{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://subramanyam.house.gov/media/press-releases/after-reports-suicide-attempts-sea-subramanyam-and-walkinshaw-seek-independent", "After Reports of Suicide Attempts at Sea, Subramanyam and Walkinshaw Seek Independent Review of Military Mental Health Care", "2026-09-29", "2026", "2026-09", "Democrat", "House", "VA", "Suhas Subramanyam", "S001230", "subramanyam.house.gov", "subramanyam", "https://subramanyam.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Congressman Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10), Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Military and Foreign Affairs, and Congressman James R. Walkinshaw (VA-11), a member of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Military and Foreign Affairs, are pressing the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to examine whether service members have sufficient access to mental health care during deployments.\n\nIn their letter, the lawmakers point to concerning conditions aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford during its 326-day deployment. A fire spread from a laundry room to sleeping quarters, displacing approximately 600 sailors. Some had to sleep on floors and tables. The carrier also experienced plumbing and sewage problems.\n\nThe letter also raises concerns about the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group\u2019s extended deployment. The Acting U.S. Secretary of the Navy has said eight sailors across ships in the strike group attempted suicide and several sailors attempted to jump overboard the USS Lincoln. The lawmakers cite reports of inadequate food and supplies and say it remains unclear what mental health resources service members can access while deployed and if they are sufficient to address their urgent needs.\n\n\u201cExtended deployments place enormous strain on servicemembers and their families,\u201d the lawmakers write. \u201cAt a minimum, they deserve safe and adequate places to sleep, access to basic necessities, and living conditions that protect their physical and mental health.\u201d\n\nWalkinshaw and Subramanyam ask GAO to examine mental health screenings before, during, and after deployment; access to treatment at sea; how the Navy responds when symptoms escalate; and the obstacles it faces in delivering care.\n\n\u201cWhen those deployments are compounded by inadequate living conditions, Congress has a responsibility to understand the impact on morale, mental health, readiness, and retention, and ensure the Department of Defense (DOD) is doing everything possible to support the service members we ask to serve,\u201d the lawmakers write.\n\nRead the full letter here.\n\n###", 1, "2026-09-30T10:57:52Z", "2026-09-30T10:59:04Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://subramanyam.house.gov/media/press-releases/after-reports-suicide-attempts-sea-subramanyam-and-walkinshaw-seek-independent"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.6657800879329443, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}