Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers (PAWS) for Veterans Therapy Act: New Law

President Biden has signed into law the Puppies Assisting Wounded Servicemembers (PAWS) for Veterans Therapy Act. The PAWS Act provides funding, through the Department of Veterans Affairs, for service dogs for veterans with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). The Act was supported by the Animal Law Committee (Robyn S. Hederman and Rebecca Seltzer, Co-Chairs), along with the Corrections & Community Reentry Committee (Gregory D. Morril, Chair), Mental Health Law Committee (Karen P. Simmons, Chair), and the Military & Veterans Affairs Committee (Christopher  Amore, Chair). This bill was also one of the recommendations the Animal Law Committee included in its transition memo to President Biden when he took office, highlighting the benefits service dogs can provide veterans, who all too often receive inadequate assistance in contending with PTSD and other mental health conditions.