[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 35 (Thursday, March 1, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2484-S2485]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    DIGNITY FOR WOUNDED WARRIORS ACT

  Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise today as a proud cosponsor of the 
Dignity for Wounded Warriors Act. While reading the recent news reports 
regarding the situation at Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital, I was 
incensed when I discovered that our brave men and women who have risked 
their lives in service to our country are currently convalescing under 
conditions that are nothing less than disgraceful--and, frankly, 
disrespectful of all who so honorably wear our Nation's uniform. This 
abomination is a far cry from the timeless words of President Theodore 
Roosevelt, who once said that ``a man who is good enough to shed his 
blood for his country is good enough to be given a square deal 
afterwards.''
  I applaud Senators Obama and McCaskill for swiftly responding to 
these shameful revelations by introducing this legislation at a time 
when more than 600,000 courageous service men and women have returned 
from combat in both Iraq and Afghanistan. In the past, Senator Obama 
and I have worked in a bipartisan manner to bolster the military's 
ability to detect and treat traumatic brain injury, reduce the claims 
at the Veterans Benefits Administration, VBA, and most recently, we 
have fought to improve the ability of the Department of Veterans 
Affairs to provide Congress with an accurate assessment of returning 
veterans health care and benefits needs. I also appreciate Senator 
McCaskill's advocacy on this issue, and I look forward to working with 
her in the future.

[[Page S2485]]

  During the past few weeks, the Washington Post has reported in 
scrupulous detail the dire and startling conditions at recuperation 
facilities used by Walter Reed Army Medical Center--the very facility 
replete with moldy walls, broken elevators, bug infestation, a lack of 
support programs, and general disrepair. These confines are not even 
habitable, not to mention acceptable, in any way, shape or form for the 
provision of health care to America's finest. Above all, such degrading 
medical quarters ultimately send the wrong message to our troops who 
have risked their lives in defense of our country that somehow they are 
fit and capable enough to serve us but not enough for us to serve them. 
Although the Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital has remained the 
preeminent health facility for wounded and recovering service members 
ever since the admittance of its first patients on May 1, 1909, these 
recent news reports have uncovered blatant defects in U.S. military 
health facilities that must be fixed immediately.
  In order to ensure that these stalwart Americans receive the 
treatment they have earned and that is unquestionably well deserved, 
this legislation will establish stringent standards for military 
outpatient housing, requiring that concomitant dormitories match the 
existing services standard for Active-Duty barracks, and mandating that 
all requests for repairs be completed within 15 days or alternate 
housing must be offered. Additionally, recent reports have revealed 
Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital's lack of support counseling to 
assist troops and their families in times of need. To alleviate these 
concerns, our legislation will require an emergency medical technician, 
EMT, and a crisis counselor at all outpatient residences, while 
creating an inspection team to ensure that high-level military 
officials are aware of all problems occurring at medical facilities, 
including those related to personnel and maintenance.
  Furthermore, the Dignity for Wounded Warriors Act will help solve 
recent problems regarding the overwhelming workloads for military 
caseworkers, which have, unfortunately, left countless service members 
helpless. This legislation will not only increase the number of 
caseworkers at military outpatient facilities but will establish an 
interim ratio of one caseworker and one supervising noncommissioned 
officer for each 20 recovering service members, while requiring staff 
training for the identification of mental illness and suicide 
prevention.
  This legislation will also address the processing delays for troops 
who seek a determination for their military status and disability 
level, which on average, takes as long as 7 months. This legislation 
would bring the Physical Disability Evaluation System under one command 
in order to reduce lengthy bureaucratic delays that have left even the 
most severely injured service members without a health determination 
for unnecessary lengths of time.
  Family members also carry a large burden for the sacrifices made by 
their loved ones in uniform. In order to ease the burdens of the health 
care process for these families, our legislation creates two 24-hour 
crisis counseling and family assistance hotlines and requires the 
creation of a single manual for outpatient care procedures, which will 
allow families to access all of the information they need to help care 
for their loved one. Sadly, family members are often forced to decide 
between attending to their loved one or keeping their job--a decision 
that no family member of our courageous troops should ever have to 
make. Therefore, this legislation provides Federal protections for the 
jobs of family members who are caring for a recovering service member, 
while extending medical care to family members who are living at 
military treatment facilities.
  And finally, one of the underlying concerns of the revelations at 
Walter Reed Army Medical Hospital was the lack of accountability and 
oversight at a facility which houses thousands of heroic Americans. 
This legislation would create a Wounded Warrior Oversight Board 
appointed by congressional leadership who will supervise the 
implementation of this legislation's provisions and serve as an 
advocate for all recovering service members in the future.
  The obligation of this country to its veterans is sacred and solemn 
and one that must be fulfilled every day. We should strive to put into 
action the words of President Lincoln that we must ``care for him who 
shall have borne the battle . . .'' Since the attacks of September 11, 
millions of valorous American men and women have fearlessly and 
honorably answered the call to service. Congress must now do its duty 
and everything in its power to vigorously extend the finest medical 
treatment and care possible to troops upon their return--attention that 
is worthy of their tremendous and immeasurable contributions to us all.
  Once again, I am pleased to join Senators Obama and McCaskill in 
introducing the Dignity for Wounded Warriors Act because I believe it 
is crucial for Congress to provide our Nation's veterans with a 
guarantee that they will never have to worry about dilapidated living 
conditions in military hospitals ever again, and I urge my colleagues 
to voice their support.

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