Grace Napolitano: “Mr. Speaker, I think he has made some very valid points, and I want to elaborate a little more on that, in that more…”

“Mr. Speaker, I think he has made some very valid points, and I want to elaborate a little more on that, in that more than one third of our veterans need psychiatric care, most, as the gentleman has stressed, for the PTSD, posttraumatic stress disorder, and unfortunately the Veterans Administration's spending for mental health care has decreased since 1996 by a whopping 23 percent, almost a quarter. Veterans in need of mental health services often have to wait weeks, even months in some parts of country, for appointments, never mind having assistance by a psychologist, psychiatrist. One reason is because only 40 percent of the Veterans Administration clinics, Mr. Speaker, have mental health professionals. Many veterans are forced to travel over an hour for care. Veterans who need weekly or biweekly follow-up appointments for therapy or medication regulation can only be seen every 6 weeks. The Veterans Administration desperately needs more psychiatric staff. Sadly, less than 9 percent of the Veterans Administration funds are available for residency training or designated for psychiatric residency in the year 2002.”