Buerkle Honored By Disabled American Veterans

Washington, DC - Representative Ann Marie Buerkle (NY-25) was presented with the Disabled American Veterans Congressional Leadership Award yesterday in her Washington, DC office. Buerkle received the award for her steadfast support and tireless efforts to strengthen veterans’ programs and enact new legislation to empower all of America’s injured heroes to lead high-quality lives with respect and dignity.

“Serving as the Chairwoman of the Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health is one of my highest honors. Our nation is the greatest in the history of mankind because of the service and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform. One of government’s most important duties is to care for our veterans and their families and I am proud to work every day on their behalf,” said Buerkle.

“I want to thank Disabled American Veterans for this prestigious award.It is important that we continue to work together to ensure that our veterans have the assistance and benefits they deserve.”

Buerkle was chosen to receive the DAV Congressional Leadership Award for her commitment to veterans. In her role as Chairwoman, Buerkle has provided vital oversight of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) on such important topics as veterans’ suicide prevention, mental health care, and prosthetics programs. In addition, her work has resulted in improvements to the Federal Recovery Coordination Program and more timely and faithful implementation of the new caregiver assistance programs.

In response to a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report detailing sexual assault at VA health care facilities, Buerkle authored legislation to require the VA to correct safety and security problems that had left too many veterans and VA employees vulnerable. The legislation, which President Obama signed into law, requires the VA to implement a comprehensive policy to prevent, monitor, report, and track sexual assaults and other safety incidents that occur at VA medical facilities in order to hold accountable those responsible.

Buerkle has also put the spotlight on veterans’ mental health issues. Earlier this summer Buerkle hosted a Member briefing on Veteran Students’ Mental Health with David Rudd, PhD, Dean of the College of Social and Behavioral Science and Scientific Director of the National Center for Veterans Studies at the University of Utah.

In April of this year, the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University, in cooperation with Rep. Buerkle, held a Conference on Engaging Community Support for Veterans. Attended by more than 150 people, the conference served as an opportunity to harness the power of community in supporting, engaging, and respecting our nation’s veterans and their families and featured panel discussions related to veterans’ health and wellness, employment, and education. The conference was designed to equip community leaders with the tools and resources they need to help veterans reintegrate into society.

Last year, Rep. Buerkle and the American Psychological Association (APA) partnered to host a symposium on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in Syracuse.