Lawmakers have backed a proposed mortgage repayment plan for veterans who provide mental health care to different soldiers in , Wyoming.
In a majority voting, the , Senate Transportation, Highways and Military Affairs Committee , on Thursday approved Senate File 30,” Wyoming’s investment in soldier’s mental health”. SF 30 would create the , Wyoming , former loan repayment plan, which would provide loan repayment for soldiers who study at the , University of Wyoming , and go on to offer mental health services within the state to another soldiers.
” The issue we are trying to fix is to try to get some more mental health providers across the state, to especially get after veterans emotional health”, Maj.  , Gen. Greg Porter, the commandant standard for the express of , Wyoming, told the committee.
Particularly in Wyoming’s low-population areas, it can be difficult for veterans to access mental health services, Porter said.
” We are really trying to drive down the suicide rate in the veteran population”, he said, adding that the program created by SF 30 is a” first attempt” to push mental health providers, who are also veterans themselves, out into , Wyoming.
According to Lt. Col.  , Karen Hinkle, who currently serves as senior legal counsel for the , Wyoming Military Department, the loan repayment program would be administered by the , University of Wyoming. It would require that participants be citizens and veterans, and be seeking a master’s or doctorate-level degree at , UW. A graduate would need to work in state for the minimum amount of time necessary to repay the loan, plus three years, before being eligible for repayment. Additionally, they would have to give other veterans at least 25 % of their practice time.
Mike Smith , with the , University of Wyoming , said the program would operate differently than other loan repayment programs that encourage medical professionals to work in the state. The program would cover the full cost of attendance, including room and board.
Smith expressed concern about the funding model, calling the repayment program “more expansive and generous” than other similar programs that are currently in place.
According to Smith,” Those existing programs are funded through the general fund,” according to Smith. The way this is set up now is a reduction of the university block grant, the author writes.
Instead of using the money that has already been allocated to the university, the committee approved an amendment to SF 30 to allow for the general fund to be used to finance it at a cost of$ 250, 000. The estimated cost of attendance for mental health graduate programs at , UW , is$ 26, 732 for residents and$ 40, 532 for non-residents.
Sen.  , John Kolb, R-Rock Springs, asked if the program would be open to veterans under any military discharge status. According to Johnson, any discharge would be “other than honorable,” and Kolb amended to include exclusion for any discharge. That amendment failed.
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