The state Senate Monday adopted a measure urging Congress to provide lifesaving therapy to Americans with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
The resolution, sponsored by Sen. Tracy Pennycuick (R-Montgomery), calls on Congress to pass the Treatment and Relief through Emerging and Accessible Therapy for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Act, also known as the TREAT PTSD Act.
It would require the Department of Veterans Affairs and the Department of Defense to provide veterans suffering from PTSD with access to a lifesaving therapy known as stellate ganglion block (SGB). SGB works by applying an injection into the bundle of nerves that send signals of fight or flight to the body. The treatment relieves feelings of stress quickly for those with PTSD and provides them with a renewed chance to heal. The procedure has been used for nearly 100 years for pain conditions, including shingles and phantom limb pain.
“Our veterans who suffer from trauma deserve the best available care,” said Pennycuick, a U.S. Army combat veteran. “The battle isn’t over for them. Congress must approve the TREAT PTSD Act to provide this critical therapy and send the message that we’re not leaving any of our fighting men and women behind.”
PTSD is more common among veterans than civilians. At some point in their life, 7 out of every 100 veterans (or 7 percent) will have PTSD. In the general population, 6 out of every 100 adults (or 6 percent) will have PTSD in their lifetime. PTSD is also more common among female veterans (13 out of 100, or 13 percent) versus male veterans (6 out of 100, or 6 percent), according to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Pennycuick (R-Montgomery) said she is “passionate” about finding treatments for PTSD because she’s been diagnosed with it herself.
“I’m a veteran who has PTSD,” said Pennycuick. “You never get rid of PTSD. You can get better and get stable.”
The Veterans Administration is very slow to approve treatments.
“The VA list of drugs, its formulary has not changed since the Vietnam War,” she said. So many veterans have turned to nonprofits for help.
“If veterans are suffering and if a treatment can help, why aren’t we doing it?” she asked. “If it’s a possibility for treatment, we need to look into it. We need to look at everything that’s on the table.”
The federal legislation, H.R. 3023, is before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Health.
Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-Bucks) and Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-Chester) are cosponsors of the legislation.
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