With four weeks remaining before the election, the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) released its report cards on members of the 110th Congress. Grading was based on legislation that affected veterans and their families.
In the Senate, Republican presidential nominee Sen. John McCain of Arizona earned a ‘D’ on the report card, while his Democratic opponent, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, finished the term with a ‘B.’ Grades were based on nine votes covering a range of issue including veterans’ health care, the new GI Bill, mental health and support for homeless veterans.
Both of the nominees’ grades were hindered by their attendance. While hitting the campaign trail for potential votes, McCain missed six of the nine votes, while his counterpart, Obama, missed four of the votes.
The IAVA, the largest organization of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, says it is committed to holding elected officials accountable through its nonprofit, nonpartisan 501, the IAVA Action Fund. The advocacy group released the report card on Oct. 6 to educate American voters on the voting records of elected officials and hold them them accountable for their actions regarding the 1.7 million veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The report card scores are based on how often legislators voted in favor of pro-veteran positions that align with the IAVA Action. All of the bills were equally weighted, except the 21st Century GI Bill, which was doubled because it was the IAVA’s top legislative priority.
The latter boded well for Obama, who co-sponsored the bill, but adversely affected McCain, who not only did not support the final version of the bill, but, while fundraising in California, missed the vote. McCain did co-sponsor an alternative bill, which was quickly shot down in the Senate, because it conflicted with Virginia Democratic Sen. Jim Webb’s version of the bill.
Voting against the new GI Bill affected Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who received a ‘C’ on the report card, while his colleague Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, received the highest rating, an ‘A+’.
In the House, Iowa’s freshmen Democrats, Reps. Bruce Braley, District 1, and Dave Loebsack,District 2, joined Harkin at the top with an ‘A+.’ They were closely followed by Reps. Leonard Boswell, D- District 3 and Tom Latham, R- District 4, who received an ‘A,’ and Rep. Steve King, R-District 5, who earned a ‘B’.
The IAVA used 13 votes in the House to assess grades
Showing posts with label Tom Harkin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tom Harkin. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Friday, October 3, 2008
Déjà vu? GOP obstructionism delays military suicide-prevention bill
Despite the steady rise in suicides among active-duty service members, congressional politics trumped an amendment to the recently passed Defense of Defense Reauthorization Bill that would have helped address this increasing problem.
Although Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, was pleased with some of the measures in the bill that will help military members and their families, he was disappointed that his suicide-prevention measure, along with a measure to fix a pay glitch that shortchanged National Guard troops, were casualties of partisan politics.
“While I am glad my colleagues in the Senate have passed this important legislation, I was disappointed to hear that two fundamental measures that I pushed for were needlessly blocked by one member of the minority party,” Harkin said in a statement. “My amendment to help prevent suicide among active-duty service members and an amendment I co-signed that would have fixed a pay glitch that shortchanged many National Guard troops both fell tonight because of Republican obstructionism.
“The Army has reported that, as of the end of August, 62 soldiers have committed suicide so far this year and another 31 deaths appear to be suicides,” Harkin said in a statement. “If this pace continues, that could mean the number of suicides in 2008 would eclipse the 115 suicides recorded in 2007. These startling statistics should serve as a wake-up call that suicide among soldiers and veterans is more than a problem, it is an emergency. My amendment would have created a comprehensive suicide prevention program including annual training for all service members, improved instruction for field medics and post deployment assistance.”
The suicide-prevention amendment introduced by Harkin was one of 101 eventually scrapped by the majority party in the Senate, who feared that an amendment introduced by Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., might reframe the debate over the amendments to a debate over pork-barrel spending – something the Democrats want to avoid in election-year politics.
Another amendment co-sponsored by Harkin and left by the wayside would have retroactively reimbursed soldiers shortchanged during a bureaucratic lapse. “Currently, there are more than 600 Iowa National Guard service members who have not received their earned leave due to a delay between the announcement of a new leave program by the Department of Defense and the establishment of the program by the individual services,” Harkin said in a statement.
DeMint, employing an obstructionist tactic, introduced an amendment that would have would have given the Department of Defense authority to ignore up to $5 billion of earmarks found not in the bill, but buried in the bill's report.
This is not the first time that a suicide-prevention measure aimed at helping service members was caught in the partisan crossfire and nearly killed by GOP obstructionism.
Despite overwhelming bipartisan congressional support for the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act, which was introduced by Harkin in August 2007, the measure was held up by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., who put a hold on it. Coburn called the bill insulting to veterans and warned that its mandatory mental health screening could harm their future job options. “I’m going to continue to hold this bill until we work on the issues to guarantee freedoms of the veterans in terms of the tracking,” Coburn said on the Senate floor.
The obstructionist move drew the ire of Harkin, who was surprised by Coburn’s hold. “The Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act has received intense scrutiny, including two hearings in the House and three in the Senate,” Harkin said on the Senate floor in September 2007. “The bill has been strongly endorsed by the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Disabled Veterans of America, and other veterans groups. So it is a travesty to have this bill held up, now, by a single Senator for reasons that are completely bogus.”
The Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention bill was first introduced in the House by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, who named the bill after a soldier from his district in Grundy Center, Iowa, who took his own life after returning from Iraq. The bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to step up screening, counseling and other mental health services for returning war veterans by mandating this process. The House bill overwhelmingly passed in March 2007 by a vote of 423 to 0.
In the Senate, however, Coburn objected to the unanimous consent request, citing concerns that veterans’ access to purchasing guns may be hindered. Harkin refuted Coburn’s claim on the Senate floor: “And his principal reason for doing so is completely baseless,” Harkin said. “He speculates that if we have mandatory screening of all veterans for suicide risk, the resulting medical data might be used to deny a veteran the right to purchase handguns. No medical professional can refer an individual to the background check system that would limit access to firearms. This can only be done through the judicial system.”
Eventually, with the help of his colleague Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Harkin helped usher the bill through the Senate in late September 2007. Grassley took the leadership role on the Republican side and helped persuade Coburn to lift the hold, before it passed overwhelmingly in the Senate and was signed into law by President Bush shortly thereafter.
The fate of Harkin’s new suicide-prevention and the National Guard pay-glitch amendments remain uncertain at this point, although Harkin has vowed to keep fighting for these measures until they pass.
As he said in a recent statement: “The demise of these two common-sense amendments to the Defense Authorization Bill is unfortunate and unfair to the men and women who serve our country so courageously.”
Although Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, was pleased with some of the measures in the bill that will help military members and their families, he was disappointed that his suicide-prevention measure, along with a measure to fix a pay glitch that shortchanged National Guard troops, were casualties of partisan politics.
“While I am glad my colleagues in the Senate have passed this important legislation, I was disappointed to hear that two fundamental measures that I pushed for were needlessly blocked by one member of the minority party,” Harkin said in a statement. “My amendment to help prevent suicide among active-duty service members and an amendment I co-signed that would have fixed a pay glitch that shortchanged many National Guard troops both fell tonight because of Republican obstructionism.
“The Army has reported that, as of the end of August, 62 soldiers have committed suicide so far this year and another 31 deaths appear to be suicides,” Harkin said in a statement. “If this pace continues, that could mean the number of suicides in 2008 would eclipse the 115 suicides recorded in 2007. These startling statistics should serve as a wake-up call that suicide among soldiers and veterans is more than a problem, it is an emergency. My amendment would have created a comprehensive suicide prevention program including annual training for all service members, improved instruction for field medics and post deployment assistance.”
The suicide-prevention amendment introduced by Harkin was one of 101 eventually scrapped by the majority party in the Senate, who feared that an amendment introduced by Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., might reframe the debate over the amendments to a debate over pork-barrel spending – something the Democrats want to avoid in election-year politics.
Another amendment co-sponsored by Harkin and left by the wayside would have retroactively reimbursed soldiers shortchanged during a bureaucratic lapse. “Currently, there are more than 600 Iowa National Guard service members who have not received their earned leave due to a delay between the announcement of a new leave program by the Department of Defense and the establishment of the program by the individual services,” Harkin said in a statement.
DeMint, employing an obstructionist tactic, introduced an amendment that would have would have given the Department of Defense authority to ignore up to $5 billion of earmarks found not in the bill, but buried in the bill's report.
This is not the first time that a suicide-prevention measure aimed at helping service members was caught in the partisan crossfire and nearly killed by GOP obstructionism.
Despite overwhelming bipartisan congressional support for the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act, which was introduced by Harkin in August 2007, the measure was held up by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., who put a hold on it. Coburn called the bill insulting to veterans and warned that its mandatory mental health screening could harm their future job options. “I’m going to continue to hold this bill until we work on the issues to guarantee freedoms of the veterans in terms of the tracking,” Coburn said on the Senate floor.
The obstructionist move drew the ire of Harkin, who was surprised by Coburn’s hold. “The Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act has received intense scrutiny, including two hearings in the House and three in the Senate,” Harkin said on the Senate floor in September 2007. “The bill has been strongly endorsed by the American Legion, Veterans of Foreign Wars, the Disabled Veterans of America, and other veterans groups. So it is a travesty to have this bill held up, now, by a single Senator for reasons that are completely bogus.”
The Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention bill was first introduced in the House by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, who named the bill after a soldier from his district in Grundy Center, Iowa, who took his own life after returning from Iraq. The bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to step up screening, counseling and other mental health services for returning war veterans by mandating this process. The House bill overwhelmingly passed in March 2007 by a vote of 423 to 0.
In the Senate, however, Coburn objected to the unanimous consent request, citing concerns that veterans’ access to purchasing guns may be hindered. Harkin refuted Coburn’s claim on the Senate floor: “And his principal reason for doing so is completely baseless,” Harkin said. “He speculates that if we have mandatory screening of all veterans for suicide risk, the resulting medical data might be used to deny a veteran the right to purchase handguns. No medical professional can refer an individual to the background check system that would limit access to firearms. This can only be done through the judicial system.”
Eventually, with the help of his colleague Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, Harkin helped usher the bill through the Senate in late September 2007. Grassley took the leadership role on the Republican side and helped persuade Coburn to lift the hold, before it passed overwhelmingly in the Senate and was signed into law by President Bush shortly thereafter.
The fate of Harkin’s new suicide-prevention and the National Guard pay-glitch amendments remain uncertain at this point, although Harkin has vowed to keep fighting for these measures until they pass.
As he said in a recent statement: “The demise of these two common-sense amendments to the Defense Authorization Bill is unfortunate and unfair to the men and women who serve our country so courageously.”
Friday, May 23, 2008
McCain Dodges Iraq War Funding Vote; Grassley and Harkin Split
Despite President Bush’s threat to veto a war funding bill with congressional add-ons, 25 Senate Republicans broke ranks and voted in favor of passing the bill, which added $97 billion worth of spending on top of the $165 billion earmarked for military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan through next spring.
Although the 75-22 vote surpassed Bush’s veto threshold, a war of words did break out on the Senate floor when Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, fired the first shot at his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain of Arizona. Obama took issue with McCain on his reluctance to sign on to a new GI Bill amendment proposed by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., which accounts for over $50 billion of the proposed funding.
"I respect John McCain," Obama said, "but I can't understand why he's lining up with the president to oppose this bill," which provides funding and housing allowances for vets at private and public colleges. "There are many issues that lend themselves to partisan posturing, but giving our veterans the chance to go to college should not be one of them.”
Initially, Obama’s words were lost on McCain, who was not in the chamber and did not vote on the bill. Obama and his Democratic presidential rival, Hillary Clinton of New York, voted in favor of the bill. McCain, who had previously stated he did not support the new GI Bill and offered his own version, missed the vote due to campaign fundraising commitments in California.
Obama’s words eventually did traverse the country and McCain was quick to fire back a response:
"It is typical, but no less offensive that Senator Obama uses the Senate floor to take cheap shots at an opponent and easy advantage of an issue he has less than zero understanding of," McCain said in a statement. "If Sen. Obama would take the time and trouble to understand this issue he would learn to debate an honest disagreement respectfully. But, as he always does, he prefers impugning the motives of his opponent, and exploiting a thoughtful difference of opinion to advance his own ambitions. If that is how he would behave as president, the country would regret his election.”
McCain’s absence did not go unnoticed by the Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, who said in a statement yesterday: "America's veterans and military families deserve better than a candidate who is willing to keep our troops in Iraq for 100 years, but refuses to take care of them when they come home.”
On the Iowa front, Sens. Tom Harkin and Chuck Grassley voted along party lines. Harkin voted in favor of the bill while Grassley held the party line and joined 21 other Republicans in opposition to the funding bill.
"A supplemental appropriations bill is intended to pay for items of necessity like supporting our troops in the war on terrorism, which is something we can all agree on,” Grassley told the Iowa Independent in an email statement. “Instead, the majority decided to throw in everything but the kitchen sink and chose to ignore their own pay-as-you-go philosophy for most of the bill.
