Chairman Mitchell, Ranking Member Brown–Waite, and Members of the Subcommittee, I am pleased to be here again to provide the committee with an update on the progress the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is making under the new authority to use professional marketing and advertising resources to more effectively reach and educate veterans and their families about VA benefits and services.  Even in the short time since I last testified before this committee, I am encouraged by our progress.

I will also provide the committee with an interim update on the initial results of the Veterans Health Administration’s (VHA) pilot advertising campaign on suicide prevention in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area.    

Once again I want to thank you and other members of the committee not only for your strong support for outreach that includes purchasing media advertising but your continued interest in following our progress.

Just four months ago, Secretary Peake lifted the restriction on paid media advertising.  I was then, and I continue to be, an enthusiastic supporter of this effort on the advertising policy.

I testified at the July hearing that among the challenges we had to meet was to develop a Request for Proposal (RFP) to contract for professional advertising expertise.  In order to expedite our efforts, VA’s contracting office recommended using the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS).  Using the FSS will allow us to target all aspects of the marketing and advertising community, particularly small businesses and especially veterans-owned small businesses.  

The FSS has already provided an extensive array of professional advertising vendors with the expertise we need to help us shape our marketing and advertising strategy.  I am currently in the process of interviewing a number of these companies, and I will keep you up-to-date as we approach decisions to solicit a request for quotations.

One key aspect of our new authority allows the Under Secretaries of Benefits, Health, and Memorial Affairs to purchase advertising in media outlets for the purpose of promoting awareness of benefits and services in coordination with VA’s public affairs office.  This will allow them to identify their requirements to improve outreach efforts, to enhance their overall customer service performance measures, and to give us feedback as to what methods of outreach are most effective.  It will give VA, with its variety and diversity of services and benefits, the ability to provide the right message through the right medium to reach veterans.

Furthermore, VA is part of an 18 Federal agency working group to try to be a presence on popular social networking sites.  Discussions are underway to resolve legal issues, but VA and other Federal agencies are working together to secure agreements with those web sites.

While we expand into new media, our basic goal remains unchanged: to reach all veterans of all eras of service with the messages of greatest concern to them through the medium that is most effective.   

VA’s effort is dynamic, and it has the potential to produce strong outcomes in many areas.  Although it may be hard to capture and provide all of this information, we will provide the committee with a more comprehensive overview in December when we submit our scheduled Report of Outreach Activities to the Congress.  We also aim to include this fiscal year’s accomplishments of our market and advertising business plan objectives, which will be linked to the strategic plan goals in the report.  

For FY 09, the Office of Public and Intergovernmental Affairs (OPIA) will have up to a million dollars available to administer this effort.  In addition, the VBA, VHA, and NCA program budgets provide for outreach as an integral component of their business plans for the delivery of program benefits and services.

Finally, one concrete action I described at the July hearing: a Veterans Health Administration pilot advertising campaign on suicide prevention.  We showed you the draft of ads that we were developing that would be used on Metro buses and at Metro stations, and I am pleased to have the opportunity to update the committee on our progress.

We began the process to select the message for this awareness campaign pilot project while we were still subject to the paid advertising restriction.  VHA decided that a reasonable, alternative approach would be to have the project team attend a message development workshop.  The workshop was conducted by a communications company, contracted by the Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).  That workshop helped to prepare the VHA team with the basic skills training necessary to develop a message focused on veteran’s age, gender, and life experience considerations.

Subsequently, the team arranged for, conducted, and analyzed the results of several feedback sessions from randomly selected veterans, suicide prevention coordinators, and VA employees who are also veterans.  They received candid feedback and recommendations for revision.  They further considered the recommendations and guidance I received from the committee at the July 15 hearing, and as a result we arrived at the final message.  We continue to seek and plan to make use of further feedback.

The approximate cost for production and distribution including artwork, printing and the leased space for advertisement for the pilot was $115,000.  This funding comes from the VHA mental health budget.             

The criteria used to assess the effectiveness of the Washington Metro pilot public awareness campaign are the rate of increase in daily calls to the suicide prevention hotline and the rate of increase of veterans seeking consultation by the suicide prevention coordinators at the Washington, D.C., VA Medical Center.  Using these outcome measures, VHA’s analysis of the pilot campaign outreach results revealed a very positive effect.  The data shows a 50 to 100 percent increase in calls from the area where the advertising is running.  Specifically, the average weekly calls from area codes in the D.C. area increased from 6 to 14; in Northern Va. area codes, from 5 to 14; and in Maryland area codes, from 10 to 27.

Our goal has not changed since we last met.  We will do all we can to make veterans and their families aware of the benefits and services VA has to offer.  We will take advantage of new opportunities, keep an open mind, and aggressively seek to find the best advertising technology and methods available. I believe we are in total agreement: We must continue to move forward with sound expertise based upon the strategic needs of the Department using a variety of options to reach out and positively connect with veterans and their families.

Mr. Chairman, this concludes my formal statement.  We will continue to seek your counsel as we move forward.  I am pleased to respond to any questions you or the subcommittee members may have.