(Boston- 5/24/2024) Ahead of Memorial Day, the Massachusetts State Senate adopted two amendments put forth by Senator John C. Velis (D-Westfield) focused on expanding access to veterans’ behavioral health and supporting the unique needs of women veterans.
It is estimated 1 in 3 veterans return home with an invisible wound of war, whether it be PTSD, a traumatic brain injury, depression, or something else. Left unaddressed, these issues can have tragic outcomes. Since 9/11 over 1,400 veterans have lost their lives to suicide in the Commonwealth. Amendment 804 would allocate an additional $500,000 to the Home Base program operated by Massachusetts General Hospital to support their expansion and training efforts across the state to provide veterans with behavioral health treatment close to home.
“In my opinion, Memorial Day is the most sacred day of the year. And as we honor and remember all those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for our nation, we are also reminded of our sacred duty to ensure that we are doing everything we can for our veterans,” shared Senator John Velis, Chair of the Joint Committee on Veterans and Federal Affairs. “Home Base is truly a one-of-a-kind program that is dedicated to treating the behavioral health needs of our veterans, including those invisible wounds, at no cost. It is critical that our Veterans, regardless of where they live in the Commonwealth, have access to these services close to home.”
Senator Velis’ second amendment focused on women veterans,
Women veterans are the fastest growing population of veterans in the country. The Massachusetts State Senate has historically championed women veterans’ issues including providing additional funding for outreach to women veterans and funding a study on the changing needs of women veterans. Amendment 454 adopted by the Senate on Tuesday evening would build upon that work by codifying the Women’s Veterans Network into state law and establish clear requirements to ensure outreach to women veterans.
“The reality is there are countless women veterans residing in our Commonwealth that are not utilizing the services and benefits available to them because they are simply not aware that they exist,” said Senator Velis. “Women veterans face entirely different challenges than their male counterparts and it is critical we recognize this and tailor our outreach efforts so that every women veteran who calls Massachusetts home can access the services they’ve earned in service to our nation.”
A 2022 report from then Auditor Bump found that the Women Veterans Network had only identified 6% of the over 25,000 women veterans living in the Commonwealth at that time. This amendment, which was unanimously adopted by the Senate, would also require the Network to submit annual reports to the Legislature on their outreach efforts to identify and support women veterans residing in the Commonwealth.
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