[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 144 (Wednesday, August 12, 2020)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5397-S5398]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
VETERANS MENTAL HEALTH CARE IMPROVEMENT ACT
Mr. CASSIDY. Mr. President, I rise today to speak to a very important
piece of legislation, which quietly passed this Chamber last week. It
included several provisions I authored and offered based upon my
experience as a physician that specifically provides mental health
support to America's veterans.
We all agree, we owe the men and women who fought and fight for this
country a tremendous debt of gratitude for the sacrifices they made to
preserve our freedom. It is dangerous, and our servicemembers answer
the call. Many carry scars from injuries sustained during that service.
But there are scars that we cannot see. Service can take a physical
toll but also a mental one. Too many veterans struggle with mental
health issues and suicidal thoughts. About 17 veterans per day from all
of our wars put together take their own lives. For comparison, 22
servicemembers were killed in combat in Afghanistan throughout all of
2019. We are losing thousands more veterans at home than we are losing
fighting men and women in the field. That is something to ponder.
We must do a better job of leading the mental health needs of
veterans. Thankfully, this Chamber took a big step forward last week
when we passed the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health
Care Improvement Act.
The bill improves outreach to veterans and offers new mental
healthcare options in five major ways: First, the bill bolsters the
VA's mental health workforce to serve more veterans. It gives the VA
direct hiring authority for mental health professionals. The VA can
offer scholarships to mental health professionals to work at vet
centers, and it provides for at least one suicide prevention
coordinator at every Veterans' Administration Hospital.
It improves rural veterans' access to mental healthcare by increasing
the number of locations where veterans can access VA telehealth
services. It also offers grants to non-VA organizations that provide
mental health services or alternative treatments to veterans.
The bill strengthens support and assistance for servicemembers
transitioning out of the military by automatically giving every
servicemember a full year of VA healthcare when they leave the
military.
By the way, this came to my mind: It turns out that most suicides
occur within 6 weeks of one of our soldiers or sailors or marines
leaving the service; within 6 months of that departure is when they
tend to commit suicide. But it is about 6 months before they first
access VA services. We have to have this kind of transition point
tightened and one that makes sure they all know they have VA benefits
for that first year.
The Veterans Mental Healthcare Improvement Act also studies and
invests in innovative and alternative science-based treatment options.
It invests in research on the impact of living at high altitudes, on
veterans' suicide risk, and on identifying and treating other risk
factors for mental health illness.
It holds the VA accountable for its mental healthcare and suicide
prevention efforts. It does this by examining
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how the VA manages suicide prevention resources and how the VA provides
care and information sharing for veterans seeking mental healthcare
from both VA and community providers.
This bill takes a strong, evidence-based approach to meeting
veterans' needs that haven't always been given priority. It is
encouraging to me that is bipartisan. At a time when we don't appear to
agree on very much, we are able to deliver for our heroes.
I am proud to have worked with my Democratic colleagues to write
bills that were included in this package. Senator Tester and I
partnered on the Promoting Coordination for Veteran Suicide Prevention
Act. This bill, this amendment, ensures that a thorough review of
veterans who die by suicide within 1 year of separation from the Armed
Services is conducted jointly by both the Department of Defense and by
the VA.
As I mentioned, most suicides occur within 6 months of separating
from service. If that is the case, then the Department of Defense can
do a review of what are those risk factors and have a warm handoff to
the Veterans' Administration Hospital. And because we made automatic
that first year of service within the VA, that warm handoff can be
taken without any impediments of is there coverage or is there not.
There is also going to be a partnership between the mental health and
suicide prevention experts in both the VA and DOD that will contribute
to improved information sharing and help further close the gap in
ensuring high-quality, seamless care between these two Departments,
focusing on the serviceperson who has now become a veteran.
Senator Tester and I also worked together on the VA Research Approval
Efficiency Act. This provision authorizes the Veterans Administration
to leverage accredited commercial institutional review boards for use
in connection with VA-sponsored clinical research. Getting the VA
commercial options for approving clinical trials will add much-needed
efficiencies and begin to reduce the disparity with academic and other
institutions that, today, lead in clinical trial administration.
If we know that our treatments for those with mental illness often
need to be improved, we want to give our veterans access to those
improved treatments as soon as possible, but we also want to make sure
that those treatments suit the needs of the veteran. You can only do
this by encouraging that research activity with full consent of the
veteran--full consent--by which she or he may participate in these
trials for her benefit, his benefit, but also for the benefit of us
all. This reform enables the VA to increase the caliber care it
delivers to veterans in a variety of clinical areas.
Senator Sinema and I introduced the Improving Mental Health Care for
Veterans Act. This provision requires VA and DOD to establish a joint
clinical practice guideline for treatment of serious mental illness.
This commonsense approach builds on an already robust library of
clinical practice guidelines that serve to standardize and reinforce
treatment procedures in other areas.
Just as a point, if someone is found to be well-controlled in a
certain medical regimen but then they transition to another different
care with a different formulary, then all the hard work to find just
the right clinical pharmaceutical treatment program to keep the person
balanced now has to be changed because the second department has a
different formulary--a different set of drugs with which they wish to
treat--all the good work done here is lost there.
We wish to eliminate that possibility by making sure there is a
common set of clinical guidelines so that somebody with stress is
passed off and it is seamless, both in terms of the clinical care, but
also the medicines which they may take.
The passage of the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health
Care Improvement Act is the culmination of a lot of hard work from both
Democratic and Republican Senators. It now goes to the House for
consideration. I urge the House to swiftly pass this legislation so
that President Trump can sign it into law.
This bill will have a direct, positive impact in the care the VA
delivers to American veterans. They answered the call to serve our
Nation; now, Congress must answer the call to better serve them.
I yield the floor.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order
for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Cassidy). Without objection, it is so
ordered.
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