Under this act, no medical school in the state shall prohibit, discourage, or otherwise restrict a medical student organization or a medical organization from undertaking or conducting a study of the prevalence of depression or other mental health issues among medical students. Any medical school in this state is prohibited from penalizing, disciplining, or otherwise taking any adverse action against a student or medical student organization in connection with the student's or medical student organization's participation in, planning, or conducting a study of the prevalence of depression or other mental health issues among medical students.

This act permits medical schools in this state to conduct an ongoing multicenter study or studies in order to facilitate the collection of data and implement practices and protocols to minimize stress and reduce the risk for depression among medical students in Missouri. The act establishes the "Show-Me Compassionate Medical Education Research Project Committee". The multicenter study shall, among other specified objectives, collect relevant data and examine the culture of medical schools that may contribute to the risk of depression among students, as well as identify best practices to address the root causes of depression among students.

Any medical school which conducts a study under this act shall prepare an annual report concerning the specified objectives of the study. The reports must be made available annually on each medical school's website and to the Missouri General Assembly.

This act is identical to provisions in SCS/SB 52 (2017) and substantially similar to provisions in HCS/SS/SB 621 (2016), SB 1029 (2016), HB 1658 (2016), and similar to HCS/HB 867 (2015).

SARAH HASKINS