"I supported a GI Bill enhancement measure when it was offered as an amendment to another piece of legislation,” Grassley added. “But, because of procedural maneuvering, a GI Bill proposal was wrapped in with a package of unrelated spending and pet projects. It's a shame we weren't afforded the opportunity to give this important matter the separate consideration it deserves. In the end, this bill was riddled with a lot of troubling policy that I couldn't support."
Troubling or not, it remains to be seen what impact McCain’s non-vote will have on his presidential bid as he continues to court voters and fellow veterans. McCain will face his first test on the issue this Memorial Day weekend as Congress breaks for recess and the presidential candidates hit the campaign trail in full stride.
Although the 75-22 vote surpassed Bush’s veto threshold, a war of words did break out on the Senate floor when Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, fired the first shot at his Republican rival, Sen. John McCain of Arizona. Obama took issue with McCain on his reluctance to sign on to a new GI Bill amendment proposed by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., which accounts for over $50 billion of the proposed funding.
"I respect John McCain," Obama said, "but I can't understand why he's lining up with the president to oppose this bill," which provides funding and housing allowances for vets at private and public colleges. "There are many issues that lend themselves to partisan posturing, but giving our veterans the chance to go to college should not be one of them.”
Initially, Obama’s words were lost on McCain, who was not in the chamber and did not vote on the bill. Obama and his Democratic presidential rival, Hillary Clinton of New York, voted in favor of the bill. McCain, who had previously stated he did not support the new GI Bill and offered his own version, missed the vote due to campaign fundraising commitments in California.
Obama’s words eventually did traverse the country and McCain was quick to fire back a response:
"It is typical, but no less offensive that Senator Obama uses the Senate floor to take cheap shots at an opponent and easy advantage of an issue he has less than zero understanding of," McCain said in a statement. "If Sen. Obama would take the time and trouble to understand this issue he would learn to debate an honest disagreement respectfully. But, as he always does, he prefers impugning the motives of his opponent, and exploiting a thoughtful difference of opinion to advance his own ambitions. If that is how he would behave as president, the country would regret his election.”
McCain’s absence did not go unnoticed by the Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, who said in a statement yesterday: "America's veterans and military families deserve better than a candidate who is willing to keep our troops in Iraq for 100 years, but refuses to take care of them when they come home.”
On the Iowa front, Sens. Tom Harkin and Chuck Grassley voted along party lines. Harkin voted in favor of the bill while Grassley held the party line and joined 21 other Republicans in opposition to the funding bill.
"A supplemental appropriations bill is intended to pay for items of necessity like supporting our troops in the war on terrorism, which is something we can all agree on,” Grassley told the Iowa Independent in an email statement. “Instead, the majority decided to throw in everything but the kitchen sink and chose to ignore their own pay-as-you-go philosophy for most of the bill.
"I supported a GI Bill enhancement measure when it was offered as an amendment to another piece of legislation,” Grassley added. “But, because of procedural maneuvering, a GI Bill proposal was wrapped in with a package of unrelated spending and pet projects. It's a shame we weren't afforded the opportunity to give this important matter the separate consideration it deserves. In the end, this bill was riddled with a lot of troubling policy that I couldn't support."
Troubling or not, it remains to be seen what impact McCain’s non-vote will have on his presidential bid as he continues to court voters and fellow veterans. McCain will face his first test on the issue this Memorial Day weekend as Congress breaks for recess and the presidential candidates hit the campaign trail in full stride.
Monday, April 28, 2008
Harkin Vows to Break VA’s Silence on Veterans’ Suicide Crisis
In light of the adage “Truth is the first casualty of war,” the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is under fire for allegedly covering up the suicide crisis among our nation’s veterans in November.
The veterans’ rights group, Veterans for Common Sense, filed a class-action suit against the VA, and a federal court in San Francisco began hearing the case last Monday. The case, backed by internal e-mails written by Dr. Ira Katz, the VA’s head of mental health, and procured by CBS News, alleges that the VA is deliberately concealing the risk of suicide among veterans.
“The system is in crisis and unfortunately the VA is in denial,” veterans' rights attorney Gordon Erspamer told CBS last Monday.
Congress took up the issue Thursday, when U.S. Sens. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Russ Feingold, D-Wis., introduced a bill, the Veterans Suicide Study Act, which would require the VA to track veterans’ suicide rates annually and report its findings to Congress. Moreover, the bill would require the VA to report to Congress within 180 days the number of veterans who have died by suicide since Jan. 1, 1997.
“We are looking at a real crisis among our veterans and it is high time the VA recognizes it,” Harkin said in a statement. “Tracking the number of suicides among our veterans will help us to better understand the true depths of this crisis so we may ensure we are doing everything we can to address their mental health needs. It is shameful to lose those who have served our country to suicide simply because they do not have the support they need.”
Katz told CBS in November that “there is no epidemic in suicide in VA,” but changed his story a few months ago. In a letter written to his top media adviser, Katz wrote: "Our suicide prevention coordinators are identifying about 1,000 suicide attempts per month among veterans we see in our medical facilities."
However, an e-mail labeled “Not for the CBS News Interview Request” that was sent in November indicates Katz may have been trying to conceal the actual numbers.
The e-mail drew the ire of Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., who chairs the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, last week. "This is disgraceful. This is a crime against our nation, our nation's veterans," Filner told CBS News. "They do not want to come to grips with the reality, with the truth."
In an e-mail late Monday to CBS News, Katz wrote that the reason the numbers were not released was due to questions about the consistency and reliability of the findings -- and that there was no public cover-up involved.
Nonetheless, Katz has drawn attention from congressional members, some of whom are calling for Katz to step down, including members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee: Sens. Daniel Akaka of Hawaii and Patty Murray of Washington.
"Dr. Katz's irresponsible actions have been a disservice to our veterans, and it is time for him to go," Murray told the Washington Post. "The No. 1 priority of the VA should be caring for our veterans, not covering up the truth."
Moreover, the Washington Post reported that Akaka, the committee's chairman, said in a letter to the VA that Katz's "personal conduct and professional judgment" had been called into question by his response to veteran suicides. Veterans, and the VA itself, "would be best served by his immediate resignation," Akaka said.
In the meantime, Feingold, the bill’s coauthor, is concerned about the mental health of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. “The fact that the VA has no real data on the suicide rate among veterans shows how much needs to be done to address the mental health needs of veterans,” Feingold said in a statement. “With ongoing reports showing that service members are returning from combat with alarming rates of mental health problems, understanding and responding to these problems is critical to preventing deaths.”
The Veterans Suicide Study Act is a companion to the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act introduced in the House by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, and pushed through the Senate by Harkin, despite a procedural move by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., that temporarily stalled the bill.
Similar to the bill introduced last week, a component of the suicide prevention legislation was to put more pressure on the VA and hold it more accountable by implementing mandates and deadlines that would implement suicide-prevention programs in a timely fashion and expedite the process for returning veterans.
Boswell’s bill was designed to help address post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among veterans by requiring mental health training for Veterans Affairs staff; a suicide prevention counselor at each VA medical facility; and mental-health screening and treatment for veterans who receive VA care. It also supports outreach and education for veterans and their families, peer support counseling and research into suicide prevention.
1 in 5 current vets suffer, study shows
Congressional pressure on the VA was prompted, in part, by a RAND Corporation study released April 17. The study indicates that nearly 20 percent of military service members who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan -- 300,000 in all -- report symptoms of PTSD or major depression, yet only slightly more than half have sought treatment.
The RAND study also found that many service members said they do not seek treatment for psychological illnesses because they fear it will harm their careers. But even among those who do seek help for PTSD or major depression, only about half receive treatment that researchers consider "minimally adequate" for their illnesses.
In the first analysis of its kind, researchers estimate that PTSD and depression among returning service members will cost the nation as much as $6.2 billion in the two years following deployment — an amount that includes both direct medical care and costs for lost productivity and suicide. Investing in more high-quality treatment could save close to $2 billion within two years by substantially reducing those indirect costs, the 500-page study concludes.
"There is a major health crisis facing those men and women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan," Terri Tanielian, the project's co-leader and a researcher at RAND, said in a statement. "Unless they receive appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions, there will be long-term consequences for them and for the nation. Unfortunately, we found there are many barriers preventing them from getting the high-quality treatment they need."
Service members report many reasons for not seeking treatment. Many are worried about the side effects of medication or believe that family and friends can provide more help than a mental health professional. Even more reported that they worried seeking care might damage their career or cause their peers to lose confidence in their abilities.
"We need to remove the institutional cultural barriers that discourage soldiers from seeking care," Tanielian said. "Just because someone is getting mental health care does not mean that they are not able to do their job. Seeking mental health treatment should be seen as a sign of strength and interest in getting better, not a weakness. People need to get help as early as possible, not only once their symptoms become severe and disabling."
Researchers concluded that a major national effort is needed to expand and improve the capacity of the mental health system to provide effective care to service members and veterans. The effort must include the military, veteran and civilian health care systems, and should focus on training more providers to use high-quality, evidence-based treatment methods and encouraging service members and veterans to seek needed care.
Since October 2001, about 1.6 million U.S. troops have deployed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with many exposed to prolonged periods of combat-related stress or traumatic events. Early evidence suggests that the psychological toll of the deployments may be disproportionately high compared with physical injuries.
Another side effect of treating PTSD is the costs associated with diagnosis and treatment. The RAND study estimates the societal costs of PTSD and major depression for two years after deployment range from about $6,000 to more than $25,000 per case. Depending whether the economic cost of suicide is included, the RAND study estimates the total society costs of the conditions for two years range from $4 billion to $6.2 billion.
The veterans’ rights group, Veterans for Common Sense, filed a class-action suit against the VA, and a federal court in San Francisco began hearing the case last Monday. The case, backed by internal e-mails written by Dr. Ira Katz, the VA’s head of mental health, and procured by CBS News, alleges that the VA is deliberately concealing the risk of suicide among veterans.
“The system is in crisis and unfortunately the VA is in denial,” veterans' rights attorney Gordon Erspamer told CBS last Monday.
Congress took up the issue Thursday, when U.S. Sens. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, and Russ Feingold, D-Wis., introduced a bill, the Veterans Suicide Study Act, which would require the VA to track veterans’ suicide rates annually and report its findings to Congress. Moreover, the bill would require the VA to report to Congress within 180 days the number of veterans who have died by suicide since Jan. 1, 1997.
“We are looking at a real crisis among our veterans and it is high time the VA recognizes it,” Harkin said in a statement. “Tracking the number of suicides among our veterans will help us to better understand the true depths of this crisis so we may ensure we are doing everything we can to address their mental health needs. It is shameful to lose those who have served our country to suicide simply because they do not have the support they need.”
Katz told CBS in November that “there is no epidemic in suicide in VA,” but changed his story a few months ago. In a letter written to his top media adviser, Katz wrote: "Our suicide prevention coordinators are identifying about 1,000 suicide attempts per month among veterans we see in our medical facilities."
However, an e-mail labeled “Not for the CBS News Interview Request” that was sent in November indicates Katz may have been trying to conceal the actual numbers.
The e-mail drew the ire of Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., who chairs the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, last week. "This is disgraceful. This is a crime against our nation, our nation's veterans," Filner told CBS News. "They do not want to come to grips with the reality, with the truth."
In an e-mail late Monday to CBS News, Katz wrote that the reason the numbers were not released was due to questions about the consistency and reliability of the findings -- and that there was no public cover-up involved.
Nonetheless, Katz has drawn attention from congressional members, some of whom are calling for Katz to step down, including members of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee: Sens. Daniel Akaka of Hawaii and Patty Murray of Washington.
"Dr. Katz's irresponsible actions have been a disservice to our veterans, and it is time for him to go," Murray told the Washington Post. "The No. 1 priority of the VA should be caring for our veterans, not covering up the truth."
Moreover, the Washington Post reported that Akaka, the committee's chairman, said in a letter to the VA that Katz's "personal conduct and professional judgment" had been called into question by his response to veteran suicides. Veterans, and the VA itself, "would be best served by his immediate resignation," Akaka said.
In the meantime, Feingold, the bill’s coauthor, is concerned about the mental health of veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. “The fact that the VA has no real data on the suicide rate among veterans shows how much needs to be done to address the mental health needs of veterans,” Feingold said in a statement. “With ongoing reports showing that service members are returning from combat with alarming rates of mental health problems, understanding and responding to these problems is critical to preventing deaths.”
The Veterans Suicide Study Act is a companion to the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act introduced in the House by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, and pushed through the Senate by Harkin, despite a procedural move by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., that temporarily stalled the bill.
Similar to the bill introduced last week, a component of the suicide prevention legislation was to put more pressure on the VA and hold it more accountable by implementing mandates and deadlines that would implement suicide-prevention programs in a timely fashion and expedite the process for returning veterans.
Boswell’s bill was designed to help address post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among veterans by requiring mental health training for Veterans Affairs staff; a suicide prevention counselor at each VA medical facility; and mental-health screening and treatment for veterans who receive VA care. It also supports outreach and education for veterans and their families, peer support counseling and research into suicide prevention.
