Veterans

The Congresswoman believes that we must honor and fulfill the promises that we have made to our military men and women. The Congresswoman has worked to ensure that veterans have access to the best quality healthcare, are provided with the educational opportunities they deserve, and have the tools they need to find employment and succeed in the 21^st Century economy.

Supporting our veterans

The Congresswoman has supported tremendous investments in our veteran community over the course of her time in Congress.  Most recently, she was supportive of the FY14 Omnibus which provided for over $73 billion in investment for military construction and veterans affairs.   

Ending the VA Backlog

Congresswoman McCarthy is committed to making sure that veterans have timely access to benefits they have earned.  In particular, the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) backlog of claims for disability compensation is unacceptable.  Over the last six months, the Administration has significantly reduced the backlog claims by over 33%, however there is significant work to be done.  

In June 2013 Congresswoman McCarthy signed a letter to President Obama requesting that he take direct action and involvement in ending the VA disability claims backlog.  Additionally, the Congresswoman supported provisions of the FY14 Omnibus that will provide new tools and resources to address the VA backlog including, but not limited to, enhancements in training, oversight and accountability. 

The Congresswoman intends on continuing her efforts to address this situation by promoting a package of legislation that seeks to bolster VA’s current efforts to modernize and foster further innovation in order to get veterans’ claims and compensation settled faster.

Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)/Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

As a member of the Congressional TBI Caucus, Congresswoman McCarthy is working to address the needs of those individuals, especially our veterans, who suffer from traumatic brain injury.  The Congresswoman has consistently written letters to Congressional appropriators asking to support the President’s proposal to fund TBI research and treatment.  Because of increased funding and attention to these issues, the VA has a new disability rating system to improve how TBI claims are evaluated and additionally they have enacted reforms that will simplify the documentation needed for to process those veterans suffering from PTSD.

The Congresswoman is a proud cosponsor of theServicemembers Mental Health Review Act,which would allow for the review and, when necessary, correct service records for over 31,000 veterans who may have been misdiagnosed with a non-service connected psychiatric disorder instead of PTSD and improperly discharged from active duty without benefits.

The Congresswoman is also a cosponsor of the Veterans Dog Training Therapy Act, a bill that creates a pilot program within the VA for assessing the effectiveness of addressing post-deployment mental health and post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms through a therapeutic dog training and handling. 

Helping Homeless Veterans

Long Island is home to over 150,000 veterans, of which hundreds are estimated to be homeless.  The Congresswoman has consistently supported measures that help our brave veterans receive the aid they need to attain affordable housing.  In this light, the Congresswoman, is a cosponsor of the Homeless Veterans Assistance Fund Act, which would allow taxpayers to earmark three dollars of their tax liability to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for the purpose of enhancing services to homeless veterans.