August 6, 2007

Call Your Senators Today to Urge Support for Legislation to Expand Mental Healthcare Access for Veterans Through Partnerships With Community Providers

On May 23, Senators Pete Domenici (R-NM) and Barack Obama (D-IL) introduced a bill to improve access to mental health services for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. The bill includes all of the elements of the appropriations request the National Council and Mental Health America have been pursuing in Congress in recent months, including a provision to obligate the Department of Veterans Affairs to fund the creation of service partnerships with community mental health and addictions agencies to expand access to mental health services for National Guard members and reservists living in rural America.

The National Council urges all members to contact their Senators and ask them to become co-sponsors of the Veterans' Mental Health Outreach and Access Act (S 38). Senators Domenici and Obama are currently circulating a "Dear Colleague" letter and a recent editorial from The Washington Post, which highlighted their bill, as they seek co-sponsors.

The Veterans' Mental Health Outreach and Access Act (S 38) would authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to develop and implement a comprehensive national program to increase the availability of mental health support so that veterans affected by combat-related mental health problems do not go without the care they need. In remote areas of the country in which the VA determines there is inadequate access to a VA medical center, the Veterans' Mental Health Outreach and Access Act directs the Secretary of the VA to contract with community mental health centers to provide treatment and support services and readjustment counseling. All contract-providers would be required to hire a qualified peer specialist and have its clinicians participate in a training program to ensure services are tailored to meet the specialized needs of combat-affected veterans.

The bill also calls on the Secretary of VA to develop a national program to train returning service members for positions as peer outreach workers and support specialists. The bill places particular emphasis on providing services for National Guardsmen and Reserve veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. These "civilian soldiers" often return from combat duty and immediately resume civilian life and may not have adequate access to readjustment services or VA facilities. The legislation includes provisions to extend counseling services to veterans' families, who may also experience issues with readjustment after their loved-ones have returned from deployment.

Action Needed
The National Council urges all members to contact their Senators and ask them to sign the "Dear Colleague" letter and co-sponsor the Veterans' Mental Health Outreach and Access Act.

You can reach all Congressional offices by calling the Capitol Switchboard. Call 202-224-3121 and ask to be connected with the office you want.

What Should You Say?
I am calling to urge the Senator to sign the "Dear Colleague" letter being circulated by Senators Domenici and Obama and become a co-sponsor of the Veterans' Mental Health Outreach and Access Act.

Offices interested in co-sponsoring the bill should contact Chris Collins in Senator Domenici's office at 202-224-7078 or Mark Linton in Senator Obama's office at 202-228-5553.