By ccspglobal@gmail.com Articles June 17, 2021

‘Brandon Act’ Named for Sailor Who Died by Suicide Gains New Supporters in Congress

17 Jun 2021

Military.com | By Patricia Kime

Lawmakers reintroduced a bill Wednesday that would make it easier for service members to seek mental health care without fear of retaliation or worry about their careers.

Marine Corps veteran Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., and Navy veteran Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., are among the sponsors of the Brandon Act: legislation that would give service members a safe phrase that would trigger an automatic referral to a mental health specialist for evaluation.

The bill is named for Navy Aircrew Aviation Electrician’s Mate Striker Brandon Caserta, who died three years ago this month by suicide in Norfolk, Virginia. Military.com first reported on the tragedy in 2019. According to Navy records and personal correspondence, Caserta was being bullied by one of his supervisors and was despondent over his circumstances.

Moulton introduced similar legislation last year. But while it was incorporated into the House’s version of the fiscal 2021 defense policy bill, it was removed during deliberations of the final law.

At a press conference on Capitol Hill Wednesday, Moulton said the Brandon Act would empower service members to manage their mental health during a crisis.

Read entire article: https://www.military.com/daily-news/2021/06/17/brandon-act-named-sailor-who-died-suicide-gains-new-supporters-congress.html