BARRE, Vt. (WCAX) – Federal leaders are highlighting tools to deal with the less visible side of natural disasters.
Congresswoman Becca Balint on Monday was in Barre, which was hit hard by flooding 10 months ago, to unveil a proposal to connect disaster survivors with mental health support.
The MEND Act, or Mental Health Emergency Needs in Disasters Act, would create a program where councilors and social workers would spend up to two years in states following disasters to provide support, and also provide grants to local providers so they could staff up in the aftermath of disasters.
“The recovery period following a disaster is a time of upheaval for individuals, communities and families, and while we work to repair buildings and infrastructure and roads, we have to establish systems of mental health care in impacted communities,” said Balint, D-Vermont.
It would also research rates of drug and alcohol use following disasters, too.