[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 63 (Tuesday, May 10, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2837-S2838]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    TRIBUTE TO DR. MATTHEW FRIEDMAN

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I would like to take a moment to 
congratulate Dr. Matthew Friedman, a finalist for the 2011 Samuel J. 
Heyman Service to America Medals. Dr. Friedman is the executive 
director of the National Center for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, 
PTSD, headquartered in White River Junction, VT. He was a finalist for 
the Career Achievement Medal given annually to a federal employee for 
significant accomplishments over a lifetime of achievement in public 
service.
  Dr. Friedman is a pioneer in the field of traumatic stress disorders. 
For nearly 40 years now he has been working to identify the causes of 
and treatments for PTSD and advocating for those afflicted with the 
disorder. It is the cause of his career.
  While PTSD is now recognized as a serious affliction associated with 
the stresses and violence of war, this was not always the case. In the 
early days of his work, Dr. Friedman had to convince skeptics both 
inside and outside of the Veterans Administration that many returning 
troops were suffering from PTSD. His efforts eventually persuaded 
veterans to accept the disease within their own communities. He was 
among the first Veterans Administration clinicians to recognize the 
depth and breadth of the disorder among returning Vietnam veterans. In 
1973, he established one of the earliest groups to provide mental 
health assistance to former soldiers.
  In 1989, after years of distinguished work in the field, Dr. Friedman 
was named as the first executive director of the then-new National 
Center for PTSD based in Vermont, in White River Junction. Since then, 
the center has grown into a group of seven centers located at VA 
medical centers and in connection with university medical research 
programs around the country. These seven centers have conducted 
unprecedented research, leading to critical advancements in the 
understanding, treatment, and prevention of traumatic disorders.
  The Service to America Medals are some of the most prestigious awards 
given to celebrate America's civil servants. The medals will be 
presented on September 15 in Washington, DC.
  Dr. Friedman has spent years studying, treating and advocated for our 
brave veterans who have been psychologically affected by war or other 
tragedies. Whether or not he is ultimately selected for it, Dr. 
Friedman is certainly deserving of the Samuel J. Heyman Career 
Achievement Medal, I commend him on his selection as a finalist, and I 
thank him for a lifetime of public service to America's veterans.
  Dr. Friedman was mentioned in an article entitled Finalists for 
government's ``Oscars,'' recently published in the Washington Post. I 
ask unanimous consent that a copy be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

                [From the Washington Post, May 2, 2011]

                 Finalists for Government's ``Oscars''


      Service medals will be awarded to nine outstanding employees

                             (By Lisa Rein)

       One is leading the effort to reduce tobacco-related disease 
     by regulating what goes into cigarettes. Another helped 
     disrupt drug traffickers from laundering billions of dollars 
     through Mexican banks. Another developed a strategy to make 
     sure every American has access to high-speed Internet 
     service.
       These are among 34 federal workers nominated for the 2011 
     Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Medal awards. The service 
     medals--or ``Sammies,'' as they are known--are the Academy 
     Awards of the federal world and honor distinguished public 
     servants in a variety of fields, including transportation 
     safety and data systems. With civil servants a key focal 
     point in the debate over the size of government, the 
     nonprofit Partnership for Public Service hopes its annual 
     Service to America medals will act as a reminder of federal 
     workers' commitment to their jobs.
       Nine employees will receive awards this fall for their work 
     on a variety of issues, both in the headlines and under the 
     radar. One among them will be honored as federal employee of 
     the year.
       The 34 finalists, selected from more than 400 nominations 
     by their bosses and colleagues, will be honored Thursday at a 
     breakfast on Capitol Hill as part of Public Service 
     Recognition Week, May 1-7, intended to recognize the efforts 
     of federal, state and local government workers.
       The nominees hail from Menlo Park, Calif., to White River 
     Junction, Vt., with 23 working in the Washington area. Some 
     are approaching the end of a long career in government, while 
     others are in their 20s.
       The Washington Post chose a random sample of finalists to 
     ask about their work:
       When the Food and Drug Administration gained new authority 
     over tobacco products in 2009, it turned to doctor and public 
     health expert Lawrence Deyton to launch the Center for 
     Tobacco Products. Deyton's 30-year career in government has 
     focused on fighting hepatitis, AIDS among veterans and other 
     public health threats.
       With a $450 million budget, Deyton, 58, led a successful 
     effort to prohibit tobacco manufacturers from displaying the 
     labels ``light,'' ``low'' and ``mild.'' In June, the center 
     will issue regulations requiting graphic new health warnings 
     on cigarette packages and billboards. Next up: Establishing 
     which ingredients in cigarettes could be removed or changed 
     to make them safer.
       ``We have a fundamental authority now that no other country 
     has,'' Deyton said.
       The Defense Department's inspector general has long had a 
     system for protecting service members who report wrongdoing. 
     But until Dan Meyer and his team were hired in 2004, civilian 
     whisleblowers who suffered from retaliation had no advocate.
       Meyer, 46, created a program that protects employees who 
     report national security and procurement fraud. These 
     whistleblowers often lose their security clearances as 
     punishment. Meyer once blew the whistle himself when he was a 
     Navy line officer who disclosed flaws in the investigation of 
     a 1989 explosion that killed 47 American sailors.
       ``We needed to approach this as protection of our 
     sources,'' he said.
       When the Environmental Protection Agency came out late last 
     year with a new plan to restore the Chesapeake Bay, 31-year-
     old Katherine Antos cajoled sometime-warring state 
     governments, advocacy groups and industry to cooperate to 
     increase their accountability. ``If we are going to be 
     successful, we needed the right buy-in,'' said Antos,

[[Page S2838]]

     leader of the bay program's Water Quality Team. The biggest 
     problem was conveying what might seem simple: ``What needs to 
     be done, who is going to do it and how,'' she said.
       Three years ago, the National Institutes of Health 
     attempted to pick up where the country's prestigious medical 
     centers had left off, cracking the code of diseases that 
     cannot be diagnosed.
       William Gahl, a pediatrician specializing in clinical and 
     biochemical genetics, took on the challenge as the first 
     director of the Undiagnosed Diseases Program. Interest was so 
     strong that Gahl's $280,000 budget quickly grew to $3.5 
     million. Of 5,000 applicants, 400 have been accepted, though 
     a medical diagnosis has been found for just 60.
       ``We admit failure in the majority of our cases,'' Gahl 
     said. ``But these are people who have been everywhere else.''
       Analysts at the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes 
     Enforcement Network have long suspected that Mexican drug 
     traffickers were smuggling cash from their narcotics sales 
     back into Mexico for deposit in local banks. Senior 
     intelligence research analyst Ann Martin, 29, analyzed tens 
     of thousands of bank transactions and discovered last year 
     that billions of dollars in illegal drug profits were 
     entering the Mexican banking system from the United States. 
     Her work led the Mexican government to issue new regulations 
     capping the amount of American dollars that can flow to 
     Mexican banks.
       Post-traumatic stress disorder is a well-known mental 
     health issue facing service members, but when Matthew 
     Friedman began his career working with veterans 40 years ago, 
     the term did not exist.
       Today, the psychiatrist and pharmacologist is executive 
     director of the Veterans Affairs Department's National Center 
     for PTSD, based in White River Junction, Vt. Since the center 
     was created in 1989, Friedman has expanded it to seven VA 
     medical centers across the country. He overcame many skeptics 
     along the way, who believed the affliction was not a serious 
     disorder. At 71, Friedman now wants to understand how to 
     prevent the disorder and why some soldiers suffer from it 
     while others don't.
       ``What is the difference between resilient and vulnerable 
     people?'' he asked.

                          ____________________