[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 23 (Tuesday, February 9, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H630-H633]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 FEMALE VETERAN SUICIDE PREVENTION ACT

  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 2915) to amend title 38, United States Code, to direct the 
Secretary of Veterans Affairs to identify mental health care and 
suicide prevention programs and metrics that are effective in treating 
women veterans as part of the evaluation of such programs by the 
Secretary, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2915

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Female Veteran Suicide 
     Prevention Act''.

     SEC. 2. SPECIFIC CONSIDERATION OF WOMEN VETERANS IN 
                   EVALUATION OF DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS 
                   MENTAL HEALTH CARE AND SUICIDE PREVENTION 
                   PROGRAMS.

       Section 1709B(a)(2) of title 38, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (A), by inserting before the semicolon 
     the following: ``, including specific metrics applicable to 
     women'';
       (2) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``and'' at the end;
       (3) in subparagraph (E), by striking the period at the end 
     and inserting ``; and''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
       ``(F) identify the mental health care and suicide 
     prevention programs conducted by the Secretary that are most 
     effective for women veterans and such programs with the 
     highest satisfaction rates among women veterans.''.

     SEC. 3. MENTAL HEALTH TREATMENT FOR VETERANS WHO SERVED IN 
                   CLASSIFIED MISSIONS.

       (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     veterans who experience combat-related mental health wounds 
     should have immediate, appropriate, and consistent access to 
     comprehensive mental health care.
       (b) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 17 of title 38, 
     United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
     following section:

     ``Sec. 1720H. Mental health treatment for veterans who served 
       in classified missions

       ``(a) Establishment of Standards.--(1) The Secretary shall 
     establish standards and procedures to ensure that each 
     covered veteran may access mental health care provided by the 
     Secretary in a manner that fully accommodates the obligation 
     of the veteran to not improperly disclose classified 
     information.
       ``(2) The Secretary shall disseminate guidance to employees 
     of the Veterans Health Administration, including mental 
     health professionals, on the standards and procedures 
     established under paragraph (1) and how to best engage 
     covered veterans during the course of mental health treatment 
     with respect to classified information.
       ``(b) Identification.--In carrying out this section, the 
     Secretary shall ensure that a veteran may elect to identify 
     as a covered veteran on an appropriate form.
       ``(c) Definitions.--In this section:
       ``(1) The term `classified information' means any 
     information or material that has been determined by an 
     official of the United States pursuant to law, an Executive 
     order, or regulation to require protection against 
     unauthorized disclosure for reasons of national security.
       ``(2) The term `covered veteran' means a veteran who--
       ``(A) is enrolled in the health care system established 
     under section 1705(a) of this title;
       ``(B) is seeking mental health treatment; and
       ``(C) in the course of serving in the Armed Forces, 
     participated in a sensitive mission or served in a sensitive 
     unit.
       ``(3) The term `sensitive mission' means a mission of the 
     Armed Forces that, at the time at which a covered veteran 
     seeks treatment, is classified.
       ``(4) The term `sensitive unit' has the meaning given that 
     term in section 130b(c)(4) of title 10.''.
       (c) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by adding after the item 
     relating to section 1720G the following new item:

``1720H. Mental health treatment for veterans who served in classified 
              missions.''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Louisiana (Mr. Abraham) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Takano) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Louisiana.


                             General Leave

  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and 
add extraneous material on H.R. 2915, as amended.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Louisiana?

[[Page H631]]

