Great Falls Tribune: Panel votes to adopt state's model for treating PTSD

Senator Max Baucus (D-Mont.) announced late Friday that the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee voted unanimously in favor of an amendment to the defense authorization bill that would require adoption of a Montana model for assessing returning combat vets for post-traumatic stress disorder. The Post-Deployment Health Assessment Act (S.711) would require person-to-person assessments of all returning combat vets — active-duty, National Guard and Reserves — for the first two years after their return. Currently, each state has different mental health assessment procedures for returning combat troops; only Montana conducts face-to-face screenings for two years after deployment, then adds a mental health component to the physical exam given to each soldier each year. "Every minute we wait to improve mental-health care for troops has a human cost," said IAVA's Chief Legislative Counsel Patrick Campbell. "Already, we've lost as many soldiers to suicide this year as in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. We need to identify those most in need of mental-health care before it's too late. Mandatory mental-health screenings have been a top priority for IAVA, and we applaud Senator Baucus for (his) hard work on this critical legislation." Click here to read IAVA's 2009 Issue Report "Invisible Wounds: Psychological and Neurological Injuries Confront a New Generation of Veterans" and learn more about our support for mandatory mental health screenings for returning troops and veterans. [link]