WASHINGTON,
DC
– During National Police Week, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) hosted a news
conference call to discuss his bipartisan efforts to increase mental health
support for Ohio’s first responders.
First responders can face
long-term effects from providing life-saving services to others in moments of
crisis, yet Ohio departments often do not have the capacity and resources
necessary to provide the comprehensive mental health supports that officers
need and deserve. Brown reintroduced the bipartisan Fighting Post-Traumatic
Stress Disorder Act of 2022 with Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA), to
establish mental health programs to help America’s police, fire, emergency
medical, and 911 personnel cope with the stresses of responding to crisis
situations.
“Police officers play a
crucial role in keeping our community safe, putting themselves in harm’s way
and navigating intense and stressful situations. Unfortunately, our local
police and fire departments often do not have the resources to offer
comprehensive mental health support,” said Brown. “Police
officers are better able
to do their jobs and build community relationships when
they feel supported and have access to mental health
care. This bipartisan legislation is an opportunity for us to help protect the
first responders who serve our communities every day.”
Brown was joined on the
call by Ohio Fraternal Order of Police Vice President Jason Pappas.
“Across the country,
there is a dire need for consistent access to mental health services for our
law enforcement officers who develop PTSD,” said Vice
President Pappas. “Currently, access is limited due to a lack of funding at
the state and local levels, a lack of practitioners trained specifically for
our line of work, and there is no dedicated network access point for first
responders. This act would help eliminate those barriers and save lives.”
Senator Brown
reintroduced the bill which would require the Department of Justice’s COPS
office to propose one or more programs to Congress that could efficiently
administer treatments to first responders across the United States suffering
from post-traumatic and acute stress disorders. Such programs could include
evidence-based trauma informed care, peer support, counselor services, and
family supports while taking into account in-person and telehealth
capabilities.
In developing these
programs, DOJ would consult stakeholders, including public-safety officers and
the associations representing them and their families.
The Fighting
Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Act of 2022 is supported by the Federal Law
Enforcement Officers Association, the International Association of Fire Chiefs,
the Major Cities Chiefs Association, the Major County Sheriffs of America, the
National Alliance on Mental Illness.
Senator Brown also
introduced
The
Law Enforcement Training For Mental Health Crisis Response Act of 2021,
which would provide $15 million in funding over 3 years through the U.S.
Department of Justice (DOJ) to help train police on how to best interact with
individuals with mental health illnesses and resolve and de-escalate any
potential issues that may arise. The goal of the bill is to improve training
for these types of responses to better keep our officers safe, ensure
individuals in crisis are treated with dignity, and improve trust amongst the communities
affected.
Senator
Brown was instrumental
in
securing the appointment of Karhlton Moore, former Executive Director of
the Ohio Office of Criminal Justice Services (OCJS), to serve as Director of
the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) at the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
Brown, along with his Democratic colleagues in the Ohio congressional delegation,
wrote to
President Biden in January urging him to appoint Mr. Moore to serve as Director
of BJA. Mr. Moore oversees a host of important programs including the Bulletproof
Vest Partnership (BVP) program, which has provided funding to over 13,000 law
enforcement jurisdictions for the purchase of more than 1.4 million lifesaving
vests since 1999. Brown
leads
a
letter every
year to the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice, Science,
and Related Agencies urging them to provide this funding to BJA.
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