Date: 2011-07-06
Speaker: JACKSON LEE (democrat)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

I want to express my appreciation to Mr. YOUNG. who is the chairman of the subcommittee. and to Mr. DICKS. who is the ranking member. for their long years of service. To my colleagues. good news today: the announcement came that the President of the United States would send the same sympathy letter to families of those soldiers who committed suicide in battle as of those who had fallen in different ways in battle. The reason that is good news is. in a sentence I am reminded of. the President and his office indicated that they did not want to stigmatize the mental health concerns of our soldiers. I want to pay tribute to the Defense appropriations committee for its work on posttraumatic stress disorder and to make note of our late friend. Congressman John Murtha. who worked with Houston on establishing a new posttraumatic stress disorder center. I am grateful for that because. as in all of our States. many of us are facing a large numbers of returning soldiers from both Iraq and Afghanistan. So I ask for my amendment to be supported to increase research and development funding for posttraumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. which affects our men and women who serve selflessly and bravely in our Nations armed services. My amendment would increase research and development funds for PTSD and TBI by $500.000. It will be offset by reducing general operations and maintenance and activities of the Department of Defense. I believe this is critical in ensuring our countrys military strength as we move toward the 21st century. We obviously were aware of posttraumatic stress for those who follow the military in all of our wars. Weve seen it every day by our Vietnam soldiers. those who came home without welcome. We see it in the numbers of homeless soldiers. many of them Vietnam vets. Over the years. members of the military and veterans have seen a drastic increase in the number of cases of PTSD and TBI. PTSD cases in the military have risen from 1.614 total cases in 2000 to 88.719 total cases in 2010. Additionally. it is reported that 17 percent of all active duty soldiers. 25 percent of reserve soldiers. and 19 percent of Vietnam veterans suffer from PTSD. Traumatic brain injuries in the military have increased from 10.963 total cases in 2000 to 178.876 total cases in 2010. We know that the kinds of explosives that are now used in war cause greater damage. or more damage. or damage of this kind to our soldiers. Also. in May of this year. a threejudge panel of the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled that the Department of Veterans Affairs treatment of mentally ill veterans is so inadequate it is unconstitutional. We are grateful for the work that has been done. but this court said many veterans with severe depression or posttraumatic stress disorder are forced to wait weeks for mental health referrals and are given no opportunity to request or demonstrate their need for expedited care. This is simply unacceptable. The courageous men and women of the Armed Forces brave IED attacks. injury. and horrific violence to protect the safety and security of the United States. I was listening to a soldier on the television speak about his injuries and then he mentioned the fact that a soldier in front of him. his comrade. his friend. stepped on the IED. but the vast damage was to all of those who were around him. And so we know the collateral damage is as severe as it might be in any other form of mass war. We see the loss of life. but we see the injuries remaining. We must in turn care for them. and when they return home we must make it a priorityas I know this committee has doneto increase the resources. Members of Congress may disagree when it comes to the level of commitment and resources of the United States to foreign wars and conflicts. however we must not allow these debates and discussions to cause us to fail to properly care for these brave soldiers when they return home or when they are injured. I believe in Congress and its wisdom. and I believe it is committed to taking care of our warriors. As the members of the military return to their homes and their families. they come without the desire for glory or appreciation. But whenever you talk to a vet. they are looking to make sure that they have the care that they need. Increasing the amount of resources. however small this amendment offers. helps in finding ways to prevent and better treat posttraumatic stress disorder and TBI. and is the first step that Congress can add to the work that is already being done. Access to posttraumatic stress disorder treatment is especially important since veterans living in areas that are outside of some of our largest centers are less likely to be diagnosed. We should not wait. I believe we are of good mind and good will when it comes to our soldiers. I ask my colleagues to support the amendment. Mr. Chair. today I rise to ask for support of my amendment to increase research and development funding for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. PTSD. and Traumatic Brain Injury. TBI. that affects our men and women who serve selflessly and bravely in our Nations Armed Services. My amendment will increase research and development funds for PTSD and TBI by $500.000. and will be offset by reducing the general operations and maintenances and activities of the Department of Defense. I believe this is critical to ensuring our countrys military strength as we move forward into the 21st century. Also in May of this year. a three judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the Department of Veterans Affairs treatment of mentally ill veterans is so inadequate. it is unconstitutional. The decision said. "many veterans with severe depression or posttraumatic stress disorder are forced to wait weeks for mental health referrals and are given no opportunity to request or demonstrate their need for expedited care." This is simply unacceptable. The courageous men and women of the Armed Forces brave IEDs. attacks. injury. and horrific violence to protect the safety and security of the United States. and we must. in turn. care for them when they return home. We must make this a priority and increase the resources available to help prevent and treat PTSD and TBI. Members of Congress may disagree when it comes to the level of commitment and resources of the United States to foreign wars and conflicts. However. we must not allow those debates and discussions to cause us to fail to properly care for these brave soldiers when they return home or when they are injured. Congress must separate the war from the warrior. and Congress should never fail to care for our warriors. As the members of the military return to their homes and their families. they do not come home seeking glory or appreciation. but no soldier should have to come home to inadequate treatment or care for the injuries they sustained protecting the freedom of all Americans. Increasing the amount of resources specializing finding ways to prevent and better treat posttraumatic stress disorder and TBI is the first step Congress can take to providing veterans with the services they need. Access to posttraumatic stress disorder treatment is especially important since veterans living in such areas are less likely to be diagnosed and treated for posttraumatic stress disorder. America shouldnt wait until soldiers with these injuries are discharged to begin treatment. The Department of Defense needs to spend more resources on how to detect and treat PTSD and TBI earlier. These soldiers need to be certain that Members of Congress will ensure that they receive the necessary treatment to guarantee that their adjustment back into society is a successful one. Mr. Chairman. I urge the adoption of my amendment to ensure no solider is left behind. The Acting CHAIR. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.