Rep. Jeff Miller (R. FL), Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee
I've written about how Senator John Walsh (D. MT), the only Iraq War Veteran in the U.S. Senate, has made tackling Veteran suicide a top priority. Walsh now has a colleague in the House who could help make his bill a reality:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...
Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) on Thursday plans to introduce legislation to help combat veteran suicides after a hearing on access to mental health treatment at the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Miller, who chairs the House Veterans Affairs Committee, is scheduled to unveil the legislation at a news conference with the parents of former Marine Clay Hunt, who committed suicide in 2011 after serving two combat tours, one apiece in Iraq and Afghanistan.
An estimated 22 veterans killed themselves every day in 2010, up from 18 per day in 2007, according to the latest figures from the VA.
Miller has not revealed specifics about his upcoming suicide-prevention bill, but his office said the measure will be named the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act.
Sen. John Walsh (D-Mont.), the first soldier to return from Iraq and become a U.S. senator, proposed legislation in March to address the same issue. His bill would extend veteran eligibility for the VA health system from five years to 15 years and provide financial incentives for psychiatrists to sign on for long-term service with the agency.
Walsh’s bill would also require the military to review discharge cases involving troops who were removed from service for behaviors relating to post-traumatic stress. Veterans in that situation can lose certain benefits for former service members. - Washington Post, 7/10/14
Here's a little more info:
http://www.msnbc.com/...
In emotional testimony, the parents of three young men who committed suicide described their sons’ struggles to see mental health care specialists, fill prescriptions, and navigate crowded, labyrinthine VA medical campuses.
“Not one more veteran should have to go through what Clay went through,” Susan Selke said of her son Clay Hunt, who committed suicide in March 2011, two weeks after seeing a VA psychiatrist. Despite Hunt’s active involvement with veterans groups like IAVA – including Storming the Hill, its annual suicide prevention awareness raising drive – Hunt was left feeling dejected and undertreated for his post-traumatic stress.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has been embroiled in controversy since April when allegations first surfaced claiming that there were so-called “secret waiting lists” for veterans at the Phoenix VA, and that at least 40 veterans died while waiting for primary care appointments. Then-VA Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned at the end of May, since which time Congress has failed to pass any legislation addressing the problems at hand.
At Thursday’s hearing, the parents who testified asked committee members to increase resources, look into changing the way veterans are medicated, including expanding the types of medicines covered by VA insurance, and creating a more comprehensive mental health care system that centralizes care.
“[The VA] must dramatically improve its mental health care delivery. Access is an issue, but we have to ask ourselves, ‘Access to what?’” Josh Renschler, a retired Army Sergeant said. Both in his own experience getting care and as a peer counselor for other veterans, Renschler said he saw an acute need to do more than ask battle-scarred men and women directly if they are contemplating suicide.
Howard and Jean Somers spoke at the hearing about their son Daniel and his experience with the Phoenix VA medical system, which has been at the heart of the still-unfolding scandal over long wait times, substandard care, cover-ups, and retaliation against whistleblowers. Daniel, the Somers said on the verge of tears, once tried to get himself admitted to the hospital during a mental breakdown, only to be turned away for lack of beds in both the mental health and emergency departments.
According to Howard Somers, when Daniel broke down crying in a corner of the ER, he was told he could stay until he felt well enough to drive himself home, but despite proximity to two other health care facilities within less than two miles, he received no additional help. Daniel Somers committed suicide on June 10, 2013.
On Tuesday, the House Veterans Affairs Committee heard testimony from a VA whistleblower who at one time oversaw the Phoenix VA emergency department. Dr. Katherine Mitchell testified that she saw serious errors occur because of understaffing in the department, but that errors went unaddressed and the ER remained strapped for resources. ”It is a bitter irony to me that I as a physician could not guarantee [patients’] safety in the middle of cosmopolitan Phoenix,” she said at the hearing.
Thursday afternoon, House Veterans Affairs Committee Chair Jeff Miller, R-Fla., Rep. Tammy Duckworth, an Illinois Democrat and Iraq war veteran, and Richard and Susan Selke appeared together to announce the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act (Clay Hunt SAV Act).
“This bill will provide awareness for veterans suicide and help provide loans to those seeking a career in mental health at VA,” Duckworth said.