1 in 5 current vets suffer, study shows
Congressional pressure on the VA was prompted, in part, by a RAND Corporation study released April 17. The study indicates that nearly 20 percent of military service members who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan -- 300,000 in all -- report symptoms of PTSD or major depression, yet only slightly more than half have sought treatment.
The RAND study also found that many service members said they do not seek treatment for psychological illnesses because they fear it will harm their careers. But even among those who do seek help for PTSD or major depression, only about half receive treatment that researchers consider "minimally adequate" for their illnesses.
In the first analysis of its kind, researchers estimate that PTSD and depression among returning service members will cost the nation as much as $6.2 billion in the two years following deployment — an amount that includes both direct medical care and costs for lost productivity and suicide. Investing in more high-quality treatment could save close to $2 billion within two years by substantially reducing those indirect costs, the 500-page study concludes.
"There is a major health crisis facing those men and women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan," Terri Tanielian, the project's co-leader and a researcher at RAND, said in a statement. "Unless they receive appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions, there will be long-term consequences for them and for the nation. Unfortunately, we found there are many barriers preventing them from getting the high-quality treatment they need."
Service members report many reasons for not seeking treatment. Many are worried about the side effects of medication or believe that family and friends can provide more help than a mental health professional. Even more reported that they worried seeking care might damage their career or cause their peers to lose confidence in their abilities.
"We need to remove the institutional cultural barriers that discourage soldiers from seeking care," Tanielian said. "Just because someone is getting mental health care does not mean that they are not able to do their job. Seeking mental health treatment should be seen as a sign of strength and interest in getting better, not a weakness. People need to get help as early as possible, not only once their symptoms become severe and disabling."
Researchers concluded that a major national effort is needed to expand and improve the capacity of the mental health system to provide effective care to service members and veterans. The effort must include the military, veteran and civilian health care systems, and should focus on training more providers to use high-quality, evidence-based treatment methods and encouraging service members and veterans to seek needed care.
Since October 2001, about 1.6 million U.S. troops have deployed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with many exposed to prolonged periods of combat-related stress or traumatic events. Early evidence suggests that the psychological toll of the deployments may be disproportionately high compared with physical injuries.
Another side effect of treating PTSD is the costs associated with diagnosis and treatment. The RAND study estimates the societal costs of PTSD and major depression for two years after deployment range from about $6,000 to more than $25,000 per case. Depending whether the economic cost of suicide is included, the RAND study estimates the total society costs of the conditions for two years range from $4 billion to $6.2 billion.
Friday, April 18, 2008
Iowa Guard Stretched Thinner With Latest Deployment to Iraq
About 250 members of an Iowa Air National Guard unit, the 132nd Fighter Wing, will be deployed this week to support troops in Iraq, the Department of Defense announced this week. The deployment is the 132nd's second since Operation Iraqi Freedom began, and they are expected to spend about two months in the Persian Gulf region.
The deployment comes at a time when Iowa National Guard units have been stretched thin, placing stress on Iowa’s civilian soldiers and families. “Six years of war and more than 10,000 mobilized soldiers and airmen leaves no doubt we are an organization that is stretched and stressed,” Iowa National Guard Adjunct General Ron Dardis said in his “Condition of the Guard” address to the General Assembly in February.
“We see it in the faces of our warriors sent off on their second, and in some cases, third deployments since 9-11; we see it in our families, asked to endure lengthy and in some cases repeated separations; and we see it in returning soldiers and airmen, struggling to reintegrate with their families and routines of their daily lives,” Dardis said.
“Ladies and Gentlemen: this is what keeps me awake at night. I worry so much for the health and well-being of our soldiers and airmen and their families,” Dardis said. “We are trying to assist in every way possible and yet it never seems like enough.”
The Des Moines-based fighter wing is no stranger to flying in the Middle East region. About 400 members of the unit were deployed to the Persian Gulf in 2005 to launch F-16 missions over Iraq, and the unit was deployed six times to Turkey and Kuwait between 1992 and 2002 to patrol "no-fly" zones set up over Iraq after the 1991 Gulf War to protect Kurds in the north and Shiite Muslims in the south from the Baghdad government led by Saddam Hussein.
The deployment comes at a time when Iowa National Guard units have been stretched thin, placing stress on Iowa’s civilian soldiers and families. “Six years of war and more than 10,000 mobilized soldiers and airmen leaves no doubt we are an organization that is stretched and stressed,” Iowa National Guard Adjunct General Ron Dardis said in his “Condition of the Guard” address to the General Assembly in February.
“We see it in the faces of our warriors sent off on their second, and in some cases, third deployments since 9-11; we see it in our families, asked to endure lengthy and in some cases repeated separations; and we see it in returning soldiers and airmen, struggling to reintegrate with their families and routines of their daily lives,” Dardis said.
“Ladies and Gentlemen: this is what keeps me awake at night. I worry so much for the health and well-being of our soldiers and airmen and their families,” Dardis said. “We are trying to assist in every way possible and yet it never seems like enough.”
The Des Moines-based fighter wing is no stranger to flying in the Middle East region. About 400 members of the unit were deployed to the Persian Gulf in 2005 to launch F-16 missions over Iraq, and the unit was deployed six times to Turkey and Kuwait between 1992 and 2002 to patrol "no-fly" zones set up over Iraq after the 1991 Gulf War to protect Kurds in the north and Shiite Muslims in the south from the Baghdad government led by Saddam Hussein.
In their upcoming deployment, the airmen of the 132nd Fighter Wing will launch F-16 aircraft over Iraq to attack enemy forces and search for improvised explosive devices, Lt. Col. James Freese, the wing's executive officer, said in a statement. The Iowa Guard's F-16 aircraft are armed with radar-guided missiles, heat-seeking missiles and laser-guided bombs. The detachment headed to the Gulf includes pilots, mechanics, and specialists in aviation electronics, weapons and other technical areas.
"We've been gearing up for this for quite some time, at least two or three months. We are fully trained and ready to go do it," Tech. Sgt. Todd Fee, 33, a weapons systems specialist, told the Des Moines Register.
About 1,000 members of the Iowa National Guard are now on active duty. The number includes about 550 in Iraq, 50 in Afghanistan, 330 in Kosovo and 90 in the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. Since the September 2001 terrorist attacks, about 11,000 Iowa Guard members have been on active duty.
“We are going to do what we are asked to do, and hopefully come home safely,” Staff Sgt. Jacob Hermanson, an F-16 crew chief, told the Register. He said he expects to work 12 hours a day, seven days a week in Iraq.
Iowa Delegation Steps up Efforts to Give Guard Greater Voice
Recognizing the strain the multiple deployments have placed on civilian soldiers, members of the Iowa delegation, except Republican Rep. Steve King, sent a letter to the House and Senate Armed Services Committee yesterday, asking them to enhance the functions of the National Guard Bureau so that the National Guard has a voice in decisions made by the Pentagon leadership.
“As you well know, the National Guard is serving our country at an unprecedented level,” the delegation wrote in the letter. “Lengthy and multiple deployments are placing great strains on National Guard troops and families, as well as on National Guard equipment and readiness levels.”
Moreover, the delegation highlighted the National Guard’s shifting role from a strategic reserve to operational. We are concerned that Pentagon policies and culture have not shifted accordingly,” the delegation wrote. “Unfortunately, while National Guard soldiers are increasingly being utilized along with active duty forces, we have seen the Pentagon often make decisions that directly impact the National Guard without properly consulting the National Guard or incorporating their requests.”
Last year, Congress passed the National Guard Empowerment Act, which included a number of provisions that would ease the strain on state Guard units, members and their families. Moreover, Congress has proposed a bill, the National Guard Empowerment and State-National Defense Integration Act of 2008, which would address other provisions not included in last year’s bill.
Some key provisions of the latter bill include: making the chief of the National Guard Bureau a full member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as designate several key Air Force and Army positions for National Guard members, give the National Guard a formal role in identifying equipment needs, and protect the National Guard’s lead role in domestic response.
To help illustrate the delegation’s concerns, the delegation used the recent deployment of the 1st Battalion, 133rd Infantry of the Iowa National Guard to highlight the disconnect between the DOD and the National Guard, and of the need for reform. The 133rd was deployed to Iraq in the spring of 2006 and was originally scheduled to return home in April 2007, but had its tour of duty extended as part of last year’s troop surge. When the Pentagon lengthened their tour of duty, the Guard members learned of this extension through the media and family members, instead of through the proper chain of command.
“This improper notification caused much unneeded stress and anxiety for them and their families,” the delegation wrote. “Currently, members of the 133rd, along with National Guard soldiers from other units, are still waiting to receive the Post Deployment & Mobilization Respite Absence benefit that they have been promised by the DOD. It has been over six months now since the last affected Iowa National Guard unit returned home from Iraq, and the Pentagon has still not made a decision about how to pay these troops for this benefit that they have been promised.”
Moreover, the delegation is concerned that the Pentagon may ignore requests from the National Guard that troops be paid in a lump sums, but instead require the National Guard to bring troops back onto active duty and give them days off. “We are troubled by this, because we have heard concerns from the National Guard that days of paid leave will be less beneficial to troops than a one-time payment, and that bringing troops back onto active duty will be an administrative burden for National Guard leadership and will be disruptive for demobilized troops,” the delegation wrote.
“Our National Guard members are going above and beyond the call of duty in the War on Terror,” Sen. Chuck Grassley, a member of the Senate National Guard Caucus, said in a statement. “They deserve a seat at the table with all the branches of the military.”
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Guard Readiness Center Receives Long Overdue Funds
Built in 1937, the 18,000-square-foot Iowa Armory National Guard Readiness Center in Iowa City served as a riding arena and stable for the Iowa cavalry, accommodating 125 men and their horses. Seventy-one years later, the same facility houses training facilities for five Iowa National Guard units with nearly 400 officers. The increasing demands of the National Guard and the building's poor conditions have required expensive repairs and renovations.
After 20 years of collaborative efforts to procure funding for a new readiness center for Iowa National Guard troops, members of Iowa’s Democratic delegation, Sen Tom Harkin and Rep. Dave Loebsack, announced the center’s groundbreaking this summer, thanks to the procurement of $13 million in federal funds.
Originally posted on "Iowa Independent"
After 20 years of collaborative efforts to procure funding for a new readiness center for Iowa National Guard troops, members of Iowa’s Democratic delegation, Sen Tom Harkin and Rep. Dave Loebsack, announced the center’s groundbreaking this summer, thanks to the procurement of $13 million in federal funds.
Sen. Harkin (right) and Rep. Loebsack (middle) talk with members from the 109th Medical Battalion
“I feel proud to have been able to secure these funds for the brave women and men who serve our country every day. The construction of this new facility will help the Iowa National Guard complete essential mobilization and readiness training and prepare for their missions,” Harkin told members of the 109th Medical Battalion gathered at the ceremony. “Iowa Guard members play an integral role in strengthening our nation’s defenses, and they deserve the very best as they prepare for their duties.”
Loebsack joined Harkin at the press conference, echoing his commitment to Iowa Guard members. “I must compliment the Iowa National Guard for your resourcefulness in maintaining the operational capacity of this readiness center. But at 71 years old, it does show its age, and enough is enough,” Loebsack told Guard members. “It’s time for something new. The citizen soldiers who serve the Iowa National Guard deserve only the finest training facilities, and this is clearly not up to par. We have a responsibility to serve you with the same dedication that you have served us, and I believe this readiness center reflects our commitment to doing so.”
Loebsack joined Harkin at the press conference, echoing his commitment to Iowa Guard members. “I must compliment the Iowa National Guard for your resourcefulness in maintaining the operational capacity of this readiness center. But at 71 years old, it does show its age, and enough is enough,” Loebsack told Guard members. “It’s time for something new. The citizen soldiers who serve the Iowa National Guard deserve only the finest training facilities, and this is clearly not up to par. We have a responsibility to serve you with the same dedication that you have served us, and I believe this readiness center reflects our commitment to doing so.”
Rep. Loebsack addresses 109th Guard members while standing next to picture of proposed readiness center
The federal funds were the final notch in the funding scheme, for the state of Iowa had already earmarked $5 million in matching funds in 2003 and 2004, and the Iowa Legislature approved appropriations each year since then, Adjunct Gen. Ron Dardis said. “This journey truly has been a partnership,” Dardis said. “In addition to the federal and state funds, we couldn’t have done this without the land swap with Johnson County in 2001 and the City of Iowa City providing sewer and water capabilities.”
The new 80,000-square-foot facility will be located on approximately 25 acres, providing an assembly hall, kitchen, classrooms, and administrative and recruiting space. It will include parking for personal and military vehicles. The project has been the Guard’s top priority for the past three years and is expected to be completed by the summer of 2010.
