JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A newly proposed alert system, “Camo Alert,” would help find missing military veterans in Florida.
The proposal (HB 1051) was filed in the state House on Monday by Florida Rep. Heather Fitzenhagen, R-Fort Myers. It would create a program to help military veterans who have a mental illness or traumatic brain injury and go missing in Florida.
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The bill is being compared to the current Amber Alert for missing children or Silver Alert for missing seniors. Once an at-risk veteran is reported missing and believed to be in danger, it would notify law enforcement agencies and news media outlets.
The bill states that veterans or their guardians would voluntarily register for the program. However, local veterans believe it would be difficult for at-risk veterans to admit they need help or sign themselves up.
“I think the biggest problem would be getting people to sign up,” Col. Len Loving said. “The focus being for people with traumatic brain injury, they’re going to have to have some kind of assistance to get into the program.”
Loving is the CEO of Five Star Veterans Center is Jacksonville. It’s a facility that houses up to 40 qualified veterans and provides rehabilitation services.
He believes the “Camo Alert” system would be beneficial for at-risk veterans.
“I would say it’s very important for the following reason, in some cases where I could see potential suicide,” Loving said. “So that would be an alert to get out to people, which would obviously include law enforcement on that alert.”
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