McMahon Statement on Ft. Hood Shootings

November 5, 2009 7:05 PM

Washington, DC - Rep. Michael E. McMahon, one of the leading advocates for comprehensive mental health care for our soldiers and veterans, issued the following statement in response to today’s shooting at Fort Hood Military Base.

"Today's shooting is just one more demonstration of the stress our service men and women are under, and my thoughts and prayers go out to the families of the victims," said Rep. McMahon.  "While we do not know yet what the soldier's motives for this heinous act were, tragic events such of these have been occurring far too often lately.  The statistics prove that incidents of suicide and violence among service men and women have been growing exponentially.   In the coming days, many of our questions surrounding this shooting will be answered, but the one thing we know for sure right now is that we need better mental health care for our military personnel.  It's no longer just about combat - we have soldiers attacking soldiers.  And we, as the government, need to promise to our soldiers and their families that we will do whatever it takes to ensure that this is the last of these incidents."

Rep. McMahon has partnered with Rep. Thomas J. Rooney (R-FL) on multiple mental health bills designed to decrease the prevalence violent incidents among service men and women due to combat stress:

  • Reps. McMahon and Rooney first teamed together on March 5, 2009 to introduce H.R. 1308, the Veterans’ Mental Health Assessments and Screenings Act.  This bipartisan legislation mandates post-deployment mental health screenings for ALL service members returning from active duty to defeat the stigma of seeking help for “invisible injuries” and to reduce the prevalence of soldier suicides.
  • On May 13, 2009, Reps. McMahon and Rooney held a press conference regarding their joint letter to Chairman John Murtha and Ranking Member Bill Young calling for an additional $300 million in funding for mental healthcare in the Defense Budget, per Sec. Gates’ recommendation.  Following receipt of this letter, the Appropriations defense subcommittee included a welcomed $500 million for mental health care in the Defense Appropriations Bill.
  • On October 9, 2009, Reps. McMahon and Rooney celebrated a first victory in their fight to ensure that our service men and women receive adequate mental health care.  Included in the Defense Authorization Bill for FY 2010 is the language from H.R. 1308, the Veterans Mental Health Assessments and Screening Act.  H.R. 1308 was submitted by the Members for inclusion into the Defense Authorization bill earlier this year.  
  • The McMahon/Rooney provision is included in the Defense Authorization bill under Sec. 708 and addresses the epidemic of suicides seen in the military, particularly amongst the population serving in and/or returning from Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.  The provision mandates service members to participate in mandatory and confidential one-to-one mental health screenings.  Sec. 708 differs slightly from H.R. 1308, wherein the Members requested that all returning service men and women participate in these screenings upon their return home.  However, it is a welcomed first step in addressing the increasing instances of suicide seen among the ranks of our Armed Services, which already totals 117 this year.
  • On October 13, 2009, Reps. McMahon and Rooney sent a joint letter to Secretary Gates to express both gratitude and concern over Section 708: Mental Health Assessments for Members of the Armed Services Deployed in Contingency Operations. The Members welcomed the inclusion of language from their joint bill, but also addressed added provisions, which would prevent service men and women from accessing adequate mental health care. As it stands, vague language in Section 708 of the Defense Authorization Bill would allow the Armed Services to continue business as usual by restricting the timeframe and location of mental health assessments and not specifically requiring mental health professionals to conduct these assessments. 
  • On October 15, 2009, they introduced the Counselor Accessibility Reform and Expansion for Soldiers Act (CARES).  Recently, the Department of Defense argued to Congress that face-to-face mental health screenings would stretch their already thin staff of mental health professionals.  Reps. Rooney and McMahon, however, believe face-to-face counseling, as introduced in H.R. 1308, is integral to combating mental health disease.  CARES would give TRICARE beneficiaries direct access to professional mental health counselors without the requirement of having to get a referral or supervision.  This would increase accessibility to mental health professionals for all TRICARE beneficiaries.