Veterans
Rep. Chu with local veterans on Memorial Day in Monterey Park.
On the battlefield, our military pledges to leave no soldier behind. As a nation, we must make that same pledge for every veteran.
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Now that many of our service members have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan, we are faced with new challenges in providing quality health care and helping new veterans transition back to the workforce. It’s important that we care for them when they return home. We also have an ongoing obligation to older veterans to ensure they receive the services they need to avoid homelessness and receive health care. Unfortunately, the VA has been plagued by unconscionable reports of delays in claims processing and even willful destruction of claims. In some cases this has even led to veterans’ deaths. This is simply unacceptable. That’s why I am committed to improving access to health care, as well as strengthening veterans’ benefits, and expanding job training and transitional services.
My priorities for our nation's heroes include:
Protecting Veterans Benefits
Helping Student Veterans Succeed
Helping Veterans Transition Back to Work
Ending Veteran Homelessness
From tuition to pensions, and everything in between, veterans’ benefits are indispensable lifelines for our nation’s heroes. These benefits provide access to a wide variety of resources to help veterans and their families. That is why I support following efforts to protect and strengthen veterans’ benefits.
I am also committed to ensuring that veterans in the San Gabriel Valley get the health care they have so rightfully earned. Any delay of treatment, whether through claims backlogs or waiting lists, is unacceptable. We must make sure that the Veterans Administration hospital in every city ensures timely care, not only for the visible wounds, but for the invisible wounds.
That’s why I am fighting to protect TRICARE and other vital health and pension benefits that veterans rely on. I am fighting for system updates that will allow the VA to reduce its claims backlog, and accountability for timely services. I was among the Members of Congress who called for investigations into the VA claims backlog, and voted for legislation to overhaul the VA. This was signed into law in August 2014, providing funds for veterans to seek medical care outside of the VA if necessary, and increasing accountability by granting the Secretary new powers to fire incompetent managers.
I am also committed to making sure San Gabriel Valley veterans have care options right here, not miles away across the county. There is no VA Health Clinic in the San Gabriel Valley, and this is a gaping hole I intend to see filled. That is why I am working closely with the West Los Angeles Veterans Health Administration and Pasadena City College to bring a new clinic to the area. And we are making progress! In fact, members from the different Veterans Service Organizations and other community leaders have come together and joined the effort so that we can accomplish this goal and meet the needs of our local veterans as soon as possible.
We make a commitment that on the battlefield to leave no one behind. We must also make sure we leave no veteran behind.
Introducing Legislation to Help Student Veterans Succeed
I introduced the Veterans Education Counseling Act (H.R. 3399) to help students achieve academic success and go on to good civilian jobs.
All veterans using GI Bill benefits are already entitled to educational counseling through the VA. But there is little information available about this service or how to apply. Instead, the VA’s Vocational Rehabilitation program is overly emphasized, and there is no clear difference. But there should be, because not all veterans seeking to use their GI Bill benefits need to be rehabilitated; they just want to go to school and get their degree or professional certification and they need basic guidance and information.
The Veterans Education Counseling Act requires the VA to provide information to veterans letting them know about the counseling they are entitled to – and the difference between counseling programs – BEFORE they apply for the GI Bill. It also provide information on how to apply, and allows them to apply online.
Transition from military to civilian life is already difficult enough. This bill makes small but meaningful changes to make it a little easier for our nation’s heroes, and continues the effort to make veterans benefits more clear and transparent. This is a critical step in ensuring our veterans’ academic success.
Helping Veterans Transition Back to Work
Some veterans struggle to find a job that meets their skills after returning home from war. Unfortunately, the current economic climate has compounded the situation and current VA programs are insufficient to help veterans get through these difficult times.
That’s why I voted for key veterans’ jobs provisions included in President Obama’s American Jobs Act, which was signed into law in 2011. It provides tax credits for businesses that hire unemployed veterans or veterans with service-connected disabilities. It also takes steps to provide all service members the training and skills they need to find a job. This includes stronger resume writing workshops and career counseling, expanded education and training opportunities for older veterans, up to 1-year of additional Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Benefits for disabled veterans, and stronger workplace protections for members of the National Guard and Reserve. I continue to support efforts like these as they make their way through Congress to fill additional gaps in veterans’ opportunities and access to employment.
I also consistently support bills – like the Veterans Skills to Jobs Act signed into law in 2012 – to enhance veterans’ job training resources, and let veterans translate military training and skills into civilian credentials and licenses. It is vital that we recognize any relevant training a veteran received while serving in the Armed Forces if he or she applies for any federal license requiring special training or credentials. This recognizes the value of our veterans’ skills in the civilian economy. And we must encourage the private sector to do the same. Our veterans have impressive, unparalleled training be it as medics, mechanics, truck drivers, electricians, and many other highly skilled professions.
Ending Veteran Homelessness
In these challenging economic times, returning veterans are experiencing unemployment rates in the double digits. Veterans who are unable to secure employment often end up becoming homeless. I support legislation and programs that seek to reduce homelessness among our veterans by providing access to housing, employment assistance, reintegration services, and more.
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