For Immediate Release                                                   Contact: Amanda Molk, 202-225-5256
November 21, 2003

Napolitano’s Veterans’ Mental Health and Job Services Provisions Pass House and Senate

Congresswoman Grace Napolitano (D-CA38) recently introduced H.R. 3442, the Veteran’s Mental Health and Back-to-Work Act with over 40 cosponsors, to provide vocational rehabilitation services to veterans with mental illness.  The provisions from this bill were incorporated in S. 1156, the Department of Veterans Affairs Long-Term Care and Personnel Authorities Enhancement Act, which was passed by the House and Senate this week.  “Many of our veterans return from service suffering the psychological wounds of war.  To make a complete recovery, they need not only mental health and counseling services, but also job services,” explained Napolitano.

Napolitano’s provisions instruct the VA to provide the following services to veterans with mental illness: work skills training and development services; employment support services; job development and placement services.  “In his 1999 Report on Mental Health, Surgeon General David Satcher found that employment services are a critical component of state-of-the-art mental health care.  The VA provides mental health services to over 750,000 veterans every year, but very few of these veterans receive vocational rehabilitation.  In my district alone there are many veterans who need access to these services,” commented Napolitano.

“The 90% unemployment rate among people with serious mental illness is unnecessary.  There is broad agreement among mental health professionals that many of these individuals can work with proper training and support services.  In fact, job training and professional experiences often help veterans and others with mental illness recover,” she continued.

As the co-chair of the Congressional Mental Health Caucus, Napolitano counts mental health services for veterans as one of her top priorities.  She intends to work with the VA to ensure expedited implementation of these vocational rehabilitation services for veterans.  She is also working with local mental health care providers in the 38^th District to develop and fund a pilot program focused on the expansion of mental health services to veterans.

S. 1156 is now headed to the White House where the President is expected to sign it into law.

Representative Grace F. Napolitano, 38th District of California
1609 Longworth Building          Washington, DC 20515          Phone 202-225-5256          Fax 202-225-0027		11627 East Telegraph Road, #100       Santa Fe Springs, CA 90670       Phone 562-801-2134       Fax 562-949-9144
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