United States Senator Lisa Murkowski

Veterans

Senator Murkowski appreciates and understands that Alaska is home to more veterans per capita than any other state in the union – over 70,000 men and women who served choose to make their home in Alaska. This includes a significant number of retired service members who give the best part of their lives in the defense of the nation’s freedoms.  Yet one cannot lose sight of the fact that this tradition of service began with the First Alaskans. During World War II countless numbers of Alaska Natives volunteered to form the Alaska Territorial Guard and many continued their service after World War II in the Alaska National Guard.

The monthly “Veteran Spotlight” is just one way that Senator Murkowski tries to honor our vets – by sharing their stories every month with Alaskans, who can learn so much about our country through veterans’ sacrifice and service.

If you have a friend, family or community member who you think has a story to share, Senator Murkowski welcomes suggestions at Spotlight@Murkowski.Senate.Gov.

As an active member of both the Veterans Affairs (VA) and Defense Appropriations Subcommittees it is Senator Murkowski’s mission to ensure that the United States honors its promises to its veterans and military retirees.

When Senator Murkowski came to the Senate, one of the major challenges facing the VA was chronic underfunding in healthcare delivery, exacerbated by the fact that annual funding increases were delayed because appropriations bills were not completed before the beginning of the federal fiscal year. Working together with major veterans organizations, Congress solved this problem through advance appropriations for veterans’ healthcare. Under the legislation that Senator Murkowski cosponsored, the VA health system now receives two years of appropriations each year so it always begins a federal fiscal year with sufficient funds to carry out its responsibilities.

Putting Veterans to Work

Murkowski was a lead cosponsor in the Hiring Heroes Act of 2011, many provisions of which became law as part of the Vow To Hire Heroes Act of 2011, which combined the best thinking on addressing veterans unemployment from the Senate and the House of Representatives. This law requires the military to improve transition programs for members leaving the service. It also seeks to harmonize skill training and certification of jobs in the military with similar jobs in the civilian sector so service members can more easily transition into civilian counterpart positions.

Bringing It All Home to Alaska

Even as federal services to veterans and military retirees continue to improve, ensuring that all of Alaska’s veterans and retirees can access these programs regardless of where they live remains a major challenge and a top priority for Senator Murkowski. After years of pressure, the VA is finally beginning to respond to these concerns. In response to the Senator’s efforts – including a VA Inspector General report that she commissioned – the VA has initiated the “Alaska Care Closer to Home Program” which enables Alaska veterans to receive VA paid healthcare from community providers if the VA cannot provide that healthcare directly in Alaska.  Before “Care Closer to Home,” a significant number of Alaska veterans were directed to fly to VA facilities in Seattle and elsewhere if they wanted the VA to pay for their care. Senator Murkowski continues to monitor the VA’s implementation of “Care Closer to Home” to ensure that Alaska veterans are not needlessly told to fly to Seattle for care available in Alaska.

The VA has also made strides to address Senator Murkowski’s concern that rural Alaska’s veterans were missing out on care because they lived hundreds of miles away from the VA Outpatient Clinic in Anchorage – it was the focus of a field hearing of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs that the Senator convened in November 2007. Five years later, the VA has finally entered into agreements with components of the Alaska Native healthcare system to provide healthcare at VA expense to rural Alaska veterans. These agreements were enabled by language that Senator Murkowski authored in the annual VA funding bills authorizing these arrangements.

Customized Programs for Women Veterans

Since 2000, the number of female veterans using VA health care has more than doubled, from nearly 160,000 in fiscal year 2000 to 337,000 in fiscal year 2011, outpacing the growth of the male veteran population. However, neither VA programs nor VA culture proactively adapted to the rapid rise in women veterans. The Women Veterans Healthcare Improvement Act of 2010, which Senator Murkowski cosponsored, sent a strong message that the VA needs to pay attention to the unique challenges facing women veterans because one size does not fit all.

Enhanced Veteran Educational Benefits

Senator Murkowski also proudly cosponsored the Post 9/11 GI Bill. The Post 9/11 GI Bill marked the most significant expansion of veterans’ educational benefits since the original GI Bill came into being in 1944. The Post-9/11 GI Bill pays tuition and fees on behalf of veterans or eligible dependents directly to the school in which they are enrolled. Eligible veterans also receive a monthly housing allowance and up to $1000 annually for books and supplies. The program also allows eligible service members to transfer their benefits to their spouses and/or children.