[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 39 (Tuesday, March 6, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H1421]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                           MILITARY SAVE ACT

  (Mr. PAULSEN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PAULSEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak in support of the 
Military SAVE Act.
  Last year, the Department of Defense reported there were an estimated 
20,300 military members who indicated they had experienced a sexual 
assault the year prior. Many of these military sexual trauma survivors 
expressed concerns that services available within the VA healthcare 
system did not meet their post-trauma needs.
  This bill will now require the Department of Veterans Affairs to 
establish a 3-year pilot program to allow these survivors treatment 
related to their injuries from the provider of their choice. Then the 
VA will compare the care received from outside providers with the VA so 
that they can find ways to provide better care for MST survivors.
  Mr. Speaker, anyone who is sexually assaulted should be able to 
receive the care that they need, and that stands true for the men and 
women protecting our Nation. Members of the military should be 
confident in the quality of care they receive from the VA, and this new 
bill, when it becomes law, would help the VA to improve the services 
that they offer.

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