Miller also said Thursday that he expected the Congressional Budget Office to have a new cost estimate for a VA reform bill aimed at increasing the number of VA facilities and health care providers within the next two days. Disagreements over how to pay for the bill have slowed work on creating a compromise between House and Senate legislation. - MSNBC, 7/10/14
Walsh is not alone calling for action:
http://www.star-telegram.com/...
Paul Rieckhoff, an Iraq war veteran who founded the group, said half of today’s vets know someone who has committed suicide.
“This is personal for us,” Rieckhoff said Thursday. “Our friends are dying.”
After his discharge, Clay Hunt spent almost two years appealing his PTSD rating of 30 percent, a VA determination that limited his medical and other benefits.
During his post-service treatment, Hunt complained of long waits to see mental health specialists and over-prescription of medicines.
His mother told lawmakers Thursday: “Clay used to say, ‘I’m a guinea pig for drugs. They put me on one thing, I’ll have side effects, and then they put me on something else.”
Five weeks after his suicide, the Department of Veterans Affairs reclassified Hunt’s mental health status and raised his PTSD rating to 100 percent. - Star-Telegram, 7/10/14
And there maybe a chance the House will actually act on this:
http://www.navytimes.com/...
The House bill, sponsored by Reps. Jeff Miller, R-Fla.; Tim Walz, D-Minn.; and Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., would “change thousands of lives for the better,” said Paul Rieckhoff, founder and CEO of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.
“Our friends are dying and they are dying right now. In the past few months, we’ve heard a lot of rhetoric. ... It’s time for action,” Rieckhoff said.
Miller expressed optimism that his House colleagues would approve the legislation and added that Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, was aware of the bill in addition to the Senate companion legislation.
“Unfortunately, suicides are happening at a frightening pace. The system has to change and if they won’t change it, the Congress will,” Miller said.
The Congressional Budget Office is reviewing the proposed legislation to determine its cost. - Navy Times, 7/10/14
And Walsh has been working closely with his colleague, Senator Jon Tester (D. MT), in fixing the problems with the VA:
http://helenair.com/...
While not a member of the committee, Sen. John Walsh, D-Mont., said he’ll work with Tester to ensure the final measure shortens wait times and improves access to care.
Walsh saw his own “Commission on Care” pass the Senate last month. That bill would prompt an independent investigation into the Veterans Health Administration and allow vets to see physicians outside the VA until the system’s backlog is cleared.
Rep. Steve Daines, R-Mont., is pushing for similar demands and has called upon the committee to act quickly.
Daines also wants legislation that allows the VA to remove career appointees who are failing in their jobs. A final bill must give vets a chance to access care outside the VA if they’ve waited more than 14 days for an appointment or live far from a VA clinic, Daines said.
“Recent reports of delayed care, mismanagement and cover-ups highlight the seriousness of the problems at VA medical centers across the nation,” Daines said. “These are problems that must be addressed immediately.”
While Tester wants to see the committee reach an agreement by August, the timing of the negotiations may not play in the committee’s favor. Some members of Congress are facing re-election and will begin to campaign once the recess begins.
Tester fears the cost of the bill could fall victim to election year politics. He said the cost of military operations weren’t an issue when Congress chose to invade Iraq, or when debating solutions in Syria and Ukraine.
“We just shipped 800 men to Iraq — advisers if you want to call them that — but nobody stood up to the costs,” Tester said. “But when they come home missing legs and having mental health problems and seek the care they need, suddenly it’s an issue of cost. It’s frustrating from my perspective.” - Helen Air, 7/10/14
It will be interesting to see how Daines will handle this situation. Will he actually deliver and work with Walsh or will he help obstruct and real, significant changes to deny his opponent a legislative win? We shall see. Daines has been using swiftboat style attacks to go after Walsh's military career so we will need to see if he can truly deilver for Veterans. But Walsh deserves to be elected to a full term because with current problems our returning troops, Walsh completely understands their problems and we need more men like him in the Senate. Not to mention he has been very outspoken about sending advisors back to Iraq and I for one think we need guys like Walsh, who have actually served in combat of our recent wars, to help solve our problems. He have a serious fight ahead of us but we can win it if we fight hard. Click here to donate and get involved with Walsh's campaign:
http://johnwalsh2014.com/