Bob Dole: “these are certainly challenging times for our Nation--particularly as we confront an ever-emboldened terrorist network…”

“these are certainly challenging times for our Nation--particularly as we confront an ever-emboldened terrorist network that seeks to threaten civilized societies and destroy our way of life. The threats are very real and the stakes are very high. Thank God we have men and women who are answering the call of duty by proudly wearing the uniform of the United States and defending our homeland here and abroad. It is imperative that we continually show them and their families just how much we appreciate and honor their service and their sacrifice. This Defense authorization bill certainly provides for much needed programs that will increase readiness and quality of life for our military personnel, and I applaud our distinguished Armed Services chairman, John Warner, and Majority Leader Frist for moving this bill forward. I represent a strong military constituency in North Carolina, and I am delighted that this bill includes several of my proposals addressing critical areas of need. I will briefly highlight a few of them. One of my amendments makes mental health counseling more accessible for service members and their families. It allows certified and licensed mental health counselors to directly bill TRICARE without a physician's referral, in Under Served Areas--those areas where there is an insufficient availability of mental health care providers. It is estimated that over half of U.S. counties have no practicing psychiatrists, psychologists, or social workers.…”