Veterans

After years of work, Larsen announces the permanent location of Northwest Washington's new outpatient clinic for veterans (July 2008).

The Second Congressional District is home to over 75,000 veterans including many veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. One of my most important responsibilities as a member of Congress is to ensure that the men and women who served our country get the resources and health care they need and deserve. Click here for information about help and resources available for veterans and military families.

Bringing Veterans Services Closer to Veterans

Northwest Washington’s veterans have traveled too far, for too long, to get the health care they need and deserve. Many veterans in our district have had to travel up to 100 miles each way to receive medical care at the Seattle VA Medical Center. That’s why I have worked to bring veterans health care closer to veterans. Since I was first elected to Congress, I have worked with many of you to bring a Community Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) to our area, and I am thrilled that we have finally secured a Northwest Washington CBOC for our veterans.

The Northwest Washington Community Based Outpatient Clinic will be located near Skagit Valley Hospital in Mount Vernon. This permanent facility will bring veterans health care closer to veterans in Northwest Washington. According to VA estimates, the permanent clinic could eventually serve more than 6,500 veterans. The VA plans to open the permanent clinic in late spring or early summer of 2009, and until then, veterans can get primary and mental health services closer to home at a temporary clinic in Sedro-Woolley.

I applaud the veterans of the Second Congressional District who have worked so hard to bring a new veterans’ clinic to Northwest Washington.

The VA has also opened a Vet Center in Everett. VA Vet Centers provide readjustment counseling and outreach services to combat veterans and their families. Northwest Washington is already home to one Vet Center in Bellingham. The Everett Vet Center will bring needed services closer to home.

Delivering the Best Possible Care

The 110th Congress passed the largest increase in VA funding in 77 years - the largest single increase in the history of the Veterans Administration. This historic bill gives the VA resources they need to hire more qualified doctors and nurses, reduce waiting times for medical appointments and continue providing essential services to veterans across the country, including many of the veterans who call Northwest Washington home.

This funding would help ensure that veterans suffering from traumatic brain injury, post traumatic stress disorder, mental health issues and lost limbs get the best possible care. It also increases the VA's maintenance and repair budget to prevent the conditions uncovered at Walter Reed and other medical facilities from occurring in the VA system.

Preserving Access to Care for Military Retirees and Families

I have worked to keep doctors’ offices open for service members, retirees and military families who depend on TRICARE to get the care they need. I have consistently voted against proposed TRICARE fee increases as well as proposed payment cuts for physicians serving patients on TRICARE. In 2008, I helped secure a federal rule change to increase TRICARE payments for Whidbey General Hospital and other critical access hospitals across the country. This rule change will help ensure that service members, military families and veterans (insert 'retirees' in place of veterans) continue to have access to needed medical care.

A New GI Bill for the 21st Century

Congress has passed a new GI bill to restore full, four-year college scholarships for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, on par with the educational benefits available for veterans after World War II. For active-duty veterans and those who served in the Guard and Reserve, this legislation covers up to the cost of the most expensive in-state public school and makes unused education benefits transferable to spouses and children.

I am pleased that this legislation also gives veterans more time to use their GI Bill education benefits before they expire, extending the time limit for active duty veterans from 10 to 15 years.

For a number of years, I have pushed to entirely remove the time limits on GI Bill education benefits so veterans can access educational and vocational training when the time is right for them. Under current law, the vast majority of service members contribute to the GI Bill program, but only around half take advantage of their education benefits before they expire. The GI Bill for Life, which I introduced with U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), would allow veterans to use their education benefits at any time after their service. The debt we owe our nation’s veterans doesn’t come with an expiration date, and neither should their GI Bill benefits.

The GI Bill for the 21st Century is a great step forward for our veterans. I will keep working to remove the time limit on education benefits entirely so veterans can get the education and training they need at any time. Helping more veterans go to college and vocational school makes sense for veterans, military families and our 21st century economy.

Helping Veterans Transition to Civilian Life

The federal government must meet the health care needs of our military men and women, including those returning from combat in Iraq and Afghanistan. Too often, service members wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan face complicated paperwork and bureaucracy to get the healthcare and benefits they need. Congress has enacted the Wounded Warriors Assistance Act to help service members cut through red tape to obtain the care they need and the benefits they have earned.

This legislation, which was initiated in response to the unacceptable problems uncovered at Walter Reed and other medical facilities, requires the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to work together to improve healthcare for wounded warriors and establish a Wounded Warriors Resource Center to help injured service members and their families get the full range of benefits and support services they deserve. The changes contained the Wounded Warrior Assistance Act are already making a difference in the lives in our wounded service members, and I will continue to push the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs to fully implement this important legislation.

We cannot repeat the flawed policies that shortchanged service members returning from the Vietnam War. Because the onset of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) may be delayed, I supported legislation that passed the House to extend VA health insurance from 2 years to 5 years after discharge for service members who served in combat. I also voted for legislation to ensure proper screening and appropriate treatment for Traumatic Brain Injury, a serious injury that is particularly widespread among veterans returning from the war in Iraq.

Fixing Concurrent Receipt

Current policy penalizes disabled military retirees who must give up one dollar of their pension for every dollar of disability pay they receive. I have consistently supported legislation to fix this injustice since I first came to Congress in 2001. As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I have worked with my colleagues to fight for full funding for disabled veterans and survivors in the annual Defense Authorization bill.

Recent News

Date	Headline
11/10/2008	Larsen Veterans Day Statement
07/02/2008	Murray, Larsen Announce Permanent Site for Northwest Washington Veterans’ Clinic
05/25/2008	GI Bill for Life Deserves National Support
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