[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 4 (Wednesday, January 8, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H25-H26]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               TRANSITIONAL ASSISTANCE MANAGEMENT PROGRAM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Pennsylvania (Mr. Thompson) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, on December 26, 2013, 
President Obama signed into law the 2014 National Defense Authorization 
Act, which sets policy and funding levels for the U.S. Department of 
Defense.
  In large part, the bill went through regular committee order on the 
House side, with the consideration of amendments from both Republicans 
and Democrats. A somewhat similar series of actions was taken by the 
Senate. Despite a small amount of political theater, both Chambers not 
only found common ground in and passed this important measure, but in 
placing good policy before politics, Members overcame differences and 
acted in the best interests of the country--in this case, to the 
benefit of our men and women in uniform. Mr. Speaker, this is how the 
institution is supposed to work.
  The measure offers our servicemembers resources to safely fulfill 
their

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missions and the support that they deserve when they return from 
service. I offered an amendment to the bill, which passed as part of 
the final agreement. This will help improve the support we offer those 
who serve as they transition to civilian life, especially those coping 
with behavioral health injuries.
  Under the previous policy, servicemembers and their families could 
utilize 180 days of health care coverage during the transition from 
military to civilian life through what is known as TAMP, the 
Transitional Assistance Management Program. Unfortunately, 
posttraumatic stress and other behavioral injuries oftentimes do not 
present symptoms in some cases until 8 to 10 months after leaving the 
military. Now, this can be overwhelming if not debilitating for an 
individual seeking to reenter civilian life and start the next path. 
This amendment extends TAMP coverage by an additional 180 days for all 
services rendered through telemedicine.
  The amendment builds on a bill I introduced in 2011, the STEP Act, 
now Public Law 112-81, section 713, which expanded Federal exemptions 
for telehealth consultations across State lines by removing the 
individual State requirement that health professionals must hold 
licenses in the State where servicemember care is received. Health care 
professionals who are credentialed by the Department of Defense are now 
able to offer these services regardless of the patient's physical 
location.
  In addition, it allows military doctors to reach more patients, and 
it allows more patients to access care without the stigma often 
associated with the seeking of treatment for the first time. If 
desired, such support can now be accessed from the comfort of one's own 
home, through video teleconference, Skype, and a range of other 
telemedicine practices. In part due to this commonsense change, in 2012 
the Army was able to perform nearly 36,000 teleconsultations, which 
includes over 31,200 telebehavioral health clinic encounters. The 
numbers continued to grow in 2013.
  For those burdened by physical and psychological injuries as a result 
of their service in uniform, we must take every action to help them 
rebuild and become whole. Both of these policy changes are positive 
steps forward in modernizing how the Department of Defense delivers 
health care, making widespread telemedicine possible and accessible to 
those most in need.
  Mr. Speaker, Washington remains divided as we begin the second 
session of the 113th Congress, but I remain hopeful in knowing that 
bipartisan accomplishments such as this can serve as a guiding light 
for this institution in the weeks and months to come.

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