Harkin, a Navy veteran who served during the Vietnam War, addressed some of the current r
eadiness concerns that face Iowa’s citizen soldiers. “As you all know very well, this is a new era for the Guard. You are shouldering a major share of the combat burden of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan,” Harkin said. “Many Guard members are on their third or fourth deployment to Iraq and Afghanistan. I think it speaks volumes that four times as many Guard members have been killed in Iraq than there were in the entire war in Vietnam -- my war.”
“Like you, during all my years of training in the military, there was one thing that was always drilled into my head: Never leave a buddy behind,” Harkin told Guard members. “That not only applies to the battlefield but to the home front as well. We owe you the best facilities and equipment, and on that score, we have been falling woefully short. In my opinion, we have been leaving many of our guard members behind. The good news, however, is that we are not in denial.”
Originally posted on "Iowa Independent"
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Bush Signs Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Bill into Law
With the stroke of a pen President George W. Bush signed the Joshua Omvig bill into law, ending a drawn-out political chapter that overcame a procedural hold in the Senate. The bill was introduced in the House by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, who named the bill after one of his constituents, Joshua Omvig of Grundy Center. Omvig committed suicide in Dec. 2005 after returning from an 11-month deployment in Iraq.
“By directing the Veterans Administration (VA) to develop a comprehensive program to reduce the rate of suicide among veterans the law will help thousands of young men and women who bravely served our country,” Boswell said in a press release following Bush’s Monday signing. “The Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act not only honors Joshua’s service to his country but ensures that all veterans receive the proper mental health care they need.”
Boswell also had words of praise of praise for Joshua’s parents, who have been relentless advocates for the bill’s passage. “I commend Joshua’s parents, Randy and Ellen Omvig,. While suffering this personal tragedy they went on to help other veterans and their families, and have advocated for improving all mental health services at the VA,” he said.
Boswell’s efforts were picked up in the Senate by fellow veteran, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who helped push the measure through the Senate. "As a nation we cannot stand idly by when the needs of our brave soldiers are not being met," Harkin said. "We have a responsibility to truly support our troops by ensuring they have the services they need during their time in active service, and after they return home."
The bipartisan bill unanimously passed in the House March 21 by a vote of 427-0 before moving on to the Senate where it hit a procedural snag. Led by Harkin the bill was expected to overwhelmingly pass before going into the August recess until it hit a road bump. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla. put the bill on hold, citing duplication and second amendment concerns that Harkin called (stronger verb) "bogus." Undeterred, Harkin kept fighting for the bill's passage and solicited fellow Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, to help persuade Coburn to lift the hold. The bipartisan effort paid off and the bill cleared the Senate hurdle Sept. 27.
Grassley was pleased Bush signed the bill as well. “Today’s action helps give veterans who are suffering mental anguish a place to turn when all else seems lost,” he said in a statement “These are brave men and women who need to know that there is help out there and they deserve medical treatment just like any other veteran.”
The Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act (H.R. 327) is designed to help address Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among veterans by requiring mental health training for Veterans Affairs staff; a suicide prevention counselor at each VA medical facility; and mental-health screening and treatment for veterans who receive VA care. It also supports outreach and education for veterans and their families, peer support counseling and research into suicide prevention. The VA had been implementing a number of these programs, but not in a timely manner, whereas the Joshua Omvig bill mandates these programs and subsequent deadlines as a means of expediting the process for returning veterans.
“By directing the Veterans Administration (VA) to develop a comprehensive program to reduce the rate of suicide among veterans the law will help thousands of young men and women who bravely served our country,” Boswell said in a press release following Bush’s Monday signing. “The Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act not only honors Joshua’s service to his country but ensures that all veterans receive the proper mental health care they need.”
Boswell also had words of praise of praise for Joshua’s parents, who have been relentless advocates for the bill’s passage. “I commend Joshua’s parents, Randy and Ellen Omvig,. While suffering this personal tragedy they went on to help other veterans and their families, and have advocated for improving all mental health services at the VA,” he said.
Boswell’s efforts were picked up in the Senate by fellow veteran, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, who helped push the measure through the Senate. "As a nation we cannot stand idly by when the needs of our brave soldiers are not being met," Harkin said. "We have a responsibility to truly support our troops by ensuring they have the services they need during their time in active service, and after they return home."
The bipartisan bill unanimously passed in the House March 21 by a vote of 427-0 before moving on to the Senate where it hit a procedural snag. Led by Harkin the bill was expected to overwhelmingly pass before going into the August recess until it hit a road bump. Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla. put the bill on hold, citing duplication and second amendment concerns that Harkin called (stronger verb) "bogus." Undeterred, Harkin kept fighting for the bill's passage and solicited fellow Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, to help persuade Coburn to lift the hold. The bipartisan effort paid off and the bill cleared the Senate hurdle Sept. 27.
Grassley was pleased Bush signed the bill as well. “Today’s action helps give veterans who are suffering mental anguish a place to turn when all else seems lost,” he said in a statement “These are brave men and women who need to know that there is help out there and they deserve medical treatment just like any other veteran.”
The Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act (H.R. 327) is designed to help address Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) among veterans by requiring mental health training for Veterans Affairs staff; a suicide prevention counselor at each VA medical facility; and mental-health screening and treatment for veterans who receive VA care. It also supports outreach and education for veterans and their families, peer support counseling and research into suicide prevention. The VA had been implementing a number of these programs, but not in a timely manner, whereas the Joshua Omvig bill mandates these programs and subsequent deadlines as a means of expediting the process for returning veterans.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
After Long-Fought Battle, Veterans Suicide Prevention Bill Passes
For many combat veterans returning from war, the battle doesn’t end on the battlefield. It continues at home with the mental scars. As soldiers return from duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, many are ill-equipped to deal with emotional issues stemming from deployment, and sensing no other way out, they tragically take their own lives.
Congress, led by the tireless efforts of the Iowa delegation, has taken measures to reduce the high suicide rates among veterans. After a long-fought battle, the Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act (H.R. 327) overcame its last congressional hurdle Tuesday when it passed in the House for the second time by a vote of 417-0.
Introduced by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-3rd District, the bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to develop and implement a comprehensive program addressing suicide prevention. The bill is named after Joshua Omvig, from Grundy Center, Iowa, an Iraq War veteran who served in the Army Reserve and took his own life in December 2005 after an 11-month deployment.
“I’m very pleased that both chambers have passed H.R. 327, and it’s now ready to be signed by the President,” Boswell said in a press release. “A recent article in USA Today reported that the number of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans seeking treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from the VA has jumped almost 70 percent in the past year. The time to act is now.”
“I commend Joshua’s parents, Randy and Ellen Omvig, who have suffered this personal tragedy, but have helped endless veterans and their families,” Boswell added. “They have advocated for improving all mental health services at the VA and have assisted countless veterans navigate the VA system.”
Although suicide rates are difficult to confirm and accurately gauge, the VA inspector general in a report last May noted that Veterans Health Administration mental health officials estimate 1,000 suicides per year among veterans receiving care within VHA and as many as 5,000 per year among all living veterans.
"Unfortunately, suicide prevention has become a major part of our responsibility to both active duty and to our veterans," Bob Filner, D-Calif., chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, told the Associated Press. "It's a terrible statistic," he said. "As many Vietnam veterans have now committed suicide as died in the original war. That's over 58,000."
The bill, authored by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, is designed to help address PTSD among veterans by requiring the Veterans Administration to develop and implement a comprehensive veterans suicide prevention program, provide 24-hour mental health care services to veterans, and requiring that a suicide prevention counselor be available at every VA facility.
“Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is the hidden combat wound. Veterans suffering from PTSD are often the last to know they have a problem,” Rep. Bruce Braley, D-1st District, said in a statement. “In the past, many veterans returning from war have suffered silently from this illness without the help and support they need.”
“Joshua Omvig’s experience puts a human face to PTSD. His death stands as a stark reminder of the impact PTSD can have on veterans and their families,” Braley added. “Passing the Omvig bill into law is so important because veterans coming home and suffering from PTSD deserve the screening, treatment and resources they need to ensure their long term mental health.”
The bipartisan bill unanimously passed in the House March 21 by a vote of 427-0 before moving on to the Senate, where it hit a procedural snag. Led by the efforts of Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, the bill was expected to overwhelmingly pass going into the August recess, until it hit a procedural road bump when Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., put a hold on the bill, citing duplication and second amendment concerns, which Harkin said were “bogus.” Undeterred, Harkin kept fighting for the bill’s passage and solicited fellow Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, to help persuade Coburn to lift the hold. Their bipartisan effort paid off, and the bill cleared the Senate hurdle Sept. 27.
Before the vote, Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, delivered a speech on the House floor in support of the bill. “I rise today in strong support of the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act,” Loebsack said. “This bill was one of the first that I co-sponsored as a new Member of Congress. I did so because I believe that we have a moral obligation to care for those who have worn our country’s uniform. I urge the president to quickly sign it into law so that these vital mental health services can reach our nation’s veterans.”
Originally posted on "Iowa Independent"
Congress, led by the tireless efforts of the Iowa delegation, has taken measures to reduce the high suicide rates among veterans. After a long-fought battle, the Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act (H.R. 327) overcame its last congressional hurdle Tuesday when it passed in the House for the second time by a vote of 417-0.
Introduced by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-3rd District, the bill directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to develop and implement a comprehensive program addressing suicide prevention. The bill is named after Joshua Omvig, from Grundy Center, Iowa, an Iraq War veteran who served in the Army Reserve and took his own life in December 2005 after an 11-month deployment.
“I’m very pleased that both chambers have passed H.R. 327, and it’s now ready to be signed by the President,” Boswell said in a press release. “A recent article in USA Today reported that the number of Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans seeking treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from the VA has jumped almost 70 percent in the past year. The time to act is now.”
“I commend Joshua’s parents, Randy and Ellen Omvig, who have suffered this personal tragedy, but have helped endless veterans and their families,” Boswell added. “They have advocated for improving all mental health services at the VA and have assisted countless veterans navigate the VA system.”
Although suicide rates are difficult to confirm and accurately gauge, the VA inspector general in a report last May noted that Veterans Health Administration mental health officials estimate 1,000 suicides per year among veterans receiving care within VHA and as many as 5,000 per year among all living veterans.
"Unfortunately, suicide prevention has become a major part of our responsibility to both active duty and to our veterans," Bob Filner, D-Calif., chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee, told the Associated Press. "It's a terrible statistic," he said. "As many Vietnam veterans have now committed suicide as died in the original war. That's over 58,000."
The bill, authored by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, is designed to help address PTSD among veterans by requiring the Veterans Administration to develop and implement a comprehensive veterans suicide prevention program, provide 24-hour mental health care services to veterans, and requiring that a suicide prevention counselor be available at every VA facility.
“Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is the hidden combat wound. Veterans suffering from PTSD are often the last to know they have a problem,” Rep. Bruce Braley, D-1st District, said in a statement. “In the past, many veterans returning from war have suffered silently from this illness without the help and support they need.”
“Joshua Omvig’s experience puts a human face to PTSD. His death stands as a stark reminder of the impact PTSD can have on veterans and their families,” Braley added. “Passing the Omvig bill into law is so important because veterans coming home and suffering from PTSD deserve the screening, treatment and resources they need to ensure their long term mental health.”
The bipartisan bill unanimously passed in the House March 21 by a vote of 427-0 before moving on to the Senate, where it hit a procedural snag. Led by the efforts of Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, the bill was expected to overwhelmingly pass going into the August recess, until it hit a procedural road bump when Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., put a hold on the bill, citing duplication and second amendment concerns, which Harkin said were “bogus.” Undeterred, Harkin kept fighting for the bill’s passage and solicited fellow Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, to help persuade Coburn to lift the hold. Their bipartisan effort paid off, and the bill cleared the Senate hurdle Sept. 27.
Before the vote, Rep. Dave Loebsack, D-Iowa, delivered a speech on the House floor in support of the bill. “I rise today in strong support of the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act,” Loebsack said. “This bill was one of the first that I co-sponsored as a new Member of Congress. I did so because I believe that we have a moral obligation to care for those who have worn our country’s uniform. I urge the president to quickly sign it into law so that these vital mental health services can reach our nation’s veterans.”
Originally posted on "Iowa Independent"
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Harkin and Grassley Team Up to Push Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Bill Through Senate
After a long-fought battle, Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, helped push the Joshua Omvig Suicide Prevention Act of 2007 through the Senate late Thursday night. The heavily bipartisan bill had been obstructed for two months by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Ok., who placed a hold on the bill for reasons Harkin called “bogus.” Harkin received help from Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who took the leadership role on the Republican side and helped persuade Coburn to lift the hold earlier in the day. The bill now returns to the House of Representatives, where Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, the original author of the legislation, will lead the bill through the House, where it had previously passed by a vote count of 423-0.
