Whereas the brave men and women of the Armed Forces, who proudly serve the United States, risk their lives to protect the freedom of the people of the United States and deserve the investment of every possible resource to ensure their lasting physical, mental, and emotional well-being; Whereas more than 2,770,000 members of the Armed Forces have deployed overseas since the events of September 11, 2001, and have served in places such as Afghanistan and Iraq; Whereas the current generation of men and women in the Armed Forces has sustained a high rate of operational deployments, with many members of the Armed Forces serving overseas multiple times, placing those members at high risk of experiencing combat stress; Whereas, when left untreated, exposure to traumatic combat stress can lead to post-traumatic stress injury, currently referred to in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders as post-traumatic stress disorder (in this preamble referred to as PTSD ); Whereas men and women of the Armed Forces and veterans who served before September 11, 2001, remain at risk for post-traumatic stress injury; Whereas the Secretary of Veterans Affairs reports that approximately— (1) 11 to 20 percent of veterans who served in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom have PTSD in a given year; (2) 12 percent of veterans who served in the Persian Gulf war have PTSD in a given year; and (3) 30 percent of veterans who served in the Vietnam era have had PTSD in their lifetimes; Whereas many combat stress injuries remain unreported, undiagnosed, and untreated due to a lack of awareness about post-traumatic stress injury and the persistent stigma associated with mental health conditions; Whereas exposure to trauma during service in the Armed Forces can lead to post-traumatic stress injury; Whereas post-traumatic stress injury significantly increases the risk of anxiety, depression, suicide, homelessness, and drug- and alcohol-related disorders and deaths, especially if left untreated