House Committee Approves Women Veterans Bills
On May 21, the House Veterans Affairs Committee approved, by separate voice votes, H.R. 1607, the *Ruth Moore Act, and H.R. 1575, a bill to provide counseling services for women veterans recently separated from the Armed Forces. The Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Subcommittee approved H.R. 1607 on May 14; the Subcommittee on Health approved H.R. 1575 on May 15 (see The Source, 5/15/15).
The Ruth Moore Act, sponsored by Rep. Chellie Pingree (D-ME), would direct the secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs to cover mental health claims that result from military sexual trauma (MST) that occurred during active duty. VA would be required to accept a diagnosis by a mental health professional, satisfactory lay or other evidence of such trauma, and an opinion by the mental health professional that the mental health condition is related to MST. The bill would allow such service-connections to be rebutted by clear and convincing evidence to the contrary.
During consideration of the bill, the committee adopted a substitute amendment by Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL) that would require VA to submit to Congress regular updates on the status of such claims and expresses the sense of the House of Representatives that VA should update its regulations regarding MST and mental health claims.
H.R. 1575, sponsored by Ranking Member Corrine Brown (D-FL), would require the Readjustment Counseling Service of the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) to provide reintegration and readjustment services to women veterans in group settings. Such services would include reintegration into family, employment, and the community of veterans; financial counseling; occupational counseling; information and counseling on stress reduction; and information and counseling on conflict resolution.
*Editor's Note: Summary of the Ruth Moore Act, H.R. 671, 113th Congress
Senate Committee Examines Rape Kit Backlog
On May 20, the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on The Constitution held a hearing, “Taking Sexual Assault Seriously: The Rape Kit Backlog and Human Rights.”
"For too long, survivors of sexual assault, the vast majority of them women, have been ignored or disbelieved. They have been told they must have done something wrong – they walked down the wrong street, sent mixed signals, or just feel regret. This attitude is offensive and unacceptable – at its base it suggests a lingering belief that women do not fully own their own bodies or decide their own actions. When we let these rape kits languish for years on lab shelves, when we treat crimes of rape with less urgency, it reinforces the terrible message that these are second-class crimes. Each of these kits represents a devastated, traumatized survivor, and we owe it to them to find their offenders and to hold them accountable," stated Ranking Member Patrick Leahy (D-VT).
Lisa Madigan, Illinois attorney general stated, "In 2010, Human Rights Watch discovered that tens of thousands of sexual assault kits were stored in police stations nationwide, untested. The untested kits had been gathering dust for years. Many kits had been completed more recently but never sent to a lab for DNA testing." Ms. Madigan offered several recommendations to address the backlog: "[S]tates should adopt a law or implement a statewide protocol that requires all DNA to be submitted to a crime lab for testing once it is collected in a timely manner … [A]ll police departments must comply with those laws … [S]tates should implement tracking systems to improve accountability and satisfy chain of custody concerns … [F]orensic labs need sufficient funding and resources to test the evidence they receive … [F]orensic labs must look at their systems and improve efficiency … [W]e must increase access to Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners who are trained on how to properly collect evidence and respond appropriately to the victim … [and W]e must improve and increase training for law enforcement and prosecutors."
The following witnesses also testified during the hearing:
- Debbie Smith, sexual assault survivor, founder, Hope Exists After Rape Trauma;
- Scott Berkowitz, founder and president, Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network;
- Skylor Hearn, assistant director, Texas Department of Public Safety; and
- Sarah Haacke Byrd, managing director, Joyful Heart Foundation.
House Committee Examines Fraud in Nutrition Programs
On May 19, the House Education and the Workforce Committee held a hearing, "Addressing Waste, Fraud, and Abuse in Federal Child Nutrition Programs."
*Kay E. Brown, director, Education, Workforce, and Income Security, Government Accountability Office (GAO), described the fraud uncovered in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): "GAO monitored one online classified advertisements website in four large metropolitan areas for 30 days and found two posts in which individuals attempted to sell formula specifically identified as WIC – from among 2,726 that advertised infant formula generally. A larger number, 481 posts, advertised formula generally consistent with the formula brand, type, container volume, and amount provided to WIC participants, but these posts did not indicate the source of the formula." Ms. Brown added, "GAO found that USDA [Department of Agriculture] had not specifically directed states to tell participants that selling WIC formula was a participant violation, which could have led to participants making these sales without realizing doing so was against program rules."
Zoë Neuberger, Senior Policy Analyst, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
In describing the child and household verification process, Zoë Neuberger, senior policy analyst, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, said, "Once a child is approved based on an application, he or she receives free or reduced-price meals for the remainder of the school year unless the application is selected for eligibility verification … If the school district cannot verify eligibility from a third-party source, such as the state’s human services office (which can inform the school whether the child is enrolled in SNAP [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly known as food stamps], cash assistance, or Medicaid), it must contact the household to ask for documentation of the child's eligibility. If the household does not respond, the child's free or reduced-price meals are terminated. If the household provides satisfactory documentation, the district uses it to assess whether the child may continue to receive free or reduced-price meals."
The following witnesses also testified:
- Gil Harden, assistant inspector general for Audit, USDA; and
- Jessica Lucas-Judy, acting director, Forensic Audits and Investigative Service, GAO.
With permission from Women's Policy, The Source
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