WASHINGTON — A bipartisan bill aimed at expanding mental health support for correctional officers has been introduced in the Senate during National Police Week, with supporters highlighting a key protection designed to let staff seek help without fear of losing their jobs.
U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth introduced the Corrections Officer Blake Schwarz Suicide Prevention Act of 2026, named for Blake Schwarz, a corrections officer at Federal Correctional Institution Thomson in Illinois who died by suicide at age 26 in 2023.
The bill would create a grant program for the Bureau of Prisons, states and localities to provide mental health screenings, referrals and support services for correctional officers. It would also establish safe harbor protections for officers experiencing mental health issues while they seek and receive treatment.
“As correctional officers, we face pressures and stress that few truly understand,” said Jon Zumkehr, president of AFGE Local 4070. “The Blake Schwarz Suicide Prevention Act gives us a real solution: safe harbor protections that finally allow correctional officers to ask for help without fear of losing their careers.”
Under the bill, correctional officers experiencing a mental health issue would be protected from adverse employment outcomes, including a fitness-for-duty evaluation, as a result of seeking and receiving treatment. Officers would determine their course of treatment with their mental health care provider.
Zumkehr said the goal is to treat mental health recovery the same way agencies would treat a physical injury.
“We have to prioritize mental health and let correctional officers know that it’s OK to not be OK,” Zumkehr said. “We need to break the stigma that seeking help makes you weak.”
The bill is also supported by One Voice United, a national organization that advocates for correctional officers and front-line staff. In a May 8 letter to Duckworth, National Director Brian Dawe wrote that correctional officers face serious mental health risks that are often not discussed during hiring or training. Dawe cited a 34% PTSD rate among correctional officers and said the suicide rate for correctional officers is twice that of police officers.
“Without addressing the roots of this crisis, we fear the system cannot sustain itself much longer,” Dawe wrote, adding that the organization supports the legislation and the funding it would provide for correctional staff mental health programs.
The legislation would authorize $50 million in fiscal year 2026, increasing annually to $70 million in fiscal year 2030. Funding would support mental health screening programs, outreach teams, referrals to mental health care providers and an advisory board to oversee implementation.
“I’ve met with Blake’s widow, visited the Thomson facilities he worked at, and spoken directly with officers who are carrying the weight of this job without the mental health support they need,” said Representative Miller-Meeks. “Blake’s story is a painful reminder that we must do better. This bill takes action to get corrections officers the resources they deserve, break the stigma around mental health, and prevent future tragedies. I’m proud to be leading the House version of this bill and thank Senator Duckworth for leading it in the Senate.”
The bill is endorsed by Michelle Schwarz, widow of Blake Schwarz and former nurse at Thomson Prison; AFGE Local 4070; AFGE District 7; the National Fraternal Order of Police; the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association; Council of Prison Locals 33; The Gray Matters Collective; and One Voice United.
“Our officers go through tremendous emotional stress and burdens every single day, and this bill would allow them to receive the support that they desperately need,” Michelle Schwarz said in a video urging lawmakers to pass the bill.
In the video, Michelle noted she was 12 weeks pregnant when Blake died.
“Please do not let another little girl have to ask, ‘Why my daddy is in heaven?’ Please do not let another family have to go through the emotional stress and the turmoil that I had to go through. Please, I beg you, to pass the Blake Schwarz Suicide Prevention Act. It is desperately needed.”
