[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 14400]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         SUICIDE PREVENTION DAY

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
Suicide Prevention Day, which is recognized on September 10. Suicide is 
a tragedy that touches more of us than most might realize. It is also a 
great challenge for our military.
  In addition to an alarming suicide rate, half of all soldiers who 
tried suicide first attempted it before enlisting, according to recent 
Army studies, and a large percentage had never been deployed in a 
combat role.
  Today, as we draw attention to the issues and prevention strategies 
that might save just one life or more, I am proud to say the House in 
May passed bipartisan legislation that would improve the military's 
approach to suicide detection and prevention.
  While currently the Department of Defense does a thorough physical 
assessment for military recruits, no similar mental health evaluation 
is performed.
  H.R. 4305, the Medical Evaluation Parity for Servicemembers Act, will 
bring mental health to parity with physical health through the 
enforcement of a mental health assessment for incoming military 
recruits.
  On Suicide Prevention Day, I am calling on the Senate to pass this 
important legislation. Our servicemembers deserve as much.

                          ____________________