Courtney Statement on President Obama Signing Clay Hunt SAV Act into Law
February 12, 2015
WASHINGTON—Today, Congressman Joe Courtney (CT-2) joined President Obama and congressional colleagues at the White House to mark the enactment of the Clay Hunt SAV Act, a bill Courtney cosponsored, which will expand access to mental health services for military veterans.
“The well-being of the men and women who have served our country is of central importance to my work as the representative for the thousands of military veterans who call eastern Connecticut home. The Clay Hunt SAV Act is an important step forward to increase access to comprehensive, quality mental health services and reduce the tragedy of suicide among veterans. I thank my House colleague from Minnesota, Tim Walz, for his diligent work in championing this legislation on behalf of the Hunt family and all of our military veterans, and salute Senator Blumenthal for shepherding the bill through the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee.”
The Clay Hunt SAV Act, named for a Marine Sergeant who committed suicide at age 28 after struggling with PTSD, will require the VA to create a one-stop website to help veterans easily access mental health services, and will institute a pilot student loan repayment program for mental health professionals who choose to work with VA. The law strengthens oversight and evaluation of mental health services to improve care, and establishes a peer support network and community outreach pilot program to ease the transition for returning servicemembers and improve access to care.
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