FINDINGS.

SEC. 501. FINDINGS. Congress makes the following findings: (1) The health-related costs of intimate partner violence in the United States exceed $5,800,000,000 annually. (2) Thirty-seven percent of all women who sought care in hospital emergency rooms for violence-related injuries were injured by a current or former spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend. 119 STAT. 3024(3) In addition to injuries sustained during violent episodes, physical and psychological abuse is linked to a number of adverse physical and mental health effects. Women who have been abused are much more likely to suffer from chronic pain, diabetes, depression, unintended pregnancies, substance abuse and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV/AIDS. (4) Health plans spend an average of $1,775 more a year on abused women than on general enrollees. (5) Each year about 324,000 pregnant women in the United States are battered by the men in their lives. This battering leads to complications of pregnancy, including low weight gain, anemia, infections, and first and second trimester bleeding. (6) Pregnant and recently pregnant women are more likely to be victims of homicide than to die of any other pregnancy-related cause, and evidence exists that a significant proportion of all female homicide victims are killed by their intimate partners. (7) Children who witness domestic violence are more likely to exhibit behavioral and physical health problems including depression, anxiety, and violence towards peers. They are also more likely to attempt suicide, abuse drugs and alcohol, run away from home, engage in teenage prostitution, and commit sexual assault crimes. (8) Recent research suggests that women experiencing domestic violence significantly increase their safety-promoting behaviors over the short- and long-term when health care providers screen for, identify, and provide followup care and information to address the violence. (9) Currently, only about 10 percent of primary care physicians routinely screen for intimate partner abuse during new patient visits and 9 percent routinely screen for intimate partner abuse during periodic checkups. (10) Recent clinical studies have proven the effectiveness of a 2-minute screening for early detection of abuse of pregnant women. Additional longitudinal studies have tested a 10-minute intervention that was proven highly effective in increasing the safety of pregnant abused women. Comparable research does not yet exist to support the effectiveness of screening men. (11) Seventy to 81 percent of the patients studied reported that they would like their healthcare providers to ask them privately about intimate partner violence.