By Hannah Hess, CongressNow, June 4, 2008
4 Jun 2008 // After the Senate's unanimous consent approval Tuesday night of a veterans' mental health bill (S. 2162), the Defense Department announced today that it has signed a memorandum to increase services available to veterans from the Public Health Service. Meanwhile, the House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Health will hold a markup on two other Veterans' Health bills on Thursday.
Senate Veterans' Affairs Chairman Daniel Akaka(D-Hawaii) sponsored the S. 2162, which focuses on the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, and substance abuse issues among soldiers.
"Too many veterans return from combat with physical and invisible wounds," said Akaka, during a news conference today. "Most receive care to treat the physical problems, but many do not receive the care they need for psychological trauma."
According to the Pentagon, the agreement with Public Health Service will allow some 50 mental health practitioners to be detailed to military bases throughout the country "to provide additional resources for military members and their families to seek treatment," said S. Ward Casscells, the assistant secretary of defense for health affairs.
Casscells told reporters that the Pentagon eventually expects to detail as many as 200 doctors, nurses, psychologists and social workers.
The House companion bill to Akaka's (H.R. 4053), introduced by Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-Nev.), was referred to the House Veterans' Affairs Committee in November.
During a January hearing, Department of Veterans' Affairs Principal Deputy Undersecretary Gerald M. Cross expressed concerns with provisions in the Mental Health Improvements Act (H.R. 4053).
"While we appreciate the attention given to critical issues addressed in this bill, we cannot support its prescriptive approach of mandating forms of treatment, treatment settings, and composition of treatment teams," said Cross, addressing the panel's Subcommittee on Health.
An amendment adopted just prior to passage of the Senate counterpart addressed some VA concerns about the Veterans' Mental Health Care and Other Care Improvements Act of 2008 (S. 2162).
One bill, sponsored by Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-Colo.), aims to amend title 38, United States Code, to provide for the establishment of Epilepsy Centers of Excellence (H.R. 2818). Provisions set forth in the senate counterpart ensure better access to diagnosis, research and clinical care for soldiers diagnosed with traumatic brain injuries.
Rep. Paul Hodes (D-N.Y.) introduced the second bill slated for markup to establish an Ombudsman within the Department of VA (H.R. 2192).
Heightened awareness of veterans' mental health issues comes in the wake of a pending investigation into whether the VA has made a policy of minimizing diagnosis of PTSD among Iraq War veterans. Suspicions were aroused when the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington leaked a VA e-mail seemingly encouraging lax diagnosis of the condition in order to downplay suicide attempts among soldiers.