U.S. Senator Doug Jones of Alabama talking to a member of his staff in his office in the Russel Senate Office Building in Washington, D.C.: Glynn Wilson

Staff Report

U.S. Senator Doug Jones of Alabama introduced a bipartisan bill on Thursday to help combat suicide among America’s veterans.

The bill, which is also cosponsored by Republican Senators Joni Ernst of Iowa and Democrat Maggie Hassan of New Hampshire, would designate one week per year as “Buddy Check Week” to organize outreach events and educate veterans on how to conduct peer wellness checks.

“Service men and women give so much to our country, and we have a solemn obligation to do everything we can to support them,” said Senator Jones, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. “It’s so important that we destigmatize mental health issues, especially for veterans. This bill would help connect veterans with the resources available to them and ensure that they get the support they need.”

The American Legion has long had a ‘Buddy Check Week,’ asking Legionnaires to conduct veteran outreach as part of their daily routine,” said James W. “Bill” Oxford, National Commander for The American Legion.

“Our most sacred responsibility as a nation is to care for our fellow men and women who have served this nation with honor,” he said. “The American Legion’s ‘Buddy Check’ program has been a great tool for our members, and we strongly support legislation that expands this program to VA.”

The U.S. House of Representatives also passed another bill this week introduced by Senator Jones, the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act, to help prevent veteran suicide by providing to $174 million during the next five years to state and local organizations that provide suicide-prevention services to veterans and their families. The bill previously passed the Senate and will now go to President Trump to be signed into law.

From his position on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Jones has been a vocal advocate on behalf of all who serve or have served in our nation’s armed forces. He has secured hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for Alabama’s military installations and service members, and he led a successful fight to repeal a decades-old law that hurt surviving military spouses, called the “widow’s tax,” last year.

Background

The bill will designate one week per year as “Buddy Check Week” to organize outreach events and educate veterans on how to conduct peer wellness checks and recognize signs of suicide risk among fellow veterans. The bill is modeled after the American Legion’s “Buddy Check National Week of Calling” to connect veterans to better ensure that they receive the care they need.

Specifically, the bill directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA), in consultation with veterans, non-profits that serve veterans, mental health experts, and members of the Armed Forces, to develop and implement collaborative education opportunities for veterans to learn how to conduct wellness checks.