Highlighting bipartisanship at the N.H. Statehouse
In this season of partisan politics leading up to the primary, it’s too bad that the Valley News didn’t pick up the story of a bipartisan partnership that included some Upper Valley legislators and delivered a good result for first responders.
The state Employee Assistance Program (EAP) offers mental health and PTSD counseling to first responders who are state or town employees. Volunteers or first responders from departments too small to provide coverage were excluded from accessing these services. Until now.
In mid-July, Gov. Kelly Ayotte joined a bipartisan group of legislators and first responders from across the state for a ceremonial signing of a new law that expands access to mental health coverage for volunteer first responders. This is important because first responders see more trauma in a year than most people see in a lifetime, and many of our local towns have volunteer services.
House Bill 1705 establishes a First Responders Support Fund, managed by the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), to offer EAP services to volunteer and small-town first responders, including support for PTSD. Three of the five sponsors of the bill are Upper Valley legislators: Sen. Sue Prentiss (D- Lebanon), Rep. Hope Damon (D-Croydon), and me, Rep. Margaret Drye (R- Plainfield.)
New Hampshire becomes the first state in the nation to offer such help to volunteers.
No one knows how many first responders will take advantage of these services, but just having access to them is a giant step forward and an outcome we can all be proud of together.