13-R153

2013 -- S 0582

Enacted 03/20/13

S E N A T E R E S O L U T I O N

RESPECTFULLY REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES PROVIDE ENHANCED BEHAVIORAL CARE SERVICES AND BENEFITS FOR RHODE ISLAND VETERANS

Introduced By: Senators Ottiano, Bates, Pichardo, Felag, and Lynch

Date Introduced: February 28, 2013

     WHEREAS, As of December 2008, an estimated 25 to 40 percent (400,000 to 640,000

soldiers) of the over 1.6 million American service members deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan

have returned with psychological and neurological injuries associated with post traumatic stress

disorder (PTSD) or traumatic brain injury (TBI), dubbed the “signature injuries” of the Iraq War;

and

     WHEREAS, The current estimate of service members who will develop PTSD within a

year of leaving combat is between 10 and 30 percent; and

     WHEREAS; The call back rate of the state’s own National Guard to active duty status is

the second highest in the entire United States, with over 10,000 unit deployments; and

     WHEREAS, The number of veterans living in Rhode Island who served in the Gulf Wars

is three times higher than the national per capita average, and is expected to grow as troops begin

to withdraw from Afghanistan; and

     WHEREAS, Approximately 3,000 veterans per year encounter the state’s behavioral

healthcare system, but there are many more veterans in need of services who do not receive

timely help; and

     WHEREAS, A 2006 study illustrates the need in Rhode Island for trauma-related

services for veterans from the Gulf Wars (between 2,019 and 6,183 veterans in need), and other

wars (between 10,794 and 33,054 veterans in need); and

     WHEREAS, Rhode Island does not currently have adequate resources to offer Post

Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) screening, referrals, and

treatment to all veterans upon return from deployment; and

     WHEREAS, The Rhode Island Senate has further resolved and requested that the

Congress of the United States pass legislation to establish funding for individual states, including

Rhode Island, to implement recommendations from the President’s Joining Forces Initiative to

strengthen behavioral healthcare systems and supportive services for returning service members,

veterans, and their families; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this Senate of the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations

respectfully requests the Rhode Island Department of Human Services:

     1. Further explore joint State and US Veterans’ Administration funding opportunities to

implement recommendations from the President’s Joining Forces Initiative to strengthen

behavioral healthcare systems and supportive services for our Veterans and their families.

     2. Expand Screening Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment Programs (“SBIRT”).

     3. Prioritize Veteran and National Guard populations in future grant applications; and be

it further

     RESOLVED, That this Secretary of State be and hereby is authorized and directed to

send a duly certified copy of this resolution to the Rhode Island Department of Human Services

=======

LC01877

=======