AG Moody sends letter to congress urging passage of legislation supporting first responders

ORLANDO, Fla. — Florida’s Attorney General is urging Congress to pass legislation to help provide support for first responders who suffer from work-related PTSD.

Attorney General Ashley Moody, joined by 52 other attorneys general, sent a letter to Congress that praises the work of public safety officers.

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The “Public Safety Officer Support Act of 2022″ would designate work-related PTSD as a “line of duty” injury for eligible officers.

It also allows families of officers who die by trauma-linked suicide to apply for death benefits.

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Compared to the general public, public safety officers are 25.6 times more likely to develop PTSD.

Researchers said more than 220 first responders in the US committed suicide since 2021. Twenty of them were from Florida.

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“Not all scars suffered while serving the public are visible, and sometimes it’s the invisible scars that take the longest to heal. Law enforcement officers suffer these mental scars in service to us, so the least we can do is support them in the healing process. That is why I am supporting the Public Safety Officer Support Act of 2022 and encouraging Congress to also support this necessary piece of legislation,” Moody said.

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