VA Suicide Hotline Reform Bill Passes House, Reid Crushes It

VA Suicide Hotline Reform Bill Passes House, Reid Crushes It | The Daily Caller:
"A bill to reform the Department of Veterans Affairs suicide hotline sailed unanimously through the House last week, until Senate Democratic Minority Leader Harry Reid blocked the legislation and refused to let it come to the floor for a voice vote.
The House approved GOP Rep. David Young’s bill last Monday by a vote of 357-0. Young introduced the legislation after hearing numerous complaints from constituents that the Veterans Crisis Line, designed to provide support for veterans feeling suicidal, simply failed to answer emails or calls.
The bipartisan bill passed the House without a hitch and Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar teamed up with GOP Sen. John Thune to move the legislation through the Senate.
Both majority and minority staff on the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs cleared the bill,..
...Republicans have referred to Reid’s actions as obstructionism, with some speculating his recent decisions on legislation are retaliation in response to refusal to move forward with Judge Merrick Garland, President Barack Obama’s Supreme Court nominee.
Reid has played the same move on numerous bills.
...Recently released data from the VA show that approximately 20 veterans commit suicide every day.
A report from the Government Accountability Office has provided credence to constituent complaints, finding that almost 30 percent of texts to the hotline went unanswered..."