Senators Collins, King Sign Bipartisan Letter Requesting GAO Report on DoD Efforts to Protect Service Members from Weapon Blasts
The complete text of the letter can be read here
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins and Angus King signed a bipartisan letter led by Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Joni Ernst (R-IA), as well as U.S. Representatives Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) and Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), to the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting a review of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) current efforts to identify, prevent, and treat traumatic brain injuries (TBI) related to service members’ exposure to blast overpressure.
According to brain tissue analysis, the perpetrator of last year’s mass shooting in Lewiston, an Army reservist, likely experienced traumatic brain injuries through his repeated exposure to explosive blast waves over the course of his military training. The Maine Chief Medical Examiner’s office requested the post-mortem study of the shooter’s brain by the Boston University CTE Center. Additionally, a November 2023 New York Times investigation revealed that troops from artillery batteries who had bombarded the Islamic State with large numbers of artillery rounds in 2016 and 2017 returned home experiencing nightmares, hallucinations, panic attacks, and suicidal ideation, among other symptoms. The Marines Corps found that for artillery crews, firing a high number of rounds “could result in the artillery community suffering injuries faster than combat replacements can be trained to replace them.”
“While the DoD has spent almost $3 billion on TBI research from fiscal year (FY) 2020 to FY 2023, major gaps remain in turning this research into action to better protect service members’ brain health, particularly to mitigate the impact of blast exposure and overpressure on service members,” the lawmakers wrote.
“The Department needs to take more urgent action to mitigate blast overpressure and support service members. Otherwise, troops will continue to struggle to get the care they need and deserve,” the lawmakers concluded.
In the letter, the lawmakers note the uncertainty over DoD’s strategy and plan to address this problem and suggest that the Department take more urgent action to mitigate the causes and effects of blast overpressure. TBIs are considered one of the “signature wounds” of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. They remain a key health concern for service members, with the DoD providing TBI treatment to service members nearly 50,000 times over the course of just three months in 2023. In 2022, the DoD provided TBI treatment over 210,000 times. The lawmakers requested the GAO review DoD research on TBI, blast overpressure, and blast exposure as well its efforts to identify those most at-risk for blast overpressure and to protect service members from retaliation for seeking care for TBI.
Following the Lewiston shooting, Senators Collins and King have been working together to increase mental health funding and address traumatic brain injuries. Most recently, they introduced the Blast Overpressure Safety Act would direct the Department of Defense (DoD) to enact a range of measures to help mitigate and protect service members from blast overpressure. In March, the entire Maine Delegation announced that the Maine Department of Health and Human Services (Maine DHHS) would receive $2,048,452 through the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s (SAMHSA) Emergency Response Grant program (SERG). The funding is used for community mental health needs in the greater-Lewiston community, following the shooting that claimed the lives of 18 individuals and wounded 13 others. The delegation also sent a follow-up letter to the Inspector General of the U.S. Department of the Army, Lieutenant General Donna W. Martin, to further press for a comprehensive review of the facts and events leading up to the October 25 mass shooting. Senator King has also sent a letter to the leaders of the Appropriations Committee, calling on them to prioritize funding for TBI research in the FY2025 spending bill.
On February 28, the Senate Armed Services Personnel Subcommittee held a hearing on traumatic brain injury and blast exposure care, where Senators raised bipartisan concerns about the need to better protect service members. This hearing made clear that there is uncertainty over DoD’s strategy and plan for implementation.
This letter is also signed by Senators Rick Scott (R-FL), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Ben Cardin (D-MD), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Dan Sullivan (R-AK) and Representatives Robert Garcia (D-CA), Sanford Bishop (D-GA), Joseph Morelle (D-NY), Jared Golden (D-ME), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Chellie Pingree (D-ME), Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), Seth Moulton (D-MA) and Susie Lee (D-NV).
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