Karen Bass: “I thank the ranking member for his brevity. Mr. Speaker, this bill would help provide support to more than 1 million…”

“I thank the ranking member for his brevity. Mr. Speaker, this bill would help provide support to more than 1 million veterans diagnosed with service-connected disabilities, as well as the thousands who are undiagnosed who have been and will be exposed to the criminal justice system. Supporting rehabilitative veterans courts programs is the least we can do to acknowledge their sacrifice and treat our veterans involved with the criminal justice system with compassion and care. Mr. Speaker, for these reasons, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time. Miss GONZALEZ-COLON of Puerto Rico. Mr. Speaker, today I rise in strong support of H.R. 886, the Veteran Treatment Court Coordination Act of 2019. Our men and women in uniform often struggle with physical and mental remnants of their time in service. According to the VA, over 1.7 million veterans received treatment through a VA mental health specialty program in 2018. Additionally, close to 20 percent of service members returning from Iraq or Afghanistan experience depression or have a Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder diagnosis. Mr. Speaker, we want our veterans to thrive. They listened to their Nation's call and served when needed. It is now our responsibility to address every single issue that stops them from living a full life and continue to contribute to their country as a civilian.…”