"The mental health status and needs of service members, their families, retirees, and their families relate to most, if not all, hearings held by this subcommittee. Whether we are discussing PTSD, family support programs, frequency of deployment, access to health care, MIAs/POWs, or the aftermath of a sexual assault, the importance of mental well-being is involved. We also dedicate one hearing a year solely to mental health issues.

"This year’s hearing on mental health was originally intended to examine the increased incidence of suicide in the military, and to review what actions the Office of the Secretary of Defense and the military services were taking to address this troubling trend. However, suicide is not a discrete occurrence or problem: it is the final step an individual takes when they can no longer deal with the stressors in their life. Therefore, in order to determine why the suicide rate has increased, the entire spectrum of stressors must be considered.

"Further, there is a zero-sum game aspect to mental health. Neither the Department of Defense nor the country in general have enough mental health providers. Any resources directed towards suicide prevention will have to be directed away from their current allocation. It is important to examine what is going to be shortchanged in order to resource any new suicide prevention programs, and to consider if this will have any negative unintended consequences.

"For today’s hearing we will have two panels. In the first, we are fortunate to have the four vice chiefs of the services here to talk about what they are doing to deal with the psychological stress on their soldiers, sailors, Marines, and airmen. We have the Vice Chief of Staff of the Army, General Peter Chiarelli, the Vice Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Patrick Walsh, the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, General James Amos, and the Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force, General William Fraser. Gentlemen, we look forward to your testimony, and hope to leave this hearing with a clear understanding of how each of your services is addressing the issue.

"It is important for the headquarters of each military department to acknowledge and address this issue. It is also just as important for individual commanders to understand the problem and take positive actions at their level. For our second panel, we have chosen to highlight the positive actions taken by commanders of their own accord to address the psychological stress experienced by their commands. We have Lieutenant General Rick Lynch of the Army, Commanding General of III Corps and Fort Hood, to participate in our hearing. General Lynch has used his command authority to make fundamental changes to the way his installation is run, with the goal of providing soldiers, and just as importantly their families, stability and predictability in their schedules.

"From the Marine Corps, we have Major General Paul Lefebvre, Deputy Commanding General of II Marine Expeditionary Force. General Lefebvre created the Officer Suicide Prevention Training Program and the Operational Stress Control and Readiness Extender Program.

"The problems we will discuss today cannot be solved today. But we must continue to understand and confront the psychological stress that our service members and families have to deal with every day. We must continually evaluate actions taken, gauge their effectiveness, and then press to determine what must be done less."