PAWS Act of 2019 takes aim at linking service dogs and veterans with PTSD

Congressmen from Northeast Florida are making a push for federal funding to help connect veterans who have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder with service dogs.

U.S. Rep. John Rutherford introduced the Puppies Assisting Servicemembers Act of 2019 today. The PAWS Act would establish a grant program through the Department of Veterans Affairs.

“We must do more to help those with PTSD and other service-connected forms of trauma," Rutherford says. "Providing service dogs to veterans is a proven therapy for PTSD, but for many, the cost associated with training and raising these animals is too great."

The bill would help organizations like K9s for Warriors in Ponte Vedra, where they link service dogs to veterans with PTSD.

"It's incredible to see our local delegation here working together in a bipartisan manor to help veterans, not just in Jacksonville, but across the country," says K9s for Warriors CEO Rory Diamond.

Congressmen Al Lawson, Michael Waltz and Gil Cisneros co-sponsored the bill.

If the bill passes, the VA would distribute grants worth $25,000 or less to organizations to help match dogs with veterans. To be eligible, a nonprofit organization would have to meet national standards set by the Association of Service Dog Providers for Military Veterans.

"Our national standards were developed by K9s for Warriors and other groups like us, so we know what we are doing and we think this is spot on," Diamond says.

He says his organization will benefit, but smaller organizations around the country will get a much bigger boost with the money. Diamond says fundraising is difficult for those smaller organizations, and the federal funding would go a long way.

Similar bills in the past were unsuccessful, but Diamond says this time the bill is written in a way that leaves less guesswork.

He says it would set aside $10 million to be used over three years. When that time is up, Diamond says the VA can look back and decide if there are any changes that need to be made.