  There was no objection.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise in support of H.R. 2915, as amended, the Female Veteran 
Suicide Prevention Act. This bill would amend the Clay Hunt Suicide 
Prevention for American Veterans, or the SAV Act, by directing the 
Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure that the independent third-
party evaluation of mental health and suicide prevention programs 
required in the act identifies programs and metrics that are effective 
in treating women veterans.
  Women are an important and an increasing segment of our Active Duty 
and veteran populations, and, moving forward, we must ensure that VA 
takes the unique needs of women veterans into account when conducting 
program reviews and evaluations.
  This is particularly important for mental health and suicide 
prevention programs, given that recent research has shown that female 
veterans commit suicide at nearly six times the rate of other women and 
are five times more likely to commit suicide than male veterans.
  H.R. 2915, as amended, would also require the VA to establish and 
disseminate standards and procedures to ensure that a veteran who has 
participated in a classified mission or served in a sensitive unit 
while in the Armed Forces may access VA mental health care in a manner 
that fully accommodates his or her obligation to not improperly 
disclose classified information.
  Serious concerns have been raised about the mental health care that 
VA provides to veterans following the suicide death of Sergeant Daniel 
Somers in 2013. Sergeant Somers served on a number of classified 
missions during his time in the military.
  When he separated from service and sought VA care, he was enrolled in 
group therapy sessions despite his fear of being unable to participate 
comfortably in group sessions due to his fear that he may inadvertently 
share classified information.
  Had VA been more responsive to Sergeant Somers' concerns and provided 
him treatment that was sensitive to has concerns, he may be with us 
today.
  H.R. 2915, as amended, is sponsored by Congresswoman Julia Brownley 
of California, the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Health, and 
incorporates provisions sponsored by Congresswoman Kyrsten Sinema of 
Arizona.
  I am grateful to both of them for their work.
  I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 2915, as amended.
  I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I rise today in support of H.R. 2915, a bill to direct the Secretary 
of Veterans Affairs to identify mental health care and suicide 
prevention programs that are effective in treating women veterans as a 
part of the evaluation of such programs by the Secretary.
  My friend, the ranking member of the Health Subcommittee, Ms. Julia 
Brownley, was integral to identifying the issues affecting women 
suicides. I commend her leadership in bringing this issue to our 
attention.
  Congress has long recognized the unacceptable rates of suicide among 
our Nation's veterans. Most recently, Congress passed the Clay Hunt 
Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, Public Law 114-2, which 
requires an independent third party to evaluate VA mental health care 
and suicide prevention programs.
  VA's most recent suicide data report was released in February of 
2013. That report found that 18 to 22 veterans per day commit suicide. 
In a follow-up report, the VA found an increase in the suicide rate 
among female veterans who use the VA healthcare system.
  This finding echoes recent research that found that female veterans 
commit suicide nearly six times the rate of other women and that women 
veterans are five times more likely to be successful in committing 
suicide than male veterans.
  This bill would amend the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American 
Veterans Act to include within the independent third-party evaluation 
specific metrics applicable to women and to identify the VA mental 
health care and suicide prevention programs that are most effective and 
have the highest satisfaction rates among with women veterans.
  Additionally, this legislation includes a provision that my friend, 
Representative Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, has been working on for 
years.
  This section requires the VA to establish and publish standards and 
procedures to ensure that a woman who participated in a classified 
mission or served in a sensitive unit while in the Armed Forces may 
access VA mental health care without improperly disclosing classified 
information.
  This provision would also require the VA to find alternative methods 
of mental health treatment for veterans who need to access care without 
being put in a position where they may reveal information that should 
not be disclosed.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers. Once again, 
I encourage all Members to support H.R. 2915, as amended.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from 
California (Ms. Brownley).
  Ms. BROWNLEY of California. Mr. Speaker, first I would like to thank 
Chairman Miller and Ranking Member Brown for their help in moving the 
Female Veteran Suicide Prevention Act forward.

  I would also like to recognize my colleague from Arizona whose bill 
honoring the memory of her constituent, Army veteran Sergeant Daniel 
Somers, has been included.
  Mr. Speaker, as you know, the women veteran population is more than 2 
million and growing quickly. But our understanding of the experience of 
women in the military and women veterans is not keeping pace with this 
rapidly changing demographic.
  We agree that one of the most pressing and immediate issues we must 
address, as Members of Congress, is the tragic epidemic of suicide 
among all of our veterans. Last year Congress passed the Clay Hunt SAV 
Act, which required the VA to conduct annual evaluations of its suicide 
prevention and mental health programs.
  I am confident that the Clay Hunt bill will save lives. But recently 
researchers analyzed data from 23 States and the Suicide Repository on 
more than 170,000 suicides over a 10-year period.
  These researchers found data suggesting that female veteran suicide 
follows very different patterns than male veteran suicide. The 
statistics are extremely startling. Suicide among women veterans 
increased by an astounding 40 percent from 2000 to 2010.
  The suicide rate among veteran women is nearly six times higher than 
among nonveteran women. For women ages 18 to 29, the risk of suicide is 
even higher, at nearly 12 times the rate of nonveteran women.
  We don't know whether the reasons are related to the high rate of 
military sexual assault, gender-specific experiences on the 
battlefield, or factors that distinguish differing personal 
backgrounds, which is exactly the point. Without looking more closely 
at the root causes, we cannot hope to find better solutions.
  Last year the Los Angeles Times wrote about this issue describing the 
heartbreaking case of Army medic Sara Leatherman. Even before her 
deployment, Sara had experienced depression and attempted suicide.
  She was discharged early from her deployment because of a back injury 
sustained in Iraq. Suffering from post-traumatic stress and 
experiencing physical pain from her injury, Sara was not able to live 
by herself and moved in with her grandmother.
  Sara was trying to get her life back on track and was attending 
community college. Although Sara was receiving VA treatment for PTSD, 
at the very young age of 24, she tragically took her life. Her family 
has been utterly destroyed by their loss.
  While so very distressing, the VA was unable to help Sara. So we must 
honor Sara's memory and the memory of other women veterans whom we so 
tragically lost to suicide by doing our very best to better understand 
the underlying and unique causes that lead women veterans to take their 
lives over wanting to live their lives.
  I introduced the Female Veteran Suicide Prevention Act to do just 
that by

