May 25, 2016 2 min read

U.S. Sen. Bob Casey is introducing a bill to increase the number of peer specialists within the Veterans Affairs health care system. The “P.E.E.R. Act,” or Veteran Partners’ Efforts to Enhance Reintegration Act, was announced on a conference call Wednesday in which Casey outlined the case for more – and more readily available – veteran peer support specialists to share their experiences and support service members diagnosed with mental health disorders.

“There are 1,100 of these peer support specialists already in the VA system right now, with some in centers in Philadelphia … (but) with 22 veterans (dying by) suicide each day … clearly not enough has been done despite improvements at the VA on these issues,” Casey said. There were 1.6 million veterans diagnosed or estimated to have a mental health issue in 2015.

Part of the problem, according to Casey, is not just the limited number of peer specialists, but that they are not available through primary care centers of the VA health system.

“Right now, veterans have to be referred to meet with a peer specialist. This pilot program would assure that the new peer specialists are certified and trained, and made available immediately to those coming into the VA system,” Casey said.

The peer specialists would be matched with veterans who served in similar combat situations or experiences. Their experience of also navigating the VA health care system itself would be valuable information to share with veterans as well, Casey said. The pilot program would proceed over a three-year period in 15 VA locations yet to be determined. The bill’s language mandates that five of the pilot areas must be polytrauma centers and must take into consideration female peer specialists and underserved or rural areas.

Casey also urged Congress to pass the 21st Century Veterans Benefits Delivery Act, which passed the House, but not the Senate, in November 2015.

“The only way we prove ourselves worthy of our armed services’ valor is voting and how you vote. If members of Congress voted against this bill to increase funding and the number of mental health personnel in VA centers, they should explain themselves,” Casey said.