (A) efforts to identify physiological mar k ers of post- traumatic stress disorder; (B) with respect to efforts to determine causation of post-traumatic stress disorder, brain imaging studies and the correlation between brain region physiology and post- traumatic stress disorder diagnoses and the results (including any interim results) of such efforts; (C) the effectiveness of alternative therapies in the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, including the therapeutic use of animals; (D) the effectiveness of administering pharmaceutical agents before, during, or after a traumatic event in the prevention and treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder; and (E) identification of areas in which the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs may be duplicating studies, programs, or research with respect to post-traumatic stress disorder. ( 3 ) A description of each treatment program for post-trau- matic stress disorder, including a comparison of the methods of treatment by each program, at the following locations: (A) Fort H ood, Te x as. (B) Fort Bliss, Texas. (C) Fort Campbell, Tennessee. (D) O ther locations the entity conducting the study considers appropriate.
