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RESOLUTION URGING THE UNITED STATES CONGRESS TO ENACT THE VETERANS CRISIS LINE STUDY ACT OF 2017, S. 2174, OR SIMILAR LEGISLATION THAT WOULD AUTHORIZE A STUDY OF THE VETERANS CRISIS LINE

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WHEREAS, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2015, there were 18.8 million veterans in the nation; and
WHEREAS, these courageous men and women served in the Korean War, World War II, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and every other operation that involved members of the U.S. Armed Forces, and also served in times of peace; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (�VA�) is responsible for providing vital services to America�s veterans, which include health care services, benefits programs and access to national cemeteries to former military personnel and their dependents; and
WHEREAS, the VA recognizes that some veterans suffer from a wide range of mental or physical conditions, including, but not limited to depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder (�PTSD�), burns, loss of limbs, traumatic brain injuries, intermittent explosive disorder, suicidal thoughts and a host of other mental or physical disabilities, illnesses or disorders; and
WHEREAS, research shows that veterans suffer from some mental illnesses at higher rates than the general population; and
WHEREAS, for instance, while PTSD is not unique to veterans, veterans comprise a disproportionate amount of the population living with PTSD because of their increased exposure to traumatic situations; and
WHEREAS, statistics compiled by the VA indicate that 11 to 20 percent of veterans that served in Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, 12 percent of veterans that served in Desert Storm and 15 percent of veterans that served in the Vietnam War have PTSD, as compared to 7 to 8 percent of the general population; and
WHEREAS, in 2014, although veterans constituted 8.5 percent of the population, they accounted for 18 percent of all deaths from suicide among adults in the United States; and
WHEREAS, according to a 2016 report published by the VA, which reviewed records from every state in the nation and analyzed 55 million veterans� records from 1979 to 2014, approximately 20 veterans die from suicide every day; and
WHEREAS, among other things, the VA operates the nation�s largest integrated health care system, with more than 1,700 health care clinics, counseling centers and other facilities; and
WHEREAS, in an effort to reduce veteran suicide, the VA also offers a free and confidential Veterans Crisis Line (�Crisis Line�) that is available 24 hours a day and seven days a week via telephone call, text message or online chat for veterans and service members in emotional crisis, or any person concerned about a veteran; and
WHEREAS, Crisis Line callers seek assistance for a wide array of problems or concerns, some of which are critical and require urgent attention and emergency services, ranging from referrals to appropriate community resources, local VA facilities or emergency personnel being sent to a veteran�s home for immediate help; and
WHEREAS, in February 2016, the VA�s Office of Inspector General reported that more than one-third of calls and electronic communications to the Crisis Line were not being answered by front-line staffers, if at all, because of poor work habits and other problems; and
WHEREAS, in light of said allegations, the 114th Congress approved H.R. 5392, the No Veterans Crisis Line Call Should Go Unanswered Act (the �Act�), which was subsequently signed into law by President Barack Obama on November 28, 2016; and
WHEREAS, the Act directed the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (the �Secretary�) to develop a quality assurance document to improve the Crisis Line and a plan to ensure that each communication received by the Crisis Line is answered in a timely manner by a qualified responder; and
WHEREAS, on November 30, 2017, Senator Todd Young (R-IN) introduced the Veterans Crisis Line Study Act, S. 2174, which directs the Secretary to conduct a study of the outcomes and efficacy of the Veterans Crisis Line during the five-year period beginning January 1, 2014 and to submit such study to the Committees on Veterans� Affairs of the Senate and the House of Representatives no later than March 1, 2020; and
WHEREAS, specifically, among other things, the study will evaluate:
(1) whether veterans who contact the Crisis Line begin or continue mental health care furnished by VA and the number of veterans that begin and discontinue such care;
(2) the visibility of the Crisis Line by determining the number of veterans who contact the Crisis Line and differentiate between those who have and have not previously received VA hospital care or medical services;
(3) the role of Crisis Line as part of the VA�s mental health care services, by identifying veterans who are under the care of a mental health care provider when they contact the Crisis Line;
(4) whether sustained mental health care affects suicidality and whether veterans who previously received mental health care from the VA use the Crisis Line during times of crisis; and
(5) The effectiveness of the Crisis Line in preventing repeated suicide attempts and suicides; and
WHEREAS, enactment of the Veterans Crisis Line Study Act will provide quantifiable and quantitative data to measure whether improvements to the Crisis Line have occurred since the VA�s Office of Inspector General�s February 2016 report and passage of the No Veterans Crisis Line Call Should Go Unanswered Act, and the overall capacity of the Crisis Line to help veterans who would benefit from mental health care,
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, that this Board:
Section 1. Approves the foregoing recitals, which are incorporated herein by reference.
Section 2. Urges the United States Congress to enact the Veterans Crisis Line Study Act of 2017, S. 2174, or similar legislation that would authorize a study of the Veterans Crisis Line.
Section 3. Directs the Clerk of the Board to transmit a certified copy of this resolution to Senator Todd Young, the Members of the Florida Congressional Delegation and the United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
Section 4. Directs the County�s federal lobbyists to advocate for the legislative action set forth in Section 2 above, and authorizes and directs the Office of Intergovernmental Affairs to include this item in the 2018 Federal Legislative Package when it is presented to the Board.