[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 5]
[House]
[Pages 7292-7293]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     MENTAL HEALTH AWARENESS MONTH

  (Mr. BILIRAKIS asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to observe Mental Health 
Awareness Month.
  Approximately one in five Americans have a mental illness. That is 
roughly 43 million Americans. These invisible wounds are just as 
serious as physical ones, and it is vital we understand the health care 
needs of individuals living with mental illnesses.
  Race, sex, age, gender--mental illnesses do not discriminate.
  Many of the Americans who suffer from PTS and TBI are our veterans, 
our true heroes. As vice chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, I 
am familiar with their struggle. This is why I introduced the COVER 
Act,

[[Page 7293]]

which recently passed in the Veterans' Affairs Health Subcommittee and 
which gives veterans choices to seek alternative therapies and 
treatments for PTS and TBI.
  As we observe Mental Health Awareness Month, let us all remember: 
these invisible wounds deserve our attention as much as the physical 
ones.

                          ____________________