“Twenty-two veterans commit suicide every day. The tendency is even higher for young, male veterans, the very type that are returning home right now from war. The last thing that we should do is make it harder for veterans to get the treatment that they need”,says Congresswoman Roby. Pictured here: A veteran sleeps on the sidewalk because he has no where else to go…
On December 9, 2014 Rep. Roby of Alabama asked fro and was granted permission to address the United States House of representatives for 5 minutes to discuss veterans and mental health services:
“Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss mental health services for veterans.
As you know, physical injuries are not the only ones endured in war. Many soldiers return home with wounds that we cannot see. For some veterans, the psychological trauma endured on the battlefield affects them and their families long after the shots stop firing.
Of the 2 million Americans who served in combat in Iraq or Afghanistan, as many as 300,000 meet criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder. Another 300,000 may have suffered a traumatic brain injury.
Mr. Speaker, for these servicemen and servicewomen, access to quality mental health care is crucial, so imagine being one of these soldiers who recently returned home with the lasting psychological effects that so commonly result from war.
Now, imagine that in seeking treatment from the VA, you are forced to go 67 days without an appointment. Sixty-seven days is the new average wait time for new mental health patients at the central Alabama VA; and, Mr. Speaker, that number has gotten worse. In May, the wait time for new mental health patients was 57 days.
Mr. Speaker, administrators claim that scheduling and labeling errors have contributed to making the problem appear worse on paper than it actually is, but if after all of this time we haven’t figured out how to properly schedule patients at the VA, we have worse problems than I thought. I don’t expect it to magically improve overnight, but we shouldn’t be moving in the wrong direction.
My primary focus is improving care for veterans in Alabama, and there are ways that we can do it. I am eager to see greater utilization of the Patient-Centered Community Care program, otherwise known as PC3, which connects veteran patients with local doctors or specialists.
It makes no sense to make a veteran wait 2 months for an appointment when we can refer them to an outside provider right away. I believe PC3 is a difference-maker, and I will continue to insist the VA leadership utilize it on the mental health side.
Mr. Speaker, a 2-month wait for mental health patients at the VA is obviously a disservice to our veterans, but it is also a major safety concern for veterans, their families, and the public. It might be uncomfortable to talk about, but the fact is we have a very high suicide rate among veterans.
Twenty-two veterans commit suicide every day. The tendency is even higher for young, male veterans, the very type that are returning home right now from war. The last thing that we should do is make it harder for veterans to get the treatment that they need.
That is why I rise today in support of H.R. 5059, the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention Act. This bipartisan bill aims to, number one, increase access to mental health care for veterans; number two, better meet the demand for mental health professionals; and number three, improve accountability of suicide prevention efforts through the Department of Defense and the VA.
The bill is named for Clay Hunt, a Marine veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, earning the Purple Heart. He was diagnosed with PTSD and actually worked to raise awareness about problems facing people like him returning home from combat.
Like many veterans, Clay ran into roadblocks in his efforts to access care for his PTSD. I encourage everyone to look up Clay Hunt’s full story and read about the difficulty he faced getting needed care from the VA. For some veterans, it might sound all too familiar. On March 31, 2011, at the age of 28, Clay took his own life. Clay’s story is sad, it is disheartening, and it is infuriating. But what Clay’s story is not? It is not uncommon enough, 22 veterans a day.
Mr. Speaker, we have a long way to go as a Nation in making sure veterans in need of mental health care aren’t left behind, but let’s start this week by passing the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention Act. ”
Source: Congressional Record