# Military Sexual Trauma Retirement Equity Act

This bill expands financial support for military retirees who have been diagnosed with disabilities resulting from military sexual trauma. Currently, the military has a special compensation program for retirees with combat-related disabilities, but it doesn't cover people whose disabilities stem from sexual assault or harassment they experienced while serving. This bill changes that by extending the same financial benefits to survivors of military sexual trauma, treating their trauma-related disabilities the same way the military treats combat-related ones.

Here's what this means in practical terms: A retired service member who was sexually assaulted while on active duty and developed PTSD, depression, or other service-connected disabilities as a result can now qualify for special compensation payments. Previously, they might have received some benefits through the Veterans Affairs system, but they wouldn't have been eligible for this particular military retirement compensation program. The bill essentially says that trauma from sexual assault deserves the same recognition and financial support as trauma from combat situations. The Department of Defense will work with the Veterans Affairs Department to identify eligible retirees—those whose disabilities have already been determined by the VA to be caused by military sexual trauma—and provide them with the compensation they're entitled to receive.

This is a significant change because it acknowledges that military sexual trauma is a serious service-connected injury that can be just as disabling as combat wounds. It removes a gap in the current system where survivors could fall through the cracks and ensures they receive the financial support they've earned through their military service. The bill affects retired service members across all branches of the military who have experienced sexual trauma during their service and have had that trauma documented and connected to their current disabilities by the Veterans Affairs Department.

Military Sexual Trauma Retirement Equity Act

González-Colón, Jenniffer

Military Sexual Trauma Retirement Equity Act This bill expands eligibility for certain special compensation to disabled uniformed services retirees who are survivors of military sexual trauma. Specifically, the bill renames combat-related special compensation as trauma-related special compensation and makes eligible for such compensation trauma-related disabled uniformed services retirees (i.e., members of the uniformed services who have a trauma-related disability and are entitled to retired pay). The bill expands the former definition of a combat-related disability (now a trauma-related disability under this bill) to include a disability that is compensable under laws administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and is determined by the VA to be the result of military sexual trauma.