I
believe we need to do more to live up to our obligations to veterans.
All the training and weapons upgrades in the world will be rendered
ineffective if military personnel and their families, military retirees,
and veterans are not afforded a good "quality-of-life"
opportunity.
I
am committed to the quality health care that our veterans deserve
and were promised, including accessibility and availability of services.
As a member of both the Senate Budget Committee and the Appropriations
subcommittee that handles veterans’ affairs, I will continue
to work with my colleagues to make certain that veterans’
services are fully funded.
Below
you will find legislation that I have introduced for our military
and our veterans:
S.
331 Assured Funding for Veterans Health Care Act of 2005
I introduced S.331, the Assured Funding for Veterans Health Care
Act of 2005, on February 9, 2005. This bill would change the way
in which the VA health care system is funded by moving it from discretionary
to mandatory spending. The bill would establish a base-line funding
year (130% of the FY2005 VA health care budget) and then provide
future funding based on the total number of veterans who participate
in the VA health care system and the annual rise in cost of providing
health care services (based on the consumer price index for hospital
and related services). The bill has been endorsed by the Partnership
for Veterans Health Care Budget Reform which is made up of nine
important veterans’ organizations including the American Legion,
the Disabled American Veterans, the Paralyzed Veterans of American,
and the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
S.407 Keep Our Promise to America’s Military Retirees
Act
On February 16, 2005, I introduced The Keep Our Promise to America’s
Military Retirees Act (S.407). This bill would exempt military retirees
who joined the armed forces prior to December 7, 1956 from paying
Medicare Part B premiums to access Tricare for Life. In addition,
the bill would give military retirees the option to enroll in the
Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) instead of Tricare,
and would establish a system to reimburse pharmacy expenses –
at Tricare rates – for military retirees who cannot access
Tricare pharmacies due to physical or medical constraints.
S. 2091 Montgomery GI Bill Enhancement Act of 2005
I introduced S. 2091, The Montgomery GI Bill Enhancement Act of
2005, on December 13, 2005. The Montgomery GI bill currently excludes
approximately 74,000 servicemen and women on active duty who, because
they were on active duty before 1985 and did not participate in
the Veterans' Educational Assistance Program, are not eligible for
the MGIB. This bill will allow a one year open enrollment period
for thousands of career military personal who are prohibited from
signing up for education benefits under the MGIB.
S.633 American Veterans Disabled for Life Commemorative
Coin Act
On
March 16, 2005, I introduced S.633, the American Veterans Disabled
for Life Commemorative Coin Act of 2005. This bill will authorize
the Secretary of the Treasury to mint a commemorative coin honoring
the millions of veterans of the United States Armed Forces who were
disabled while serving our country. Revenues from the surcharge
on the coin will go to the Disabled Veterans’ LIFE Memorial
Foundation to help cover the costs of building the American Veterans
Disabled for Life Memorial in Washington, D.C.
To
read more on veterans affairs, click
here.
Awards
I am proud of
my comitment to issues important to enlisted personnel and military
retirees. See awards
I have been honored with for work on behalf of veterans.
SD
Veterans Bonus
The state of South Dakota is paying a veterans bonus of up to $500
to certain military personnel who were legal residents of the state
for at least six months immediately preceding entry into the Armed
Forces. This may include those who are currently serving active
duty or were honorably discharged from the Armed Forces, and who
served on active duty during specific periods defined by the state
of South Dakota. To learn more, click
here to view a press release from the SD Veterans Bonus program
within the South Dakota Department
of Veterans Affairs. Please note: the contact phone number has
changed to 605-773-7251.
Below
are useful links serving our military and veterans.
Return
to Top
|