WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND), a Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee member, joined Senators Thom Tillis (R-NC), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), and Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) in introducing the bipartisan Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers (PAWS) for Veterans Therapy Act, bipartisan legislation authorizing the Secretary of Veterans Affairs (VA) to create a pilot program on dog training therapy and provide service dogs to veterans with mental illnesses, regardless of whether they have mobility issues.
“Many veterans with mobility impairments have had their lives changed — in some cases, saved — by service dogs,” said Senator Cramer. “Our bill would expand this treatment by launching a pilot program to make veterans with mental health issues such as depression eligible to receive service dogs.”
The number of veterans with mental health conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance use increased from 27 percent in 2001 to more than 40 percent in 2014, and an average of 20 veterans per-day died by suicide in 2014.
The bill aims to reduce veteran suicide connected to mental health conditions by partnering veterans experiencing symptoms of PTSD and other post-deployment issues with service dogs, which have an established record of improving the quality of life for veterans and reducing such symptoms.