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Fighting Sexual Assault in the Military
We need to fix this epidemic of sexual assault in the military.Right now, way too many of these assaults go unreported.This is a travesty that needs to be addressed now.
The facts on this problem are frightening. In 2012, the DOD estimated that 87% of sexual assaults went unreported. And an estimated 26,000 sexual assaults occurred in the military just last year. Only 3,400 were reported.
My daughter is a military veteran so I know exactly the kind of hard-working women we have in our armed forces.
That’s why I’ve worked with Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) to offer a bipartisan plan that reforms the way the military handles sexual assault cases and makes sure victims aren’t afraid to report a crime.
Clearly, what’s been tried so far hasn’t worked. We need a new approach. So our plan will allow sexual assault victims to report abuse to an experienced military attorney outside of the victim’s normal chain of comand. Victims of sexual abuse need to feel safe about reporting these terrible incidents.
As a doctor, I’m used to working with others to find solutions. That’s how it should be. There’s no Democrats or Republicans in the operating room—only team work.
Senator Gillibrand and I are from different parties and from different parts of the country, but we want to work together to find some real solutions to protect our servicemembers.And that’s exactly what we are doing.
WANT TO LEARN MORE?
> Read the Bipartisan Legislation
