Tester Demands Immediate Action to Improve Servicemembers’ Access to VA Military Sexual Trauma Resources and Care

Continuing his push to ensure survivors of military sexual trauma (MST) receive the support and care they need, Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester recently pushed senior leaders at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and Department of Defense (DOD) to take immediate action to ensure servicemembers who have experienced MST are aware of the VA resources and care available to them.

“I was disappointed to see DOD’s Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report on Sexual Assault in the Military has no mention of efforts taken to inform servicemembers of their eligibility to receive confidential counseling at VA’s Vet Centers or their potential eligibility to receive MST-related services at VA medical centers and outpatient clinics,” wrote Senator Tester in a letter to DOD Secretary Lloyd Austin and VA Secretary Denis McDonough. “Survivors have endured the unimaginable and deserve to know about all of their options for health care and services. That starts with DOD and VA taking immediate steps to make sure survivors are aware of the tools available to them to address their trauma.”

Tester previously wrote to the Departments in August 2023 to urge action on a similar issue, following a Government Accountability Office report that found DOD transition programs were not consistently providing information to separating servicemembers on their eligibility for VA MST care.While DOD and VA pledged their commitment to increasing awareness for VA MST resources in response to the Senator’s letter last year, Tester highlighted his concerns with their actual efforts.

Tester continued, “After receiving responses from both DOD and VA reaffirming the Departments’ commitment to spreading greater awareness of VA resources for MST survivors, I was disappointed to find few mentions of this commitment in the recent DOD report. In fact – the only mention of Vet Centers throughout the more than 800-page document is the finding that, of active component women who experienced unwanted sexual contact and reported the incident to military authorities, 33 percent received no information about the confidential counseling services available to them through Vet Centers.”

Underscoring the need for the Departments to follow through on their commitments and amend this issue, the Senator concluded: “As DOD continues its work to prevent and respond to MST, I call on the Department to take quick action to improve its efforts to provide servicemembers with information on the VA MST-related resources available to them. Vet Centers, in particular, can provide survivors with a safe, confidential option for addressing their mental health needs outside of DOD. Survivors deserve to know these resources exist and are accessible to them.”

A long-time advocate for strengthening benefits and care for MST survivors, Tester championed the Deborah Sampson Act, which included provisions expanding eligibility for MST care and allowing VA to treat physical conditions arising from MST, in addition to mental health conditions. This Congress, Tester also reintroduced the bipartisan, bicameral Servicemembers and Veterans Empowerment and Support Act to expand the evidentiary standard for MST survivors applying for VA benefits to ensure they are provided equal access to the benefits and care they have earned. He has led the charge in introducing this legislation in 2021, 2019, and 2017.

Read the Senator’s full letter HERE.