[[Page H632]]

building upon and improving the Clay Hunt SAV Act. My bill will help 
identify the different mental health and suicide prevention programs 
that are most effective for either male or female veterans.
  My bill will also require the VA to report to Congress annually on 
the results of this analysis. Finally, my bill will require that VA's 
evaluation of its suicide prevention programs include specific 
performance metrics for women veterans.
  The Female Veteran Suicide Prevention Act passed the House Veterans' 
Affairs Committee proudly with bipartisan support. It is also supported 
by the Service Women's Action Network, The American Legion, the 
Military Order of the Purple Heart, Disabled American Veterans, Iraq 
and Afghanistan Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars, 
Paralyzed Veterans of America, and the Vietnam Veterans of America.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill will give us more tools in the toolbox to help 
save the lives of men and women who have bravely served our country 
with great honor and distinction. One human life unnecessarily lost is 
one life too many.
  I thank my colleagues on the committee for making the Female Veteran 
Suicide Prevention Act a priority. I urge all of my colleagues to join 
me in voting ``yes'' on this important legislation.

                                          The American Legion,

                               Washington, DC, September 11, 2015.
     Hon. Julia Brownley,
     U.S. House of Representatives,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Representative Brownley: On behalf of the over 2 
     million members of The American Legion, I would like to 
     express our support for H.R. 2915, the Female Veteran Suicide 
     Prevention Act. This bill, as written, would improve female 
     veteran suicide prevention programs within the Department of 
     Veterans Affairs (VA) by amending Title 38 directing the 
     Secretary of Veterans Affairs to identify mental health care 
     and suicide prevention programs and metrics that are 
     effective in treating women veterans. This bill also strives 
     to improve suicide prevention programs for female veterans 
     enrolled in the VA healthcare system.
       In 2014, The American Legion passed a resolution urging the 
     President and Congress to sign into law the Suicide 
     Prevention for American Veterans Act or similar acts that 
     will expand and improve the care provided to veterans and 
     servicemembers who have mental health issues or are at risk 
     of suicide. Under this Act, the Departments of Defense and 
     Veterans Affairs would be required to review their mental 
     health care programs on an annual basis to ensure their 
     effectiveness, offer special training on identifying those 
     high risk veterans who are suicidal to their mental health 
     providers, and to improve the process regarding medical 
     records and prescriptions for the purpose of ensuring that 
     there is a seamless health care process for those 
     servicemembers who are transitioning out of the service.
       Again, The American Legion supports H.R 2915, the Female 
     Veteran Suicide Prevention Act and applauds your leadership 
     in addressing this critical issue facing our nation's 
     veterans and their families.
           Sincerely,
                                                     Dale Barnett,
     National Commander.
                                  ____

                                                 Military Order of


                                             the Purple Heart,

                               Springfield, VA, December 15, 2015.
     Hon. Jeff Miller,
     Chairman, Committee on Veterans' Affairs,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Miller:  On behalf of the Military Order of 
     the Purple Heart (MOPH), I am pleased to offer support for 
     H.R. 2915, the ``Female Veteran Suicide Prevention Act''. 
     This legislation, if enacted, would help to identify mental 
     health and suicide prevention programs that are the most 
     effective and have the best outcomes among women veterans and 
     would require that the results be reported to both the Senate 
     and House Veterans Committees.
       The recent data that has been published is deeply 
     troubling. The data suggests that the suicide rate among 
     women veterans is approximately six times higher than that of 
     women who did not serve in the military.
       While the Department of Veterans Affairs is examining why 
     the suicide rate among women veterans is so much higher and 
     how a history of Military Sexual Trauma may be one of the 
     contributing factors, we as a nation must devote the time and 
     resources to support these women who served our country in 
     uniform.
       MOPH requests that you bring this legislation before your 
     committee as soon as possible so that America's women 
     veterans understand that this issue will be given a high 
     priority and that their service is appreciated.
           Respectfully,
                                                    Robert Puskar,
                                               National Commander.

