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Supporting our Service Men and Women

Congresswoman Sutton believes that we have a moral responsibility to care for our troops and veterans. As the proud daughter of a World War II veteran, she is committed to providing our service members with the benefits they deserve She has supported legislation that meets the needs of soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan while never forgetting all of our heroes who have served in the Armed Forces. It is not enough to simply pay tribute to our troops with words; we must show our appreciation through our actions.

Hearing the Concerns of our Soldiers, Military Families, and Veterans

Congresswoman Sutton takes every opportunity to meet with our soldiers, veterans, and their families to provide support and make sure their needs are being met. She has met with troops at deployment ceremonies, traveled to Iraq and Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany, visited Walter Reed to see the care our wounded soldiers are receiving, and met with veterans visiting our war memorials in Washington, D.C.

Compensating our Soldiers affected by Stop Loss

One concern soldiers have raised with Congresswoman Sutton is the Pentagon’s overuse of its “stop loss” policy to keep soldiers in the service beyond the term of their enlistment contract. Congresswoman Sutton introduced a resolution calling on the Pentagon to change the policy so that no soldier who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan will have his or her service involuntarily extended. She has also introduced the Stop Loss Compensation Act, which would compensate soldiers $1,500 per month for each month they are kept beyond the end of their active duty enlistment period. The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense recently marked up legislation which included stop-loss compensation at the level of $500 per month. The bill will likely come up for a vote before the full House in September.

Ensuring that our Veterans Receive the Quality Health Care they Deserve

There are more than one million veterans in Ohio and Congresswoman Sutton is committed to providing them with the services and support they need and deserve. In 2007 Congresswoman Sutton voted for the FY 08 Military Construction/Veterans Affairs Spending Bill, which increases the VA budget by $6.7 billion, the largest single increase in the 77-year history of the Veterans Health Administration. In FY 2008, the VA will treat 5.8 million patients, including about 263,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans.

Congresswoman also cosponsored and voted for H.R. 1538, the Wounded Warrior Assistance Act of 2007, which has passed the House and Senate. The bill assigns a medical care case manager and a service member advocate to each service member who is an outpatient in a military treatment facility. It also establishes an oversight board and authorizes $50 million for support programs and activities relating to the care of wounded and injured members of the Armed Forces. This measure will help improve care for our Wounded Warriors.

In 2008, Congresswoman Sutton maintained her commitment to health care for America’s veterans by voting for the FY09 Military Construction/Veterans Affairs Spending Bill which provides an 11 percent increase in veterans’ care, building on last year’s increase.

Congresswoman Sutton has also supported:

The Returning Service Member VA Health Care Insurance Act of 2007. This legislation provides an additional three years (originally only two years) of free VA health care for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Veterans’ Health Care Improvement Act of 2007 (H.R. 2874). The bill creates a transportation grant program for rural veterans, provides the VA with greater flexibility in meeting the mental health care and readjustment needs of veterans, and provides for assistance and support to low-income veterans and their families fighting homelessness. 

The Veterans Disability Benefits Claims Modernization Act (H.R. 5892).  The bill is a comprehensive effort to modernize the VA’s disability claims system and increase its accountability, accuracy and quality.

The Wounded Warrior Information Sharing Act (H.R. 3198). The bill requires DOD to provide the name, address and other available contact information of a wounded service member to the state veterans’ affairs department in the state in which they intend to reside after their medical separation from the Armed Forces.

The Veterans Emergency Care Fairness Act (H.R. 3819). The bill requires the Secretary of Veterans’ Affairs to reimburse certain veterans without a service-connected disability enrolled in a VA health care plan for the cost of emergency treatment at a non-VA facility

Cosponsored H.R. 3645, the Healthier Heroes Act. This legislation implements the recommendations of the President’s Commission on Care for American’s Returning Wounded Warriors.

H.R. 2199, the Traumatic Brain Injury Health Enhancement and Long Term Support Act of 2007. This has passed the House and improves and expands the VA’s ability to care for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with traumatic brain injuries (TBI), including research, screening, care coordination, and working with non-VA providers to provide optimal care.


Addressing the Toll of Extended and Repeated Deployments on Our Troops and Military Families

An unprecedented number of soldiers are being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or major depression after returning from Iraq and Afghanistan.  The number of troops diagnosed with PTSD jumped 50% in 2007 over 2006.  In addition 19% of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans have been diagnosed with possible traumatic brain injury (TBI) and 1,000 veterans attempt suicide while in VA care every month. Congresswoman Sutton has been a leader in the fight to ensure that our service members have the resources necessary to deal with the stress of combat and make a smooth transition back into civilian life.

To help deal with this high risk for suicide, Congresswoman Sutton cosponsored and voted for H.R. 327, the Joshua Omvig Veterans Suicide Prevention Act. This has now been signed into law to provide the VA with the tools to better meet the needs of veterans who are at a greater risk of suicide. 

Congresswoman Sutton also cosponsored and voted for H.R. 2199, the Traumatic Brain Injury Health Enhancement and Long Term Support Act of 2007. This legislation improves and expands the VA’s ability to care for veterans returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with traumatic brain injuries (TBI), including research, screening, care coordination, and working with non-VA providers to provide optimal care.

She has cosigned a letter to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs urging him to conduct a review of the National Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – Traumatic Brain Injury Veteran Hotline.  The Purple Heart Foundation and the Combat Wounded Veterans Call Center have developed a proposal to create a National Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder – Traumatic Brain Injury Veteran Hotline for veterans who are worried they may be suffering from PTSD.  The call center would be staffed entirely by veterans who have served and been wounded in combat.


Ensuring a High of Quality of Life for our Troops and Veterans

Congresswoman Sutton cosponsored and voted for the GI Bill for the 21st Century, which restores full, four-year college scholarships for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans—on par with the educational benefits available after World War II.  Congresswoman Sutton also voted for H.R. 1284, the Cost of Living Increase for Disabled Veterans, which provides a cost of living increase for veterans’ disability benefits and to dependency and indemnity compensation for veterans’ families.

She also sponsored H RES 1200, which honors the dedication and work of military support groups across the country for their steadfast support of the members of our Armed Forces and their families. This resolution currently has nearly 60 co-sponsors in the House.

Congresswoman Sutton and the new Congress are working to make sure that our troops and their families receive a 3.5% pay raise—a half percent higher than the President proposed. 

She also was a strong supporter of the Homes for Heroes Act. This bill will provide shelter for homeless veterans and homeless veteran families, and help prevent low-income families from falling into homelessness.