Veterans

Virginia is as connected to the military as any state in the country, and our map is rich with military history, from Yorktown, to Appomattox, to the Pentagon. With nearly 800,000 veterans residing in the Commonwealth, Virginia has one of the highest state populations of veterans in America. We have a responsibility to support our men and women in uniform and our commitment continues when they return home. 

I pledge to ensure our veterans receive the best quality health care, benefits, and resources they earned in an expeditious manner. When Congress approved a budget earlier this year, I fought to replace the cost of living adjustment (COLA) reduction for servicemembers and sponsored the Military Retirement Pay Restoration Act. Servicemembers’ opinions must be considered when we debate changes to pay and benefits, which is why I introduced legislation with Republican Senator John Cornyn that called for the Military Compensation and Retirement Modernization Commission to survey servicemembers on their compensation preferences before making recommendations to Congress. The commission announced in June 2014 that it would do just that.

I am extremely concerned about troubling allegations of misconduct at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and the ongoing claims backlog. Our veterans deserve timely access to quality health care and the VA must restore their trust. After recent discouraging revelations of issues at the VA- including data released that revealed unacceptable wait times at VA medical facilities in Virginia - I joined a bipartisan group of Senators to introduce  the The Veterans’ Access to Care through Choice, Accountability and Transparency Act of 2014, legislation to improve veterans’ access to health care and address serious problems facing theVA. The bill will allow veterans to see private doctors outside the VA system if they experience long wait times or live more than 40 miles from a VA facility for a two year period, provide the VA Secretary authority to immediately dismiss poorly performing administrators and employees who manipulated wait-time data, and help the VA swiftly hire staff to decrease the scheduling backlog.

I also took action to better understand the current situation facing Virginia veterans by requesting further information on all VA Medical Centers in Virginia as well as those in bordering states that often serve veterans from the Commonwealth. Along with Senator Mark Warner, I requested information on each facility’s current backlog, staff training needs, outreach to Virginia veterans currently awaiting care, and the role of private providers in veterans care. By increasing transparency and accountability, we can begin to address the serious issues plaguing the VA and ensure veterans receive the care they have earned.

One of my top priorities is to ensure that we ease the transition for our military members as they enter the civilian workforce. I was proud that important provisions of my first Senate bill, the Troop Talent Act of 2013, which improves and streamlines the credentialing process by aligning skills acquired in the military with civilian certifications or licenses required for post-service employment, were signed into law as part of the Fiscal Year 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). In November 2013, I introduced a companion bill to the Troop Talent Act, the Servicemember Education Reform and Vocational Enhancement (SERVE) Act, to improve the quality of educational programs for servicemembers and veterans.

While some servicemembers transition out of the military and decide to pursue a degree at a college or university, countless others are ready to immediately enter the workforce with the skills they obtained through military training. That’s why I introduced the Credentialing Improvement for Troop Talent (CREDIT) Act of 2014 to help servicemembers acquire credentials that would ease their transition into the civilian workforce. The CREDIT Act will provide servicemembers with the resources they need to obtain civilian credentials while on active duty, easing their entry into the civilian workforce and improving their chances of getting quickly hired by a private sector employer.

In June 2014, I was proud to introduce a resolution to recognize Veterans Day, November 11, 2014, as a special “Welcome Home” commemoration for all who have served in the military since September 2001. The bipartisan resolution, which has received endorsements from the American Legion, Vietnam Veterans of America, and Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), will encourage American communities to plan activities for Veterans Day 2014 to honor all post-9/11 veterans, as well as those who continue to serve in Afghanistan in a training and assistance role, and promote awareness of their contributions to our nation.