  Mr. TAKANO. Mr. Speaker, again, I wish to thank my colleagues, Ms. 
Brownley and Ms. Sinema, for bringing the issues surrounding the 
prevention of female suicides in the military to our attention.
  I urge passage of this very important bill.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the 
Female Veteran Suicide Prevention Act (H.R. 2915).
  The VA estimates that 22 veterans take their own lives each day, or 
over 8,000 per year--more than have been killed in action since 9/11. 
The incidence of suicide among our veteran population is stunning, 
tragic beyond words, and simply unacceptable.
  Too many veterans have returned from fighting our enemies overseas to 
fighting for their lives at home. As the son of a WW2 combat veteran, I 
have witnessed the residual wounds of war, the struggle to cope with 
the post-traumatic stress that can continue for decades and the pain 
that a lack of access to services can cause for veterans and their 
families.
  Recognizing this great, unmet need, Congress recently enacted the 
bipartisan ``Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans (SAV) 
Act,'' legislation targeting the gaps in the VA's mental health and 
suicide prevention efforts. Among other provisions, the law requires 
annual, independent third party evaluations of the effectiveness of the 
Department of Veterans Affairs' (VA) programs and establishes best 
practices for caring for at-risk veterans.
  While the Clay Hunt Act is a comprehensive and well-designed law--I 
cosponsored and voted for it twice--there is one area where 
improvements could be made to maximize its impact and better assist one 
group of veterans: female veterans.
  As the House Veterans' Affairs Committee report states: In 2014, the 
VA released an update to the survey and found increases in the suicide 
rate in female users of the VA health care system. Female veterans 
commit suicide at nearly six times the rate of other women and that 
women veterans are five times more likely to commit suicide than male 
veterans. Yet the VA's research focuses primarily on men and little is 
known about the complex causes and factors that are driving the suicide 
rate among females who have served.
  The bill we are voting on today offers a modest but important step to 
enhance our understanding of, and hopefully help remedy, these 
staggering numbers. Specifically, H.R. 2915 directs the VA to identify 
mental health care and suicide prevention programs that are most 
effective and have the highest satisfaction rates among women veterans.
  We as a nation have a duty and obligation to repay the debt we owe to 
those who have fought in defense of our nation and our ideals. This 
bill helps ensure we better address the physical and emotional wounds 
of all veterans and I urge all members to support it.
  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, as a proud cosponsor I rise in strong 
support of H.R. 2915, the ``Female Veteran Suicide Prevention Act,'' 
which directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to implement mental 
health care and suicide prevention programs and identify metrics that 
are effective in reducing the incidence of suicide among female 
veterans.
  Over the last decade suicide has become a major issue for the 
military, but the research has been predominantly focused on men and 
too much remains unknown about the cause and frequency of suicide among 
female veterans.
  Mr. Speaker, several recent studies show that, unfortunately, female 
military veterans commit suicide at nearly 6 times the rate of other 
women.
  The suicide rate among female veterans is so high that it approaches 
that of their male counterparts, a finding that surprises researchers 
because men generally are far more likely than women to commit suicide.
  The highest rates of suicide are found among young female veterans, 
ages 18-29, who are 12 times more likely to commit suicide as their 
civilian counterparts.
  This is heart breaking, but perhaps not unexpected, since reports 
indicate that 10% of women serving on active duty are victims of rape 
and another 13% were subjected to other unwanted sexual contact.
  Mr. Speaker, in every other age group, including women who served as 
far back as the 1950s, suicide rates for female veterans are between 4 
and 8 times higher than that of their civilian counterparts.
  These trends are so disturbing that it has earned the sobriquet from 
the Houston Chronicle as ``The Silent National Epidemic.''
  The Texas Department of State Health Services lists a decedent's 
military experience in his or her death record, regardless of whether 
the deceased was serving in the armed forces at time of death.
  While it is not clear what is driving the rates of female veteran 
suicides, the consistency across age groups suggests that a 
statistically significant correlation exists between gender and 
military service but the sad truth is that we lack sufficient data to 
generate externally valid inferences about causation.

[[Page H633]]

  In the general population, women attempt suicide more often than men 
but succeed less because women usually use pills or other methods that 
are less lethal than firearms.
  Female veterans, however, are more likely than other women to possess 
firearms, and more likely to use a firearm to commit suicide (40% 
compared to 34% of civilian women).
  H.R. 2915 is intended to make progress in identifying the causes and 
reducing the incidences of suicide by female veterans.
  The bravery and devotion of female veterans, who have provided heroic 
service to our nation, often at great personal costs, is unquestioned.
  We owe it to them to be there when they need our help just as they 
were there to answer the call when their country needed them.
  I urge all Members to join me in voting to pass H.R. 2915, the 
``Female Veteran Suicide Prevention Act.''
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Abraham) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 2915, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  The title of the bill was amended so as to read: ``A bill to amend 
title 38, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs to identify mental health care and suicide prevention programs 
and metrics that are effective in treating women veterans as part of 
the evaluation of such programs by the Secretary, and for other 
purposes.''.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________