Military Sexual Trauma

On the heels of a Human Rights Watch report that documents and draws attention to the experience of survivors of military sexual trauma, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), a member of Senate Armed Services Committee, and U.S. Representative Chellie Pingree (D-ME) wrote Secretary of Defense Ash Carter urging the Pentagon to reform their procedures for reviewing the cases of veterans… Read more »

At a press conference in Washington today, Congresswoman Chellie Pingree called on the Department of Defense to change practices that have led tens of thousands of veterans to be improperly discharged from the military.  A report out today by Human Rights Watch documents how many survivors of military sexual assault suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) improperly… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree applauded tonight’s unanimous House passage of H.R. 1607—the Ruth Moore Act of 2015—a bill she introduced earlier this year to make it easier for veterans who were sexually assaulted during their service to receive disability benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs.    “Since starting to work on this issue, not a… Read more »

Tells committee she is not going to give up fight for justice for veterans Read more »

Maine Congresswoman Chellie Pingree and Montana Senator Jon Tester re-introduced the Ruth Moore Act today, a bill that will make it easier forsurvivors of military sexual assault to get the benefits they deserve.  Congressman Bruce Poliquin joined the effort as the lead Republican cosponsor in the House. "The sexual assault of someone who has volunteered to serve and defend this… Read more »

Pingree is joined by 23 other Members of Congress to support lawsuit against VA 12/19/14 Suit demands VA treat survivors of sexual assault and victims of combat-related PTSD equally Congresswoman Chellie Pingree was joined by 23 other members of the House of Representatives yesterday in filing a friend of the court brief in a lawsuit aimed at forcing the Department of Veterans… Read more »

Independent evaluation she requested found big differences in how veterans are treated from one office to another Congresswoman Chellie Pingree led 31 of her House colleagues in asking the Department of Veterans Affairs to make changes in the way they handle disability claims for survivors of military sexual assault (MST). In a letter to Acting Secretary Sloan Gibson, Pingree and her… Read more »

Says independent evaluation she requested shows big differences in how veterans are treated from one office to another >> >>The full GAO report can be viewed and downloaded here Congresswoman Chellie Pingree said today that a Governmental Accountability Office (GAO) report she had requested shows continued problems in the way the Department of Veterans Affairs treats… Read more »

Ruth Moore was first denied benefits in 1993; Pingree asked officials to reopen case and reconsider decision Officials from the Department of Veterans Affairs called Navy Veteran Ruth Moore today to tell her they had made a "clear and unmistakable error" in denying her veterans benefits in 1993 and agreed to pay her over $405,000 in back benefits owed to her. Moore was the victim of… Read more »

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree issued the following statement today, after the Department of Defense released their annual report on Sexual Harassment and Violence at the Military Service Academies. "This report shows progress in changing attitudes toward sexual assault at our country's service academies," Pingree said. "But it also shows there is still a lot of work to do. The report… Read more »