“I am heartened to see that after many months of talking about preventing suicide among our veterans, Congress finally took action,” Harkin said. “The Omvig family’s patience and selfless determination in seeing this through so other soldiers and families are protected is truly commendable. This is a matter of honoring the memory of their son Josh. And it is a matter of honoring the service and sacrifice of all our men and women in uniform. It is shockingly evident that our veterans urgently need the screening and counseling that this bill would require.”
The Omvig Act directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to integrate mental health services into veterans’ primary care and to step up counseling and other mental health services for returning war veterans. It is named after Joshua Omvig, a soldier from Grundy Center Iowa who took his own life after returning from Iraq.
“Our veterans should not have to suffer alone. They may be reluctant to seek help, but they need to know that help is there,” Grassley said. “We also need to make sure that the support mechanisms are in place to help veterans when they do seek help.”
The VA estimates that more than 5,000 veterans take their lives each year. Suicide rates are 35 percent higher for Iraq veterans than for the general population. And the Department of Defense recently reported that the Army is now seeing the highest rate of suicide since the Vietnam War. A study in this July’s issue of “Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health” found that those who have been in combat are twice as likely to commit suicide as men who have not served in a war.
“The memories of combat haunt many of our men and women who have served. We must provide the resources and support to prevent the unnecessary deaths of the men and women who have put their lives on the line to defend our nation,” said Harkin. “I look forward to seeing the President sign this critical bill into law to ensure that programs are in place to meet the needs of veterans.”
Harkin’s efforts to get the Joshua Omvig bill passed received praise on the presidential campaign trail from New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. "Tom Harkin's leadership on this issue in the Senate was essential to its passage,” Richardson said in a press release statement. “I encourage the House of Representatives to follow the leadership of Congressman Boswell and pass this bill. Then, for our veterans' sake, hopefully President Bush will see the error of his ways and sign the bill into law."
Originally posted on "Iowa Independent"
“I am heartened to see that after many months of talking about preventing suicide among our veterans, Congress finally took action,” Harkin said. “The Omvig family’s patience and selfless determination in seeing this through so other soldiers and families are protected is truly commendable. This is a matter of honoring the memory of their son Josh. And it is a matter of honoring the service and sacrifice of all our men and women in uniform. It is shockingly evident that our veterans urgently need the screening and counseling that this bill would require.”
The Omvig Act directs the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to integrate mental health services into veterans’ primary care and to step up counseling and other mental health services for returning war veterans. It is named after Joshua Omvig, a soldier from Grundy Center Iowa who took his own life after returning from Iraq.
“Our veterans should not have to suffer alone. They may be reluctant to seek help, but they need to know that help is there,” Grassley said. “We also need to make sure that the support mechanisms are in place to help veterans when they do seek help.”
The VA estimates that more than 5,000 veterans take their lives each year. Suicide rates are 35 percent higher for Iraq veterans than for the general population. And the Department of Defense recently reported that the Army is now seeing the highest rate of suicide since the Vietnam War. A study in this July’s issue of “Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health” found that those who have been in combat are twice as likely to commit suicide as men who have not served in a war.
“The memories of combat haunt many of our men and women who have served. We must provide the resources and support to prevent the unnecessary deaths of the men and women who have put their lives on the line to defend our nation,” said Harkin. “I look forward to seeing the President sign this critical bill into law to ensure that programs are in place to meet the needs of veterans.”
Harkin’s efforts to get the Joshua Omvig bill passed received praise on the presidential campaign trail from New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson. "Tom Harkin's leadership on this issue in the Senate was essential to its passage,” Richardson said in a press release statement. “I encourage the House of Representatives to follow the leadership of Congressman Boswell and pass this bill. Then, for our veterans' sake, hopefully President Bush will see the error of his ways and sign the bill into law."
Originally posted on "Iowa Independent"
Thursday, September 20, 2007
No Legislated Rest for Troops: Webb Amendment
Once again, Republican senators fell in line with the Defense Department and the Bush administration by rejecting a bipartisan amendment that would let soldiers deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan have at least same time off at home as their latest deployment before they are redeployed. The amendment, sponsored by Sens. James Webb, D-Va., and Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., failed on a 56-44 vote because a 60-vote super-majority was needed for passage. Wednesday's vote was nearly identical to a previous vote in July.
The Democrats voted along party lines, while six Republicans defected (was Grassley one of them? need to say how he voted somewhere in story), which prompted disappointment on the Democratic side of the aisle. “I was disappointed that the Webb amendment did not pass yesterday," Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa said in a statement to the Iowa Independent. "This amendment would have provided support to our troops by ensuring they didn’t suffer from lengthy deployments without proper dwell time, unless absolutely necessary for our national security. I find it absurd that anyone can stand up there and say they support our troops, but vote against these amendments. Our troops are at a breaking point -- we cannot continue on the path we are on.”
The GOP, including Iowa’s Sen. Chuck Grassley, blocked what Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has characterized as a back-door attempt by Democrats to force the Bush administration to draw down troops. Grassley could not be reached for comment but had issued a statement to the Iowa Independent regarding his “no” vote when the amendment first came up for a vote in July. "The last thing politicians in Washington should do is tie the hands of our commanders on the ground by dictating troop rotations," Grassley said. “New troop deployment policies as well as increases to the size of the active duty military should help relieve the stress on our current forces, and the reserve forces in particular -- while maintaining the flexibility and capability to respond to national security needs."
Gates had recommended that Bush veto the proposed legislation before Wednesday’s vote in the Senate, contending the bill would hamstring the Pentagon’s ability to maintain current troop levels in Iraq. "It would be extremely difficult for us to manage that. It really is a back-door way to try and force the president to accelerate the draw-downs," Gates said.
Democrats appeared to have some momentum when Sen. John Warner, R-Va., had voiced his support for the amendment, only to change his mind after a last-minute campaign by the Defense Department and the White House to kill the bill. Warner’s late defection deflated any momentum that had been building, thus ensuring the amendment's second death.
Meanwhile, military personnel and family members are facing uncertainty upon the return of soldiers, not really knowing when they will be redeployed. One of the bill’s co-sponsors, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., pleaded their case on the Senate floor. “We owe it to our troops and their families to adopt a fair policy that ensures predictable rotations, adequate time to be with their families before redeployment, and adequate time for realistic training for the difficult assignments we are giving them,” said Obama, a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.
“There are scores of anecdotes that bear out the strain on our families,” Obama said. "One woman from Illinois recently wrote my office to tell me how her husband was facing his fourth deployment in four-and-one-half years. She described how her husband had spent so much time in Iraq that, in her words: ‘He feels like he is stationed in Iraq and only deploys home.’ That is not an acceptable way to treat our troops. That is not an acceptable way to treat their families.”
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., an adamant opponent of the Webb/Hagel amendment urged Congress to reject the measure on constitutional grounds. “The Constitution of the United States gives no authority for the Congress of the United States to set lengths of tour or lengths of duty in the military, and I hope we will steadfastly reject this kind of micromanagement, which would create chaos,” McCain said.
Webb rejected McCain’s assertion that the Senate has no role in troop deployments on CNN. “Well, first of all, Senator McCain, who I’ve known for 30 years, needs to read the Constitution. There is a provision in Article I, Section 8, which clearly gives the Congress the authority to make rules with respect to the ground and naval forces. There’s precedent for this."
Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., backed up his Democratic colleague in a press release: “Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution says clearly that Congress must ‘make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces,’” said Biden. “This may be the president's war, but it is America's sons and daughters fighting it. Congress must and will do what is necessary to protect them and preserve the readiness of our military to meet any threats to our security.”
The Democrats voted along party lines, while six Republicans defected (was Grassley one of them? need to say how he voted somewhere in story), which prompted disappointment on the Democratic side of the aisle. “I was disappointed that the Webb amendment did not pass yesterday," Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa said in a statement to the Iowa Independent. "This amendment would have provided support to our troops by ensuring they didn’t suffer from lengthy deployments without proper dwell time, unless absolutely necessary for our national security. I find it absurd that anyone can stand up there and say they support our troops, but vote against these amendments. Our troops are at a breaking point -- we cannot continue on the path we are on.”
The GOP, including Iowa’s Sen. Chuck Grassley, blocked what Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has characterized as a back-door attempt by Democrats to force the Bush administration to draw down troops. Grassley could not be reached for comment but had issued a statement to the Iowa Independent regarding his “no” vote when the amendment first came up for a vote in July. "The last thing politicians in Washington should do is tie the hands of our commanders on the ground by dictating troop rotations," Grassley said. “New troop deployment policies as well as increases to the size of the active duty military should help relieve the stress on our current forces, and the reserve forces in particular -- while maintaining the flexibility and capability to respond to national security needs."
Gates had recommended that Bush veto the proposed legislation before Wednesday’s vote in the Senate, contending the bill would hamstring the Pentagon’s ability to maintain current troop levels in Iraq. "It would be extremely difficult for us to manage that. It really is a back-door way to try and force the president to accelerate the draw-downs," Gates said.
Democrats appeared to have some momentum when Sen. John Warner, R-Va., had voiced his support for the amendment, only to change his mind after a last-minute campaign by the Defense Department and the White House to kill the bill. Warner’s late defection deflated any momentum that had been building, thus ensuring the amendment's second death.
Meanwhile, military personnel and family members are facing uncertainty upon the return of soldiers, not really knowing when they will be redeployed. One of the bill’s co-sponsors, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., pleaded their case on the Senate floor. “We owe it to our troops and their families to adopt a fair policy that ensures predictable rotations, adequate time to be with their families before redeployment, and adequate time for realistic training for the difficult assignments we are giving them,” said Obama, a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.
“There are scores of anecdotes that bear out the strain on our families,” Obama said. "One woman from Illinois recently wrote my office to tell me how her husband was facing his fourth deployment in four-and-one-half years. She described how her husband had spent so much time in Iraq that, in her words: ‘He feels like he is stationed in Iraq and only deploys home.’ That is not an acceptable way to treat our troops. That is not an acceptable way to treat their families.”
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., an adamant opponent of the Webb/Hagel amendment urged Congress to reject the measure on constitutional grounds. “The Constitution of the United States gives no authority for the Congress of the United States to set lengths of tour or lengths of duty in the military, and I hope we will steadfastly reject this kind of micromanagement, which would create chaos,” McCain said.
Webb rejected McCain’s assertion that the Senate has no role in troop deployments on CNN. “Well, first of all, Senator McCain, who I’ve known for 30 years, needs to read the Constitution. There is a provision in Article I, Section 8, which clearly gives the Congress the authority to make rules with respect to the ground and naval forces. There’s precedent for this."
Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., backed up his Democratic colleague in a press release: “Article 1, Section 8 of the Constitution says clearly that Congress must ‘make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces,’” said Biden. “This may be the president's war, but it is America's sons and daughters fighting it. Congress must and will do what is necessary to protect them and preserve the readiness of our military to meet any threats to our security.”
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Hold Put on Harkin’s Veterans Suicide Prevention Act
The Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act appeared to be on the fast track in Congress until Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., put a hold on it because of 2nd Amendment concerns.
The House version introduced by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, unanimously passed in March, while the Senate was scheduled to vote on Iowa Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin’s companion bill upon returning from the August recess. Coburn said last week he is worried that veterans seeking treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and suicide-related symptoms will be “adjudicated as mentally defective,” which may prevent them from buying guns in the future. The bill was introduced by Boswell in honor of Joshua Omvig, a young man from Grundy Center who took his own life after returning home form an 11-month tour in Iraq.
Paul Rieckhoff, an Iraq war veteran and founder of the Iraq and Afghanistan Iraq Veterans of America, took issue with Coburn’s rationale. “Sen. Coburn’s claim that Joshua Omvig Veteran Suicide prevention bill really is just a red herring argument using veterans as political pawns in a struggle over gun control legislation,” said Rieckhoff.
“The real issue behind Coburn blocking the Omvig bill is that he hates new proposed gun control legislation (H.R. 2640) which was drafted in response to the Virginia Tech shooting,” Rieckhoff writes on his IAVA blog. “The new bill called NICS would compel government agencies to turn over any list they might have of people who have been 'adjudicated as mentally defective.' The gun lobby says that the background check measure ‘will deter veterans from seeking help and counseling if they think that being helped with something like post-traumatic stress disorder will disqualify them from owning guns.’ Current law already states that people who have been thus adjudicated can not receive gun permits.”
During the House's consideration of the bill, Boswell said, "With more and more veterans returning from tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, new issues have arisen regarding veterans mental health care that have not received attention in the past."
"Some estimates have found that almost one thousand veterans receiving care from the Department of Veterans Affairs commit suicide each year, and one out of five suicides in the United States is a veteran,” Boswell said in a press release. “We must do better for our veterans, and I believe this legislation is a step in the right direction. A screening and tracking process might have provided Joshua with the counseling he needed," added Boswell. "But, the provisions in this bill will help other veterans, and that is very important."
