[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 395 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 395

    Designating the month of April 2014 as ``Military and Veterans 
                           Caregiver Month''.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 25, 2014

  Mr. Burr (for himself, Ms. Collins, and Mrs. Murray) submitted the 
   following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
                               Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
    Designating the month of April 2014 as ``Military and Veterans 
                           Caregiver Month''.

Whereas more than 2,400,000 members of the Armed Forces have been deployed to 
        Iraq and Afghanistan since October 2001, 6,800 have been killed in 
        action, more than 51,000 have been wounded in action, and 1,558 have 
        undergone an amputation for a battle-related injury;
Whereas the signature wounds of members of the Armed Forces who have served in 
        Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New 
        Dawn are traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder;
Whereas, between January 1, 2000, and January 10, 2014, 287,911 cases of 
        traumatic brain injury were diagnosed among members of the Armed Forces, 
        and approximately 7,100 cases were classified as severe or penetrating;
Whereas studies have shown that the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder 
        among veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation 
        Iraqi Freedom ranges between 15 and 20 percent, and reports from the 
        Department of Veterans Affairs show that 29 percent of veterans who 
        served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom and 
        sought health care during fiscal years 2002 through 2012 had post-
        traumatic stress disorder;
Whereas many of the members of the Armed Forces and veterans who served in 
        Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom and suffered these 
        injuries require assistance from a family caregiver to complete 
        activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, and feeding, or 
        instrumental activities such as transportation, meal preparation, and 
        health management;
Whereas as many as 1,000,000 spouses, parents, and children of veterans have 
        served or are currently serving as family caregivers to veterans who 
        served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom, 
        according to a study of military caregivers conducted by the RAND 
        Corporation;
Whereas section 1672 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 
        2008 (Public Law 110-181; 10 U.S.C. 1071 note) introduced an expansion 
        of medical care available to family caregivers, and the Caregivers and 
        Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-163) 
        facilitated a new program for access to health insurance, mental health 
        services, caregiver training, and respite care by family caregivers of 
        veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi 
        Freedom;
Whereas the program provided under the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health 
        Services Act of 2010 (Public Law 111-163) is limited to veterans 
        enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration, who sustained a serious 
        injury in the line of duty after September 11, 2001, and who require at 
        least 6 months of personal care services because of an inability to 
        perform activities of daily living or who require supervision due to 
        neurological impairment; and
Whereas the primary caregivers of members of the Armed Forces and veterans 
        injured in the line of duty make tremendous sacrifices of their own, 
        saving the United States millions of dollars in health care and 
        potential institutionalization costs: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) designates the month of April 2014 as ``Military and 
        Veterans Caregiver Month'';
            (2) honors caregivers of members of the Armed Forces and 
        veterans for their service and sacrifice to the United States; 
        and
            (3) calls upon the people of the United States--
                    (A) to observe the month with appropriate 
                activities and events; and
                    (B) to participate in activities that will show 
                support to military families and the sacrifices endured 
                by those families in service to the United States.
                                 <all>