Dr. Ruiz Recognizes National Police Week, Calls for Action to Support Families of Local Fallen Officers 

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congressman Raul Ruiz, M.D. (CA-25) took to the House floor to recognize National Police Week, a nationwide recognition of law enforcement officers who gave their lives in the line of duty. Today, Dr. Ruiz recognized local fallen officers and Riverside County Sheriff’s Deputies, called for reforms to support their families, and advocated for increased mental health resources and support for local departments grieving the loss of their fellow officers.  

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After Palm Springs Police Department Officers Lesley Zerebny and Gil Vega were killed in the line of duty on October 8, 2016, Dr. Ruiz joined local law enforcement officers in penning the Heroes Lesley Zerebny and Gil Vega First Responders Survivors Support Act. The bill makes key changes to the Public Safety Officers’ Benefits (PSOB) program, which provides public safety officers with assurances that their families will receive a robust death benefit if they lose their life in their line of duty. These changes include:  

1. Increasing the PSOB death and disability benefit from $370,376 to $550,000, 
2. Fixing the benefit determination date by setting it to the date of disbursement rather than the date of death, 
3. Increasing the education benefit from $1,265 to $2,200 and sets the inflation rate to reflect the actual cost of rising tuition, and 
4. Authorizing a GAO study to identify ways to improve access and utilization of the PSOB education benefit.  

Last year, Dr. Ruiz’s provision of the Heroes Lesley Zerebny and Gil Vega First Responders Survivors Support Act to fix the benefit determination date for the PSOB program was signed into law as part of S. 1511, the Protecting America’s First Responders Act. Dr. Ruiz will soon reintroduce the First Responders Survivors Support Act.   

Collaborating with local law enforcement, Ruiz has also consistently fought to increase our nation’s investment in mental health support for law enforcement officers. In last year’s government funding package, Dr. Ruiz successfully secured a $10 million investment for the Law Enforcement Mental Health and Wellness Act (LEMHWA) program.  

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