Assembly Bill A5881

2013-2014 Legislative Session

Creates a course of instruction to train mental health providers in veteran specific mental health issues

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Assembly Committee


  • Introduced
    • In Committee Assembly
    • In Committee Senate
    • On Floor Calendar Assembly
    • On Floor Calendar Senate
    • Passed Assembly
    • Passed Senate
  • Delivered to Governor
  • Signed By Governor

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2013-A5881 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:
Assembly Veterans
Law Section:
Veterans
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2009-2010: A5993
2011-2012: A9290

2013-A5881 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Creates a course of instruction to train mental health providers in veteran specific mental health issues.

2013-A5881 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  5881

                       2013-2014 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                              March 8, 2013
                               ___________

Introduced  by M. of A. ORTIZ -- read once and referred to the Committee
  on Veterans' Affairs

AN ACT to create a course of instruction to train mental health  provid-
  ers in veteran specific mental health issues

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and may  be  cited  as
the "veterans mental health training initiative".
  S  2.  Legislative intent. The legislature finds and declares that the
state of New York and the country at large are facing a formidable chal-
lenge in serving the mental health  needs  of  veterans  returning  from
active  duty  in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Since the beginning of Operation
Enduring Freedom and Operation  Iraqi  Freedom,  over  one  and  a  half
million  active  duty  and reserve members of the United States military
have been deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, and nearly  one-half  million
have been redeployed. With each deployment, our service members encount-
er  extreme  strains on their physical and mental health, which, in many
cases have resulted in unprecedented rates of health and  mental  health
problems,  most  notably post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and trau-
matic brain injury (TBI). Equally  alarming,  are  numerous  reports  of
increased  suicide,  addiction  and  homelessness  among  our  returning
soldiers. Further, family members are struggling with the  ramifications
of  extended and/or multiple deployments, resulting in serious emotional
and psychological tolls.
  In addition to high rates of PTSD,  providers  in  the  mental  health
community  have  also begun reporting increased cases of traumatic brain
injury sustained in the Iraq and Afghanistan theatres of combat  due  in
large  part  to  the  use of improvised explosive devices (IED). Equally
disturbing is the rate at which  TBI  has  been  misdiagnosed  as  PTSD.
Numerous reports have told the story of soldiers returning from Iraq and
Afghanistan  with  brain  trauma,  but because there are no visible head

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD09577-01-3
              

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