WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords has been waiting for more than four months for Defense Secretary Robert Gates to fulfill a promise he made to provide her with detailed information on the military mental health care system. She is running out of patience.
In a letter sent to Gates today, Giffords reminded the secretary of his February appearance before the congresswoman's House Armed Services Committee. Responding to questions from Giffords about the military's ability to meet the mental health needs of service members, Gates at the time promised to “have somebody get in touch with you and talk further about this.”
“I have yet to hear anything directly as a result of that hearing,” Giffords wrote today.
In her letter, Giffords also cited a report issued last week by the Department of Defense Task Force on Mental Health, which found that U.S. troops returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan face “daunting and growing” psychological problems and the military is not prepared to meet their needs.
The report, Giffords wrote, “provides further topics for discussion, and I am interested to learn what steps the Department is taking” to meet its objectives.
“We have a very challenging job ahead to bring the military's mental health infrastructure to where it needs to be,” Giffords wrote. “My colleagues and I on the House Armed Services Committee are committed to finding the resources we need to do the right thing for our men and women in uniform. I hope that I can count on you to provide the leadership within the Department to generate plans and drive the process forward.”
More information on the task force report can be found at http://www.defenselink.mil/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=11015.