H.R. 327 mandates the screening of all patients at the Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities for suicide risk factors and the tracking of at-risk veterans. It requires that each VA medical center designate one suicide prevention counselor and for the VA to conduct outreach to veterans and their families on mental health issues. The bill also requires 24-hour availability of a mental health hotline for veterans.
In August, Harkin introduced his companion bill, which also takes a multifaceted approach. It emphasizes the importance of social support, readjustment services, and further research to prevent and treat suicide among our nation’s veterans. “The stress our service men and women endure in combat is enormous and can trigger severe mental health issues after they have returned home,” Harkin said in a press release. “We have a responsibility to treat both the physical injuries and the mental wounds our soldiers suffer.” Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is a co-sponsor of the bill.
“The same way swift triage care can save a soldier on the battlefield,” Harkin said in the statement, “accurate diagnosis and delivery of quality mental health care can do the same once the fighting ends. It’s time to provide new resources and eliminate the stigmatization about seeking help. We must focus on increasing programs in detection, prevention, and treatment of suicidal behavior among those who have dedicated their lives to keeping our nation secure.”
Until Coburn removes the hold, passage of the Omvig Bill remains uncertain and delays will have a lasting impact on veterans struggling with PTSD and thoughts of suicide.
Regarding the hold, Rieckhoff examines Coburn’s rationale on his IAVA blog:
The House version introduced by Rep. Leonard Boswell, D-Iowa, unanimously passed in March, while the Senate was scheduled to vote on Iowa Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin’s companion bill upon returning from the August recess. Coburn said last week he is worried that veterans seeking treatment for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and suicide-related symptoms will be “adjudicated as mentally defective,” which may prevent them from buying guns in the future. The bill was introduced by Boswell in honor of Joshua Omvig, a young man from Grundy Center who took his own life after returning home form an 11-month tour in Iraq.
Paul Rieckhoff, an Iraq war veteran and founder of the Iraq and Afghanistan Iraq Veterans of America, took issue with Coburn’s rationale. “Sen. Coburn’s claim that Joshua Omvig Veteran Suicide prevention bill really is just a red herring argument using veterans as political pawns in a struggle over gun control legislation,” said Rieckhoff.
“The real issue behind Coburn blocking the Omvig bill is that he hates new proposed gun control legislation (H.R. 2640) which was drafted in response to the Virginia Tech shooting,” Rieckhoff writes on his IAVA blog. “The new bill called NICS would compel government agencies to turn over any list they might have of people who have been 'adjudicated as mentally defective.' The gun lobby says that the background check measure ‘will deter veterans from seeking help and counseling if they think that being helped with something like post-traumatic stress disorder will disqualify them from owning guns.’ Current law already states that people who have been thus adjudicated can not receive gun permits.”
During the House's consideration of the bill, Boswell said, "With more and more veterans returning from tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, new issues have arisen regarding veterans mental health care that have not received attention in the past."
"Some estimates have found that almost one thousand veterans receiving care from the Department of Veterans Affairs commit suicide each year, and one out of five suicides in the United States is a veteran,” Boswell said in a press release. “We must do better for our veterans, and I believe this legislation is a step in the right direction. A screening and tracking process might have provided Joshua with the counseling he needed," added Boswell. "But, the provisions in this bill will help other veterans, and that is very important."
H.R. 327 mandates the screening of all patients at the Department of Veterans Affairs medical facilities for suicide risk factors and the tracking of at-risk veterans. It requires that each VA medical center designate one suicide prevention counselor and for the VA to conduct outreach to veterans and their families on mental health issues. The bill also requires 24-hour availability of a mental health hotline for veterans.
In August, Harkin introduced his companion bill, which also takes a multifaceted approach. It emphasizes the importance of social support, readjustment services, and further research to prevent and treat suicide among our nation’s veterans. “The stress our service men and women endure in combat is enormous and can trigger severe mental health issues after they have returned home,” Harkin said in a press release. “We have a responsibility to treat both the physical injuries and the mental wounds our soldiers suffer.” Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, is a co-sponsor of the bill.
“The same way swift triage care can save a soldier on the battlefield,” Harkin said in the statement, “accurate diagnosis and delivery of quality mental health care can do the same once the fighting ends. It’s time to provide new resources and eliminate the stigmatization about seeking help. We must focus on increasing programs in detection, prevention, and treatment of suicidal behavior among those who have dedicated their lives to keeping our nation secure.”
Until Coburn removes the hold, passage of the Omvig Bill remains uncertain and delays will have a lasting impact on veterans struggling with PTSD and thoughts of suicide.
Regarding the hold, Rieckhoff examines Coburn’s rationale on his IAVA blog:
Coburn’s office (via the gun lobby) is purposefully combining two unrelated issues to score political points. The facts are that to be “ADJUDICATED” as mentally defective a person must be “a danger to himself or others” “as a result of marked subnormal intelligence, or mental illness, incompetency, condition, or disease” as determined by “by a court, board, commission, or other lawful authority.” (27 CFR 478.11)
The key word is “adjudicated.” Even if the VA determines that a veteran has high suicide risk factors (screening for these factors is a provision of the Omvig bill) or even PTSD, they must specifically determine that the veteran is danger to himself. That determination could only happen when the veteran applies for benefits and the VA “adjudicates” their claim. The VA would have to make a specific finding that as part of the veteran’s disability rating that they ARE a danger to themselves, not that they MIGHT be a danger.
The Omvig bill only deals with screening for risk factors. The House version does contain a provision that requires the VA to track those with high risk factors, but neither mentions anything about adjudication. If someone has started receiving counseling for PTSD then they are already being screened for suicidal risk factors and the Omvig bill does not affect the adjudication of the veterans PTSD claim in ANY way.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Harkin, Boswell Call Upon Presidential Candidates to Honor Contract with Veterans
Iowa’s Sen. Tom Harkin and Rep. Leonard Boswell encouraged a room full of fellow veterans Monday to get politically involved in the presidential campaign and hold the candidates accountable for their views on veterans’ issues. “Every veteran has an obligation, just as we had an obligation to carry out our duties as soldiers, to be intimately involved in politics,” said Harkin, a Navy veteran who served during the Vietnam War.“I know all the Democratic candidates running for president know we need to fulfill our obligations to our veterans, and this is something we need to take out on the campaign trail,” said Harkin. “This administration has cut back on veterans’ benefits, health care, and they have short-changed our veterans just about every term. We’ve had to fight tooth and nail for veterans just to get the money they need through appropriations.”
Boswell, a decorated Army veteran who served two tours of duty in the Vietnam War as an assault helicopter pilot, echoed Harkin’s sentiments. “Our returning National Guardsmen have been serving one, two and three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, but when they return, they don’t receive the same treatment as our active duty members, and that’s not right,” said Boswell. “They should receive the same benefits and our presidential candidates should be hearing this from you.”
Boswell warns Iowa veterans that we do not have one combat-ready brigade stationed in the continental United States
While speaking at the Iowa Democratic Veterans’ Caucus Presidential Extravaganza at the Four Mile Community Center in Des Moines, Harkin and Boswell reiterated that veterans’ issues should be non-partisan and the government has a sacred contract with its veterans that must be upheld. “When it comes to serving our veterans, it’s up to our leaders to fulfill its end of the contract,” said Boswell. “A deal’s a deal.”
Quoting our first commander-in-chief, George Washington, Harkin helped illustrate the same point. “George Washington believed in a militia, a non-standing army. In order for America to be able to defend itself from future adversaries, we would need to be able to call upon the militia to take up arms and defend our country,” said Harkin. “Their willingness to do so will rest in large measure upon how the country treated those who took up arms before them.”
All of the Democratic presidential candidates had been invited to speak at the forum, but only Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn., confirmed and spoke at the event. All of the other candidates, except Rep. Dennis Kucinich of Ohio, sent high-level surrogates to speak on their behalf.
The goals of the presidential extravaganza was to raise money for soldiers wounded in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and to raise awareness of veterans issues on the campaign trail. The event grossed $450, which will be donated to soldiers and families at Landstuhl Medical Center in Germany and Veterans Affairs Medical Centers and Clinics throughout Iowa. “We did something important yesterday -- far beyond measuring the numbers that were in attendance. Simply put, we elevated veterans’ issues in both Iowa and the nation,” said Bob Krause, chair of the IDP Veterans’ Caucus. “You may not have noticed, but several of the candidates issued national position papers on veterans’ issues yesterday. That was an actual consequence of our Presidential Extravaganza.”
Hoping to capture the non-partisanship nature of veterans’ issues, the event was open to all veterans regardless of their political affiliation. "From the day you put on the uniform, you learn to take care of your fellow soldier. This is no different. Black, white, Hispanic, Republican, Democrat, Independent; we are all in this together. You may or may not like our politics, but you cannot deny that we are comrades in arms," Krause said.
“When I appear before veterans groups, I try to the best of my ability to make veterans’ issues non-partisan,” said Harkin. “We’ve made a sacred contract with veterans, and this contract should be honored by both parties.”
Early on, however, the tone of the event did shift when Harkin broke the partisan ice with a one-line quip. “Dick Cheney just had his sixth grandchild; that’s one more grandchild than deferments he had during the Vietnam War,” said Harkin, before setting his sights on GOP candidate, Mitt Romney. “Then there’s what Romney said the other day when equating the fact that running a father’s campaign is the same as serving in Iraq or Afghanistan. I see today he said he misspoke, which in real plain English folks is saying I really screwed up.”
Harkin expressed his concerns about the current administration’s ideology and how foreign policy decisions not only affect Americans, but the soldiers who are defending these policies.
“When power is used indiscriminately -- without conscience and without thinking about the consequences of that power and what that power is going to be ultimately used for, that’s what gets us into trouble,” Harkin said. “We ill serve our present troops who are in the field by continually putting them into harms way for purposes that are ill-defined.”
Before surrendering the microphone, Boswell and Harkin hoped to plant seeds in the veterans’ minds as they hit the campaign trail. They seized the opportunity to express some of their concerns. “Something else you should bring up to these candidates is that in the continental United States we do not have one combat-ready brigade. We have Code 1s deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, but we don’t have any here,” warned Boswell. “One of the reasons for not having any C1s is that we’ve lost the backbone of the Army. Having already served one to three tours, many of our E-5 and E-6 sergeants are leaving the military, and it’s going to take years to fix this problem. They’re walking out because of the strain it’s putting on their families.”
“I’m concerned because the Army is falling back on recruiting, so what are they doing?” Harkin asked. “They’re scaling back requirements while seducing potential recruits with more money and other monetary inducements. I’m concerned that we will have a military that is made up of only the lower economic parts of our country, and I don’t think that’s good for our country. I think the sons of people like Mitt Romney, Harkin, Biden, and everybody else ought to be serving too.”
Sunday, July 15, 2007
The Iowa Front: Military & Veterans’ Weekly Roundup
Veterans/Political Fronts
“Don’t ‘Fire” Draws Veteran’s Ire”: Jim Kantaris, a Korean veteran, was more than a little perturbed when he found out his VFW post wouldn’t be able to fire off their guns during a 4th of July parade in Mason City due to the security measures made to accommodate the Clintons. "There's too much political stuff," Kantaris, quartermaster of Post 733, told the Mason City Globe Gazette. "They're making us change 50 years of tradition because of two people. And one of them is a draft-dodger who turned the White House into a whorehouse." Kantaris later apologized for his comments, but the breaking of a 50-year tradition still did not resonate well with fellow VFW members. Read more of Jim Carlson’s article in the Des Moines Register.
“Obama Aims to Quell Defense Doubts”: Sen. Barack Obama kicks of his “Commander in Chief” tour this week in Iowa. A group of military veterans who served in Iraq, including some from Iowa, will campaign in the state this week in support of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. They will be joined by Retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Scott Gration as they cross the state. For more information about the tour and schedule of events, go to the Des Moines Register.
“Golf Program Will Help Vets”: Injured and disabled veterans soon will get the opportunity to develop their swing on the area's newest golf course.Thanks to a new partnership between the Blue Top Ridge at Riverside golf course, the Iowa PGA and the VA Iowa City Health Care System, the Iowa Veterans for Golf four-part program is intended to improve the mental, social, physical and emotional well-being for veterans served by the medical center. (The Press-Citizen)
“Grassley Announces $7.6 Million for Veterans Cemetery in Van Meter”: Sen. Chuck Grassley today announced that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has awarded a $7.6 million grant to create a new State Veterans Cemetery in Van Meter. The new cemetery will be called the Iowa Veterans Cemetery and is the first State Veterans Cemetery in Iowa. Nearly 70,000 veterans and their families live within the service area of this Dallas County Cemetery.
Military Front
“Two Return, One Goes Back: Second Tour of Iraq Separates Pair with Similar Backgrounds”: chronicles two members of the Iowa National Guard’s 833rd Engineer Company, which is scheduled to redeploy to Iraq later this month. Mark McLaughlin and Jason Beatty had become the best of friends while serving in Iraq, but they’ll be separated during this upcoming tour of duty, because Beatty has been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Read more about their relationship and struggles in Mark Kilen’s Des Moines Register article.
