Designating the month of April 2014 as Military and Veterans Caregiver Month.

Designating the month of April 2014 as Military and Veterans Caregiver Month Whereas more than 2,400,000 members of the Armed Forces have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan since October 2001, 6,800 have been killed in action, more than 51,000 have been wounded in action, and 1,558 have undergone an amputation for a battle-related injury; Whereas the signature wounds of members of the Armed Forces who have served in Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation New Dawn are traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder; Whereas, between January 1, 2000, and January 10, 2014, 287,911 cases of traumatic brain injury were diagnosed among members of the Armed Forces, and approximately 7,100 cases were classified as severe or penetrating; Whereas studies have shown that the prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder among veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom ranges between 15 and 20 percent, and reports from the Department of Veterans Affairs show that 29 percent of veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom and sought health care during fiscal years 2002 through 2012 had post-traumatic stress disorder; Whereas many of the members of the Armed Forces and veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom and suffered these injuries require assistance from a family caregiver to complete activities of daily living such as bathing, dressing, and feeding, or instrumental activities such as transportation, meal preparation, and health management; Whereas as many as 1,000,000 spouses, parents, and children of veterans have served or are currently serving as family caregivers to veterans who served in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom, according to a study of military caregivers conducted by the RAND Corporation; Whereas section 1672 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 ( Public Law 110181 10 U.S.C. 1071 Public Law 111163 Whereas the program provided under the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act of 2010 ( Public Law 111163 Whereas the primary caregivers of members of the Armed Forces and veterans injured in the line of duty make tremendous sacrifices of their own, saving the United States millions of dollars in health care and potential institutionalization costs: Now, therefore, be it That the Senate (1) designates the month of April 2014 as Military and Veterans Caregiver Month (2) honors caregivers of members of the Armed Forces and veterans for their service and sacrifice to the United States; and (3) calls upon the people of the United States (A) to observe the month with appropriate activities and events; and (B) to participate in activities that will show support to military families and the sacrifices endured by those families in service to the United States.

Summary: Designates the month of April 2014 as Military and Veterans Caregiver Month. Honors caregivers of members of the Armed Forces and veterans for their service and sacrifice to the United States. Calls upon the people of the United States to observe such month and to participate in activities that will show support to military families and their sacrifices in service to the United States.