Suicide Prevention Month

Floor Speech

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Mr. PETERS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congresswoman Sinema for organizing this bipartisan gathering to raise awareness about the suicide epidemic plaguing our veterans community and for the gentlewoman's leadership on this important cause.

San Diego is home to the third largest population of veterans in the Nation. Every year, roughly half of the servicemembers stationed in San Diego are discharged and stay in the region after they leave service. With more than 236,000 residing in San Diego County, honoring our commitment to veterans--the benefits they earned through their service--is one of the most important jobs we have in Congress, and I think folks are recognizing that here tonight.

During Suicide Prevention Month, we turn our focus to ending the awful reality of veteran suicide that has hurt families and communities across the country. Every day, 20 veterans tragically take their own lives. Regardless of the number or rates, every veteran suicide is one too many. But there is much more we can do.

Mental health issues are still stigmatized in our country, but it is time we recognized the unique challenges faced by servicemembers and veterans in this regard. Post-traumatic stress is all too prevalent among our warfighters when they return home. We don't call it a disorder because it is often a perfectly natural reaction to the horrors that they have seen and the difficulties they have experienced. So we have to come together as a nation to address this issue. Our men and women in uniform deserve our dedication, just as they dedicated their lives to serving our Nation.

In San Diego, we are taking some innovative and collaborative approaches to addressing veteran suicide by combining government, private groups, and community partners. Since 2014, zero8hundred has helped local veterans transition from Active Duty to civilian life. This community-based nonprofit connects with servicemembers before they leave the military, and it makes sure that they know about the abundant services and community resources available to them as they transition themselves into new jobs and into new lives.

Courage to Call is another San Diego resource, a 24/7 helpline completely staffed by veterans ready to speak with Active Duty military, reservists, Guard members, and fellow vets to help them navigate challenges that come with life in and after the service.

In war, servicemembers depend on one another for guidance and support, and they should have that same support as civilians. This service was started in San Diego by 2-1-1, a local public-private partnership, a nexus to connect community resources with the individuals that can take advantage of them. It is a perfect example of how providing a central portal for benefits, employment, and housing help simplify the process and get veterans the benefits that they earn.

We also have medical centers that use innovative models of care to meet the needs of our servicemembers and veterans. I hope we can implement some of these same standards of care across the country. But that is not possible unless we come together--come together as leaders--and pass bipartisan reforms to veterans care.

As Congresswoman Sinema has mentioned, she and I have had the honor of working with Dr. Howard and Jean Somers, who have been tireless advocates for reforming the broken healthcare system at the Department of Veterans Affairs after they lost their son, Daniel, to suicide in 2013.

While it is not perfect, and we have a lot of implementation steps to take, the Veterans Choice Act and the Veterans Accountability Act that we debated earlier tonight will help bring accountability to a system wrought with oversight and leadership challenges.

We also need to provide more flexible treatment options like telehealth technologies that allow veterans to receive care from the comfort of their homes.

Finally, and I think maybe most importantly, we need to break the stigma of mental health issues once and for all. We know how difficult it has been to deal with the veterans who come to the VA for care, but there is a great number who never touch the VA who suffer in loneliness at home and have never connected with the VA even with a phone call, and they take their lives before they even make the attempt.

We need to do a better job of outreach to those folks to make sure that they know that they have the support of the veterans community and the larger community at home.

We have to treat these unseen battle scars with the same gravity and respect as the visible ones. We owe it to our Nation's heroes to end the tragedy of veteran suicide. This is a conversation I am proud to be a part of. I am committed to constructive results.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Ms. Sinema again for her leadership on this and for organizing this evening.

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