Additional $200M for military mental health programs over 6 years
Posted November 23, 2014 7:44 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
OTTAWA (NEWS1130) – The federal government has announced an additional $200 million over six years to support mental health needs of military members, veterans, and their families.
The Department of National Defence and the Canadian Armed Forces also announced Sunday that an additional $16.7 million in ongoing funds will be available to support forces members, veterans, and their families.
The government says some of the money will fund completely digitizing the health records of all serving personnel, investing in brain imaging technology, and extending access to Military Family Resource Centres.
It also says there will be additional investments in research aimed at finding better treatments and faster recoveries for serving members and veterans with mental health conditions.
The announcement says the Canadian Forces will hire additional staff to help educate serving members and their families in managing their reactions to stress, and recognizing mental duress.
The announcement comes just days after veterans learned that the federal department responsible for their care and benefits was unable to spend upwards of $1.1 billion of its budget over seven years.
