WASHINGTON — Sailor health and well-being is taking center stage on Capitol Hill.
The National Defense Authorization Act, advanced last week by the House Armed Services Committee, would increase Navy men and women's access to mental health resources.
The Hampton Roads Navy community is still reeling from nine sailors' suicides since April 2022, involving personnel from the USS George Washington, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Maintenance Center and the USS Montana.
Lawmakers in the House are stepping up, passing five amendments to the NDAA related to the bipartisan Sailor Standard of Care Act.
"Even one suicide is one too many," said Rep. Jen Kiggans (R-Virginia, 2nd District). "One of the great things about the NDAA, the National Defense Authorization Act, we passed last week out of the House Armed Services included some of the provisions in the Sailor Standard of Care Act I introduced. One of the things was looking at how we provide accessibility to mental health care."
The committee mark also looks at reimbursement rates for mental health specialists under Tricare and directs the Navy to produce a report on the length of time it takes to out process sailors who have been placed in a limited duty status.
On operational issues, the bill authorizes the construction of nine new ships and maintains the amphibious fleet at 31 vessels.
Kiggans, in an interview with 13News Now, said it's the right call.
"Very important. We heard from Marine Corps leaders directly that said we need 31 amphibious ships. So, Congress on the Armed Services Committee was very protective of that number," she said.
The bill also includes a 5.6 % pay raise for troops -- the largest hike in 20 years.
The full House and Senate need to approve their own versions of the bill, iron out the differences and vote on it again before sending it to the President.