Congress Unanimous?

How often does Congress agree on anything?

I'd never heard of it happening.

For once though, the U.S. House of Representatives came together to pass a bill designed to reduce the number of veterans committing suicide.

The Joshua Omvig Veterans' Suicide Prevention Act was introduced by Congressman Leonard Boswell, and is in honor of Joshua Omvig, a young man from Iowa who took his own life after returning home from an 11-month tour in Iraq.

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. We must do better for our veterans, and I believe this legislation is a step in the right direction.”

This bill requires patients at Veterans Administration hospitals to be screened for suicide risk factors. It also requires the medical centers to designate suicide prevention counselors and provide other types of outreach. They'll also be establishing a hotline number. A companion bill has been introduced in the senate by Iowa Senator Tom Harkin.

This is a great step, but it unfortunately may only reach those troops already in treatment for various issues. A large number of troops may need some help, but may be unwilling or unable to seek treatment at the VA.

I'm glad that they are coming together to address some of these issues. We also intend to provide resources to help our veterans.

To your healing!

Mike