Ro Khanna
04/18/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 04/18/2024 10:33
RELEASE: KHANNA AND STEFANIK INTRODUCE BIPARTISAN BILL TO MITIGATE BLAST OVERPRESSURE AND PROTECT SERVICE MEMBERS
Washington, DC -Representatives Ro Khanna (CA-17), Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems, and Elise Stefanik (NY-21), introduced the bipartisan Blast Overpressure Safety Act to direct the Department of Defense (DoD) to help mitigate and protect service members from blast overpressure. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) introduced a companion bill in the Senate.
Blast overpressure, which occurs when the pressure from a shock wave exceeds normal atmospheric values, harms the brain by moving it inside the skull and damaging it at a subcellular level. During just three months in 2023, the Department of Defense (DoD) provided treatment to service members over 50,000 times for traumatic brain injuries (TBI).
New York Times investigationsin late 2023 uncovered service members experiencing debilitating symptomssuch as hallucinations, seizures, and high risk for suicide and depression after exposure to high blast levels. Despite this, service members continue to trainwith weapons with unsafe blast levels. The Blast Overpressure Safety Act works to better mitigate and protect service members from blast overpressure and TBI.
"As Ranking Member of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies, and Information Systems, I'm proud to partner with Congresswoman Elise Stefanik to lead the bipartisan Blast Overpressure Safety Act to protect American service members from the overlooked dangers of traumatic brain injuries and blast overpressure. By improving care, mitigating exposure, and providing greater transparency in our military's equipment procurement process, we can protect the health of the brave men and women who serve our country," said Representative Ro Khanna.
"As the Chief advocate for Fort Drum in Congress the safety and security of the 10th Mountain Division soldiers is one of my top priorities which is why I am proud to co-lead the bipartisan Blast Overpressure Safety Act in the House with Congressman Khanna to protect our brave service members from blast overpressure and TBI. This legislation will ensure soldiers, such as our 10th Mountain Division soldiers who were attacked in Iraq and Syria last year, receive adequate care," said Representative Elise Stefanik.
"Too many of our service members are suffering the health consequences of blast overpressure, so we need real change to our approaches to prevent these injuries and protect our service members in training and combat. This bipartisan bill will tackle these pressing challenges from every direction - creating better transparency and brain health tracking, expanding efforts to mitigate exposure and provide treatment, and ensuring accountability that our military is supporting impacted service members," said Senator Elizabeth Warren.
"We must continue to provide service members with the best health care in the world. Full stop. But if we don't simultaneously address the underlying issues that cause them to seek care, then we will continue to return service members and veterans to their homes worse off than when they raised their right hand to join the military and serve our country. That's not right. I'm proud to stand with Rep. Ro Khanna and other colleagues as we introduce the bipartisan, bicameral Blast Overpressure Safety Act, which will help address the concerning trend of traumatic brain injuries experienced by our troops," said Representative Chrissy Houlahan.
"Our servicemembers have signed up to face tremendous risks in service and defense of our country, and Congress should do what we can to mitigate those risks. Blast exposure contributes to traumatic brain injury, which affects many servicemembers and veterans, and the Blast Overpressure Safety Act will help reduce the prevalence of traumatic brain injuries while ensuring that when they do occur, they're caught and treated early,"said Representative Jared Golden.
"Many servicemembers can face significant health impacts from blast overpressure while in training or combat. This bipartisan legislation would ensure that the Department of Defense is better tracking and treating these injuries, while also taking action to protect our men and women in uniform from these risks. Our bill would help bolster our nation's commitment to the long-term health and wellbeing of those who served in uniform," said Representative Jimmy Panetta."Brain health plays a crucial role in many veterans' overall quality of life. Head-related trauma, including traumatic brain injury (TBI), is sometimes referred to as the 'signature injury' for post-9/11 veterans due to the increased TBI prevalence among veterans of this generation. Wounded Warrior Project's (WWP's) 2022 Annual Warrior Survey found that 36.5% of WWP warriors self-reported experiencing TBI due to military service. The Blast Overpressure Safety Act will help protect Service members from blast overpressure and TBI; improve research and data collection regarding brain health and safety; and expand access to effective treatments and support for veterans with a brain injury. WWP supports this bill, and we applaud the representatives for their efforts to address this critical issue," said Jen Silva, Chief Program Officer, WWP.
To better mitigate and protect service members from blast overpressure and TBI, the Blast Overpressure Safety Act:
- Mandates regular neurocognitive assessments over a service member's career
- Creates blast overpressure exposure and TBI logs for all service members
- Increases transparency regarding blast overpressure safety in the weapons acquisition process
- Improves data on concussive and subconcussive brain injuries service members sustain
- Enhances efforts to mitigate exposure and help service members access care
- Supports service member treatment
- Mandates GAO review on DoD efforts to address blast exposure.
- Implements DoD Inspector General (IG) recommendations from a 2023 report finding DoD does not consistently determine the care service members with TBI need
Read the full bill text here.
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Congressman Khanna represents the 17th District of California, which covers communities in Silicon Valley. Visit his website at khanna.house.gov. Follow him on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @RepRoKhanna.