Even as Americans slowly try to get back to a pre-COVID-19 way of life, mental health issues will likely be a prevailing issue for years.

One group that had concerns even before the coronavirus changed our world forever was our veteran population. An estimated 11-20 percent of Operations Iraqi and Enduring Freedom veterans had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder each year, with 12 percent of Gulf War Veterans and 15 percent of Vietnam veterans suffering from PTSD annually.

Unfortunately, only 40 percent of veterans find relief from PTSD through treatments.

While isolation and stress from the pandemic could increase veterans’ chances of suicidal thoughts, health experts have warned that the worst impacts to their mental health could come after the immediate crisis had ended. Reasons behind their long-term stresses include personal finances, lingering health issues and unmet expectations of mental health issues disappearing after the pandemic.

To get ahead of the expected surge in cases, a bipartisan group of congressmen introduced the Treatment and Relief through Emerging and Accessible Therapy (TREAT PTSD) Act. York County Congressman Scott Perry authored the bill after meeting with dozens of veterans and practitioners who had success with stellate ganglion block therapy, a relatively simple outpatient procedure that’s been used since the 1920s.

Perry, a retired Army brigadier general and combat veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom with more than 38 years of military service, also met with families who lost their veterans to suicide and became convinced that wider access to the SGB treatment could have saved them.

The treatment injects a nonnarcotic anesthetic agent into a collection of nerves in the neck, alleviating common PTSD symptoms, including the desire to commit suicide, hyper-arousal, exaggerated startle responses and anxiety.

Sadly, only 11 out of 170 VA medical centers, 1,255 health care facilities - including 1,074 outpatient sites - reported using the VA-accepted SGB procedure. America’s Veteran Service Organizations pushed for the treatment, seeking expanded access for the 2 million members of the American Legion and for the thousands of members in the Veterans of Foreign Wars chapters.

Perry’s House Resolution 1656 would require the VA to expand an already-approved VA option for SGB as a front-line treatment for PTSD. The VA currently requires a veteran to fail other treatments before being approved for SGB.

Perry feels this process should be corrected. Since veterans and their families risk it all to protect our freedoms, he said it’s unconscionable then for America to repay their sacrifice by requiring they fail first before giving them an option that can save their lives.

New York Congressman Lee Zeldin, an Army veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, also feels that every time we lose a veteran from the mental wounds of war, it’s a failure on the part of the nation they served.

He explained that we must ensure our service members have access to every resource available as they transition into civilian life, and cutting-edge options like SGB therapy should be a part of VA-provided, lifesaving treatment.

Pennsylvania VFW Commander Ronald J. Peters is also a supporter, stating that it’s wrong when a veteran asking for this treatment can’t access it. If the treatment can help save the life of even one veteran, it needs to be more available.

The bill is assigned to the House Committees on Armed Services, and Veterans’ Affairs for further consideration.

Commander Peters, Reps. Perry and Zeldin as well as Chanin Nuntavong, Executive Director of Government Affairs at the American Legion, make perfect sense. A groundbreaking treatment like SGB that can reduce PTSD symptoms without prolonged use of medications or cognitive therapy, should be a front-line option for veterans.

By Jim Zbick | tneditor@tnonline.com

The foregoing opinions do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board or Times News LLC.