“Republicans Defeat Troop Readiness Amendment”: A measure that would improve military readiness and require periods of down time for National Guard and reservists returning from Iraq and Afghanistan before redeploying them was defeated Wednesday by a Senate Republican filibuster. At the very minimum, the proposed down-time requirements would be equal to the time of served during previous deployment. Currently, there are no mandated restrictions set by the Department of Defense.
The amendment, S. AMDT. 2012, was introduced by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, which is currently being debated in both chambers of Congress. The vote was 56-41 to end debate on Webb's amendment, with 60 votes needed to move to a full up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.
After the filibuster succeeded, Webb, a Vietnam War veteran, shared his disappointment on the Senate floor with Republican colleagues: "Today the Republicans decided to filibuster an amendment that goes straight to the well-being of our troops. I deeply regret this move. I would remind my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle that the American people are watching us today. They expect us to take the sort of positive action that might stabilize the operational environment in which are troops are being sent again and again."
“Don’t ‘Fire” Draws Veteran’s Ire”: Jim Kantaris, a Korean veteran, was more than a little perturbed when he found out his VFW post wouldn’t be able to fire off their guns during a 4th of July parade in Mason City due to the security measures made to accommodate the Clintons. "There's too much political stuff," Kantaris, quartermaster of Post 733, told the Mason City Globe Gazette. "They're making us change 50 years of tradition because of two people. And one of them is a draft-dodger who turned the White House into a whorehouse." Kantaris later apologized for his comments, but the breaking of a 50-year tradition still did not resonate well with fellow VFW members. Read more of Jim Carlson’s article in the Des Moines Register.
“Obama Aims to Quell Defense Doubts”: Sen. Barack Obama kicks of his “Commander in Chief” tour this week in Iowa. A group of military veterans who served in Iraq, including some from Iowa, will campaign in the state this week in support of Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. They will be joined by Retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Scott Gration as they cross the state. For more information about the tour and schedule of events, go to the Des Moines Register.
“Golf Program Will Help Vets”: Injured and disabled veterans soon will get the opportunity to develop their swing on the area's newest golf course.Thanks to a new partnership between the Blue Top Ridge at Riverside golf course, the Iowa PGA and the VA Iowa City Health Care System, the Iowa Veterans for Golf four-part program is intended to improve the mental, social, physical and emotional well-being for veterans served by the medical center. (The Press-Citizen)
“Grassley Announces $7.6 Million for Veterans Cemetery in Van Meter”: Sen. Chuck Grassley today announced that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has awarded a $7.6 million grant to create a new State Veterans Cemetery in Van Meter. The new cemetery will be called the Iowa Veterans Cemetery and is the first State Veterans Cemetery in Iowa. Nearly 70,000 veterans and their families live within the service area of this Dallas County Cemetery.
Military Front
“Two Return, One Goes Back: Second Tour of Iraq Separates Pair with Similar Backgrounds”: chronicles two members of the Iowa National Guard’s 833rd Engineer Company, which is scheduled to redeploy to Iraq later this month. Mark McLaughlin and Jason Beatty had become the best of friends while serving in Iraq, but they’ll be separated during this upcoming tour of duty, because Beatty has been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Read more about their relationship and struggles in Mark Kilen’s Des Moines Register article.
“Republicans Defeat Troop Readiness Amendment”: A measure that would improve military readiness and require periods of down time for National Guard and reservists returning from Iraq and Afghanistan before redeploying them was defeated Wednesday by a Senate Republican filibuster. At the very minimum, the proposed down-time requirements would be equal to the time of served during previous deployment. Currently, there are no mandated restrictions set by the Department of Defense.
The amendment, S. AMDT. 2012, was introduced by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, which is currently being debated in both chambers of Congress. The vote was 56-41 to end debate on Webb's amendment, with 60 votes needed to move to a full up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.
After the filibuster succeeded, Webb, a Vietnam War veteran, shared his disappointment on the Senate floor with Republican colleagues: "Today the Republicans decided to filibuster an amendment that goes straight to the well-being of our troops. I deeply regret this move. I would remind my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle that the American people are watching us today. They expect us to take the sort of positive action that might stabilize the operational environment in which are troops are being sent again and again."
Friday, July 13, 2007
Republicans Defeat Troop Readiness Amendment
A measure that would improve military readiness and require periods of down time for National Guard and reservists returning from Iraq and Afghanistan before redeploying them was defeated Wednesday by a Senate Republican filibuster. At the very minimum, the proposed down-time requirements would be equal to the time of served during previous deployment. Currently, there are no mandated restrictions set by the Department of Defense.
The amendment, S. AMDT. 2011, was introduced by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, which is currently being debated in both chambers of Congress. The vote was 56-41 to end debate on Webb’s amendment, with 60 votes needed to move to a full up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.
After the filibuster succeeded, Webb, a Vietnam War veteran, shared his disappointment on the Senate floor with Republican colleagues: “Today the Republicans decided to filibuster an amendment that goes straight to the well-being of our troops. I deeply regret this move. I would remind my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle that the American people are watching us today. They expect us to take the sort of positive action that might stabilize the operational environment in which are troops are being sent again and again.”
Webb’s amendment was bound to meet resistance from the GOP rank and file and faced a President Bush veto, who vetoed the 2007 war emergency bill on similar grounds that Congress should not etch into law deployment and down times – which the Bush administration says would curtail commanders’ flexibility on the battlefield. Iowa’s Sen. Chuck Grassley echoed the administration’s steadfast policy in a statement to the Iowa Independent: “The last thing politicians in Washington should do is tie the hands of our commanders on the ground by dictating troop rotations."
"Our troops have been put under tremendous stress and have been asked to do a great deal during the War on Terrorism. The soldiers and their families have answered the call of duty time and time again,” said Grassley, a Republican. “Recently, the Secretary of Defense announced new troop deployment policies as well as increases to the size of the active duty military. This should help relieve the stress on our current forces, and the reserve forces in particular, while maintaining the flexibility and capability to respond to national security needs.”
Praise for the Bush administration’s troop deployment policies was less forthcoming on the other side of the aisle in Iowa. “It is simply unacceptable that our troops’ time at home has often been cut short, depriving them of the time they need to recover from combat, complete additional training and spend precious time with their families,” said Sen. Tom Harkin in a press release. “This systematic abuse of redeploying our troops with little down time has placed enormous stress on our troops and their families, and has brought our Army to its breaking point. Having an established amount of time between deployments is crucial to protecting our troops’ mental and physical well-being and providing some stability and predictability for military families.”
Findings from a Department of Defense Task Force on Mental Health in June support Harkin’s claim:
Regarding the mental health issues facing veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, mental health experts have reached a consensus that matters will only worsen unless proactive measures are taken. Webb’s amendment was one of these measures.
Webb, a first-year senator, spoke of frustrations with the politicizing of his legislative action: “Americans are tired of the posturing that is giving Congress such a bad reputation. They are tired of the procedural strategies designed to protect politicians from accountability, and to protect this Administration from judgment. They are looking for concrete actions that will protect the well-being of our men and women in uniform.”
The amendment, S. AMDT. 2011, was introduced by Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., as part of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, which is currently being debated in both chambers of Congress. The vote was 56-41 to end debate on Webb’s amendment, with 60 votes needed to move to a full up-or-down vote on the Senate floor.
After the filibuster succeeded, Webb, a Vietnam War veteran, shared his disappointment on the Senate floor with Republican colleagues: “Today the Republicans decided to filibuster an amendment that goes straight to the well-being of our troops. I deeply regret this move. I would remind my colleagues on the Republican side of the aisle that the American people are watching us today. They expect us to take the sort of positive action that might stabilize the operational environment in which are troops are being sent again and again.”
Webb’s amendment was bound to meet resistance from the GOP rank and file and faced a President Bush veto, who vetoed the 2007 war emergency bill on similar grounds that Congress should not etch into law deployment and down times – which the Bush administration says would curtail commanders’ flexibility on the battlefield. Iowa’s Sen. Chuck Grassley echoed the administration’s steadfast policy in a statement to the Iowa Independent: “The last thing politicians in Washington should do is tie the hands of our commanders on the ground by dictating troop rotations."
"Our troops have been put under tremendous stress and have been asked to do a great deal during the War on Terrorism. The soldiers and their families have answered the call of duty time and time again,” said Grassley, a Republican. “Recently, the Secretary of Defense announced new troop deployment policies as well as increases to the size of the active duty military. This should help relieve the stress on our current forces, and the reserve forces in particular, while maintaining the flexibility and capability to respond to national security needs.”
Praise for the Bush administration’s troop deployment policies was less forthcoming on the other side of the aisle in Iowa. “It is simply unacceptable that our troops’ time at home has often been cut short, depriving them of the time they need to recover from combat, complete additional training and spend precious time with their families,” said Sen. Tom Harkin in a press release. “This systematic abuse of redeploying our troops with little down time has placed enormous stress on our troops and their families, and has brought our Army to its breaking point. Having an established amount of time between deployments is crucial to protecting our troops’ mental and physical well-being and providing some stability and predictability for military families.”
Findings from a Department of Defense Task Force on Mental Health in June support Harkin’s claim:
The challenges are enormous and the consequences of non-performance are
significant. Data from the Post-Deployment Health Re-Assessment, which is
administered to service members 90 to 120 days after returning from deployment,
indicate that 38 percent of Soldiers and 31 percent of Marines report
psychological symptoms. Among members of the National Guard, the figure rises to
49 percent (U.S. Air Force, 2007; U.S. Army, 2007; U.S. Navy, 2007). Further,
psychological concerns are significantly higher among those with repeated
deployments, a rapidly growing cohort. Psychological concerns among family
members of deployed and returning Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring
Freedom veterans, while yet to be fully quantified, are also an issue of
concern. Hundreds of thousands of children have experienced the deployment of a
parent.
Regarding the mental health issues facing veterans returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, mental health experts have reached a consensus that matters will only worsen unless proactive measures are taken. Webb’s amendment was one of these measures.
Webb, a first-year senator, spoke of frustrations with the politicizing of his legislative action: “Americans are tired of the posturing that is giving Congress such a bad reputation. They are tired of the procedural strategies designed to protect politicians from accountability, and to protect this Administration from judgment. They are looking for concrete actions that will protect the well-being of our men and women in uniform.”
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Obama a Little Late on Extending GI Bill Benefits
(Update: The Obama campaign responded to an msnbc.com First Read inquiry about the proposed GI Bill legislation: "A number of different legislative options have been proposed to extend educational benefits for veterans, including the Cantwell bill. Senator Obama has been evaluating whether to cosponsor these bills or propose his own bill.")
During a campaign stop in Des Moines on Tuesday, Army veteran John Strong suggested to Sen. Barack Obama that the U.S. government should withdraw time limits on educational benefits given to soldiers under the GI Bill. Currently, many GI benefits that help veterans pay for college expire in 10 to 14 years after the person has left the service.
Obama responded that Strong, an unemployed senior citizen, had an outstanding idea. “We might introduce legislation next week,” the presidential candidate from Illinois told Strong. “Maybe we’ll name it after you.”
The only glitch is that this legislation has already been named and introduced in the U.S. Senate on May 1st. The “Cantwell/Larsen Montgomery GI Bill for Life Act of 2007” was introduced in May by Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. S. 1261, which is co-sponsored by Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, would repeal the 10-year and 14-year deadlines.
Given the hundreds of bills introduced in the Senate each session, it would be challenging to keep track of every piece of legislation, but Obama is a member of the Senate Veterans Committee, where the bill was referred once it was introduced on the floor by Cantwell.
The Montgomery GI Bill for active-duty service members and veterans is a "pay to play" benefit that requires each service member to make a $1,200 non-refundable contribution upfront. In return for the contribution they can use their entitlement -- up to $1,075 per month for 36 months -- to help pay for education, apprenticeship and job training.
The catch is that the GI Bill automatically expires 10 years after the veteran leaves active-duty service. This "use it or loose it" aspect of the GI Bill has left many veterans feeling misled and cheated. According to a Department of Veteran Affairs report, nearly 30 percent of eligible veterans are unable to use any of their education benefits and most eligible veterans are only able to access a portion of their GI Bill before the 10-year limit is reached.
"GI Bill benefits should not come with an expiration date," Cantwell said in a May 1 press release announcing the bill. "When our service members leave the military, family obligations, work commitments and economic difficulties often get in the way."
Like Strong, many veterans postpone going to school because of several factors including employment constraints, family obligations, illness and disabilities associated with military service. After the rally, Strong told The Des Moines Register that he obtained a four-year college degree in social sciences in 1964 and then became a psychologist specialist for the military, serving in Europe from 1966 to 1968. He took early retirement from Greyhound several years ago and hasn't been able to find a job since. "A lot of us never used" the educational benefit, "and now that we're older, we need it," Strong said.
