Political Quotes

“the amendment that is pending in front of us is to improve the mental health and suicide prevention services. It is language that is derived from our Mental Health ACCESS Act, which was unanimously approved by the Veterans' Affairs Committee. This amendment is critical legislation that improves how DOD and VA provide mental health care. I think everyone in this body knows about it and is distressed by the alarming rate of suicide and mental health problems in our military and veterans populations. We know our servicemembers and veterans have faced unprecedented challenges, multiple deployments, difficulty finding a job here at home, isolation in their communities, and some have faced very tough times reintegrating into family life with loved ones trying to relate but not knowing how. These are the challenges our servicemembers and veterans know all too well. But even today as they turn to us for help, we are losing the battle. Time and again we have lost servicemembers and veterans to suicide. While the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs have taken very important steps toward addressing this crisis, we know more does need to be done. We know any solution depends on reducing wait times and improving access to mental health care. We know they need to have the proper diagnosis, and we know we need to achieve true coordination of care and information between the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.…”