Lazaro Aleman
ECB Publishing, Inc.
One of the issues brought to the attention of the two legislators at the recent Jefferson County legislative delegation hearing was one that concerns veterans and that its advocate said had local, state and national implications.
“We have a problem not just in Jefferson County, but in Florida and all over the country,” Marine Major John L. Haynes, chairman emeritus of the Florida Veterans Foundation and a decorated war hero, told Florida Senator Bill Montford and Representative Jason Shoaf on Wednesday evening, Oct. 2.
The problem, Haynes went on to say, was the rising number of suicides among U.S. veterans.
“U.S. warriors have carried the burden of keeping the world free for a long time,” Haynes said. “Six thousand vets a year are being lost.”
The solution, he said, was Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT), as opposed to the many pills that were currently being dispensed to vets and keeping their minds befogged.
Haynes said he knew of what he spoke of, being a veteran of three wars and having personally undergone the HBOT treatments.
“HBOT works,” Haynes said, adding that since undergoing the treatments some three years ago he hadn't experienced the problems that had plagued him for years.
“We know that HBOT works for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and brain injuries,” Haynes said, reiterating that the treatment would represent a significant improvement over the current drug treatments.
PTSD is described as a mental health condition that is triggered by a terrifying event, whether experienced or witnessed. The PTSD symptoms may include flashbacks, nightmares and severe anxiety, as well as uncontrollable thoughts about the event.
“What we need is money to treat the vets,” Haynes said, pressing his point. “It would be a lifesaver.”
He urged Montford and Shoaf to join forces with Senator Tom Wright, who with Representative Mel Ponder cosponsored a bill in the last legislative session that Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into law this past June.
HB-501, also called the Alternative Treatment Options for Veterans bill, creates a $200,000 pilot program for the treatment of post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries (TBI) in veterans via the use of alternative therapies. The legislation expands the therapies available to eligible veterans to include accelerated resolution therapy, equine therapy, music therapy, service animal training therapy and hyperbaric oxygen therapy at registered facilities, making Florida the first state to offer multiple treatments to veterans on such a scale.
A reported 72,000 vets committed suicide in the United States between 2005 and 2012, with a number of the deaths attributable to PTSD and TBI, according to the Veterans Administration (VA).
“And the only thing we've been doing for vets is putting them into drug-induced stupors where they feel useless,” Wright is quoted arguing in support of his legislation.
HBOT involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized environment, which is said to increase oxygen throughout the bloodstream, thus promoting healing and fighting infection. The medical literature states that the procedure has been commonly used to treat carbon monoxide poisoning, divers’ sickness, enhanced healing of some wound problems, skin grafts, heat burns, crash injuries and other acute health-care issues that involve too little blood flow reaching parts of the body.
This is because, per the literature, the body may demand more oxygen than is available normally to supply the cells with the necessary fuel to help them heal following certain types of injuries, such as for metabolism, cellular growth and repair. Understandably therefore, given that PTSD and TBI are believed to cause microscopic and macroscopic wounds to the brain's white matter, HBOT has also been explored as a therapy for these conditions.
Formal studies on the effectiveness of HBOT for the treatment of PTSD and TBI, however, reportedly remain inconclusive so far, one reason why the VA considers such treatments “off label” use.
In November 2017, the VA announced that it would offer HBOT as a treatment option for a small number of veterans with persistent PTSD symptoms resistant to standard options at selected sites in California and Oklahoma.
In making the announcement the VA Center for Compassionate Innovation (CCI) asserted its interests in exploring innovative approaches to healthcare for vets. The CCI stated that it was facilitating the use of HBOT for a subset of veterans who had noticed no decrease of symptoms after receiving at least two evidenced-based treatments.
“The CCI uses innovative approaches to treat conditions where traditional methods have been unsuccessful,” the VA release stated. “The VA will monitor the HBOT clinical demonstration project and the HBOT research study to help inform the potential for HBOT usage to treat a larger number of Veterans with PTSD.”
Notwithstanding that the studies remain inconclusive on the effectiveness of HBOT for PTSD and TBI, however, Haynes, Wright and others are convinced that it works. Hence, the push for the Florida pilot program and Haynes' call for its expansion.
Born in Madison County in 1930, Haynes joined the Marine Corps in 1945 at the age of 15 and participated with the 1st Marine Division when it accepted the surrender of the Japanese Army in China. A decorated veteran, Haynes served 30 years in the Marines during World War II, the Korean War, and Vietnam War. His military decorations include the Silver Star Medal, Purple Heart Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal and the Cross of Gallantry.
Following his active duty, he served as state commandant of the Maryland Marine Corps League. He has also served as a service officer for the Veterans Administration and the American Legion and is chairman emeritus of Florida Veterans Foundation, which he helped found in 2008.
In April, 2017, Gov. Rick Scott awarded Haynes the Governor's Medal of Merit.