In many cases, 10 years have passed and they simply lose their benefits. "We need to remove this arbitrary time limit and make sure our veterans can get valuable skills training when the time is right for them," Cantwell added. "Veterans should have access to their education benefits for life."
During a campaign stop in Des Moines on Tuesday, Army veteran John Strong suggested to Sen. Barack Obama that the U.S. government should withdraw time limits on educational benefits given to soldiers under the GI Bill. Currently, many GI benefits that help veterans pay for college expire in 10 to 14 years after the person has left the service.
Obama responded that Strong, an unemployed senior citizen, had an outstanding idea. “We might introduce legislation next week,” the presidential candidate from Illinois told Strong. “Maybe we’ll name it after you.”
The only glitch is that this legislation has already been named and introduced in the U.S. Senate on May 1st. The “Cantwell/Larsen Montgomery GI Bill for Life Act of 2007” was introduced in May by Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash. S. 1261, which is co-sponsored by Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, would repeal the 10-year and 14-year deadlines.
Given the hundreds of bills introduced in the Senate each session, it would be challenging to keep track of every piece of legislation, but Obama is a member of the Senate Veterans Committee, where the bill was referred once it was introduced on the floor by Cantwell.
The Montgomery GI Bill for active-duty service members and veterans is a "pay to play" benefit that requires each service member to make a $1,200 non-refundable contribution upfront. In return for the contribution they can use their entitlement -- up to $1,075 per month for 36 months -- to help pay for education, apprenticeship and job training.
The catch is that the GI Bill automatically expires 10 years after the veteran leaves active-duty service. This "use it or loose it" aspect of the GI Bill has left many veterans feeling misled and cheated. According to a Department of Veteran Affairs report, nearly 30 percent of eligible veterans are unable to use any of their education benefits and most eligible veterans are only able to access a portion of their GI Bill before the 10-year limit is reached.
"GI Bill benefits should not come with an expiration date," Cantwell said in a May 1 press release announcing the bill. "When our service members leave the military, family obligations, work commitments and economic difficulties often get in the way."
Like Strong, many veterans postpone going to school because of several factors including employment constraints, family obligations, illness and disabilities associated with military service. After the rally, Strong told The Des Moines Register that he obtained a four-year college degree in social sciences in 1964 and then became a psychologist specialist for the military, serving in Europe from 1966 to 1968. He took early retirement from Greyhound several years ago and hasn't been able to find a job since. "A lot of us never used" the educational benefit, "and now that we're older, we need it," Strong said.
In many cases, 10 years have passed and they simply lose their benefits. "We need to remove this arbitrary time limit and make sure our veterans can get valuable skills training when the time is right for them," Cantwell added. "Veterans should have access to their education benefits for life."
Sunday, July 8, 2007
Veterans/Political Fronts
After posting disappointing campaign fundraising numbers for the second quarter in a row, Sen. John McCain downsized his Iowa staff, including his veterans outreach aide.
Veterans gathered at the Fort Dodge Public Library on Thursday for a session on veterans affairs led by Robert Hamill, a staff member of U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa. One of the biggest concerns was the waiting periods and bureaucratic delays regarding their health care needs. Hamill said the Thursday’s discussion was part of a series of similar sessions across the state. He mentioned two bills under consideration in Congress: the ‘‘Coming Together for National Guard and Reserve Families Act’’ and the ‘‘Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act.’’
“DCCC Launches Ads Attacking GOP's Record on Troops and Veterans”: Gearing up for the 2008 election, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee began targeting 14 vulnerable Republican districts this week by launching its Independence Day ad campaign. "Republicans are going home to talk up their support for our nation's troops and veterans. But, their constituents deserve to know that the Republican record on veterans is all talk and no action," said campaign chairman Chris Van Hollen. "America's troops and veterans deserve more than patriotic speeches this Independence Day."
“This Unusual Alliance is for the Soldiers”: Internet activism has forged an unlikely alliance between 15-year-old YouTube video producer Lizzi Palmer, the hard-rock band Drowning Pool and a group called Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. They want to help educate young people about veterans' health care issues and encourage youth to actively participate in the political process. The campaign, "This Is For the Soldiers," is encouraging supporters to send a petition to U.S. Rep. Bob Filner, chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, asking the California Democrat to take action on the Lane Evans Bill (H.R. 1354) pending in the House. This bipartisan legislation would require mandatory mental-health counseling for combat veterans and ensure a better transition for troops leaving the military.
After posting disappointing campaign fundraising numbers for the second quarter in a row, Sen. John McCain downsized his Iowa staff, including his veterans outreach aide.
Veterans gathered at the Fort Dodge Public Library on Thursday for a session on veterans affairs led by Robert Hamill, a staff member of U.S. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa. One of the biggest concerns was the waiting periods and bureaucratic delays regarding their health care needs. Hamill said the Thursday’s discussion was part of a series of similar sessions across the state. He mentioned two bills under consideration in Congress: the ‘‘Coming Together for National Guard and Reserve Families Act’’ and the ‘‘Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act.’’
“DCCC Launches Ads Attacking GOP's Record on Troops and Veterans”: Gearing up for the 2008 election, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee began targeting 14 vulnerable Republican districts this week by launching its Independence Day ad campaign. "Republicans are going home to talk up their support for our nation's troops and veterans. But, their constituents deserve to know that the Republican record on veterans is all talk and no action," said campaign chairman Chris Van Hollen. "America's troops and veterans deserve more than patriotic speeches this Independence Day."
“This Unusual Alliance is for the Soldiers”: Internet activism has forged an unlikely alliance between 15-year-old YouTube video producer Lizzi Palmer, the hard-rock band Drowning Pool and a group called Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America. They want to help educate young people about veterans' health care issues and encourage youth to actively participate in the political process. The campaign, "This Is For the Soldiers," is encouraging supporters to send a petition to U.S. Rep. Bob Filner, chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, asking the California Democrat to take action on the Lane Evans Bill (H.R. 1354) pending in the House. This bipartisan legislation would require mandatory mental-health counseling for combat veterans and ensure a better transition for troops leaving the military.
Friday, June 22, 2007
Grassley Calls for Review of Armed Forces Mental Health Policy
Sen. Chuck Grassley, along with a bipartisan group of Senators, sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, calling for an independent review of the personality disorder discharge process in the Armed Forces. The letter was prompted by a story in the Washington Post titled “The War Inside,” which chronicled the struggles of Army Specialist Jeans Cruz, a soldier suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.
“Soldiers are putting their lives on the line to protect us. They deserve to know that if they become injured, physically or mentally, while serving our country they will be cared for upon their return,” Grassley said. “We must learn from cases like Specialist Cruz’s and ensure our men and women in uniform receive this care for all ailments, including mental health disorders
Cruz suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and was given a personality disorder discharge which classified his condition as pre-existing to his combat experience in Iraq This discharge prevents Cruz’s from receiving disability benefits and medical care from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The senators are concerned that this is a widespread problem in the military.
In February of this year, Grassley along with Senator Tom Harkin introduced the Joshua Omvig Veteran Suicide Prevention Act. Omvig was a soldier from Iowa who committed suicide after serving his country in Iraq. The legislation directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to implement a comprehensive program to prevent suicide among veterans. The program will identify symptoms of mental health disorders, encourage veterans to seek help, and train VA employees in the best practices for suicide prevention. The legislation is expected to be considered by the Senate Committee on Veteran’s Affairs.
Here is a copy of the letter sent to Gates:
“Soldiers are putting their lives on the line to protect us. They deserve to know that if they become injured, physically or mentally, while serving our country they will be cared for upon their return,” Grassley said. “We must learn from cases like Specialist Cruz’s and ensure our men and women in uniform receive this care for all ailments, including mental health disorders
Cruz suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and was given a personality disorder discharge which classified his condition as pre-existing to his combat experience in Iraq This discharge prevents Cruz’s from receiving disability benefits and medical care from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The senators are concerned that this is a widespread problem in the military.
In February of this year, Grassley along with Senator Tom Harkin introduced the Joshua Omvig Veteran Suicide Prevention Act. Omvig was a soldier from Iowa who committed suicide after serving his country in Iraq. The legislation directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to implement a comprehensive program to prevent suicide among veterans. The program will identify symptoms of mental health disorders, encourage veterans to seek help, and train VA employees in the best practices for suicide prevention. The legislation is expected to be considered by the Senate Committee on Veteran’s Affairs.
Here is a copy of the letter sent to Gates:
Dear Secretary Gates:
We urge you to conduct a thorough and independent review of the personality disorder discharge process across the Armed Forces. We are concerned over continuing reports from Veterans’ Service Organizations, the media, and individual U.S. service personnel that personality disorder discharges have been implemented inappropriately and inconsistently. There are indications that personality disorder discharges are being used as a tool to discharge expeditiously U.S. service personnel who have service-connected injuries, such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). Even more troubling is the perception that the U.S. military is using these discharges to avoid disability and medical benefits payments.
The Washington Post deftly illustrated an example of this problem on June 17, 2007, in a piece entitled “The War Inside.” According to the Post—after serving a combat tour in Iraq —Army Specialist Jeans Cruz returned to Ft. Hood, Texas, crippled by the mental anguish of his combat experience. Notes from his medical files indicate “major depression,” and “anger from Iraq, nightmares, flashbacks.” The Army was so concerned that it even went so far as to have Spc. Cruz sign a “Life Maintenance Agreement,” a document stating that he agreed “not to harm himself or anyone else.” But the Army ultimately discharged Spc. Cruz with a “personality disorder,” in essence finding that Spc. Cruz’s medical problems had nothing to do with his service in Iraq
Since personality disorder discharges are considered “pre-existing,” personnel discharged under these provisions cannot collect disability benefits and may not receive medical care from the Department of Veterans Affairs f or these “pre-existing” illnesses. Spc. Cruz experienced this first-hand. On August 16, 2006, Spc. Cruz received a letter from the VA stating that he had been denied disability pay.
To make matters worse, military personnel given a personality disorder discharge who have not fulfilled their service contracts can find themselves forced to repay thousands of dollars in re-enlistment bonuses back to the federal government. This can result in debilitating debt for military personnel and their families—many of whom supported our forces over many years of service and endured significant strain as a result of frequent and protracted combat deployments.
Defense Department records indicate that over 22,500 personality disorder discharges have been processed within the past six years. While this represents a small percentage of overall discharges, their inappropriate use and debilitating impact on personnel once discharged is cause f or grave concern.
Another egregious example of misuse was chronicled by reporter Joshua Korson March 29, 2007, in a piece entitled: “How Specialist Town Lost His Benefits.” A copy of the article is attached for your review. On October 19, 2004, Spc. Jon Town was injured and sustained major loss of hearing in a rocket attack in Ramadi, Iraq. His injuries ultimately resulted in memory loss and depression, ending his military career. But instead of sending Spc. Town through the medical board process—an in-depth medical review of a service member’s fitness that often results in the award of disability payments and allows injured personnel and their families to remain eligible f or medical benefits after active service ends—the command at Ft. Carson, Colorado, elected to give Spc. Town a personality disorder discharge. This action deprived Spc. Town of disability benefits and guaranteed VA care f or his injuries once he was discharged from the Army.
While the Army claims to have thoroughly evaluated and reviewed the Town case, we understand that neither Spc. Town or his fellow soldiers, who were aware of the rocket attack and his resulting injuries, were contacted to discuss the case. Hence in this situation, and we fear potentially in others, the Army review was inadequate and anything but thorough.
Consequently, serious questions remain unanswered about the use, or abuse, of the personality disorder discharge and a chain-of-command that allows the inappropriate use of the discharge to continue even as members of Congress from both parties seek to review the practice and the media points out the glaring inconsistencies in the manner in which the personality discharge is administered.
Like many veterans’ advocates, we are skeptical about an administrative process that suddenly diagnoses military personnel who have long and honorable military careers, such as Spc. Cruz and Spc. Town , with pre-existing personality disorders that reportedly become apparent only after combat service in Iraq and Afghanistan . We are particularly concerned that combat forces at the unit level and above are inadequately equipped to diagnose, treat, and work with personnel assessed with brain-related injuries, and that the mechanisms tasked with handling the discharge process and meeting unit manning requirements are also overwhelmed.
Therefore, we urge you to conduct a thorough and independent review of the personality discharge process and to implement appropriate measures to prevent the repeat of cases like Spc. Cruz’s and Spc. Town’s in the future. We also urge you to support the creation of a Special Discharge Review Board to assist the Board f or Correction of Military Records for each service in reviewing petitions from personnel discharged for personality disorders with honor able service records in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As the Walter Reed Army Medical Center hearings demonstrated, the American people will not tolerate substandard treatment and rehabilitative care for those who have served. As members of the United States Senate, we have an obligation to ensure that our service personnel and their families receive the benefits and care they are entitled to. We are eager to work with the Department of Defense on the issues we have outlined and look forward to hearing from you.
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