[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 68 (Wednesday, May 15, 2013)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3528-S3529]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
VETERANS' OUTREACH ACT OF 2013
Mr. SANDERS. Mr. President, as the chairman of the Senate Veterans'
Affairs Committee, I have pledged to improve outreach activities to
better inform our Nation's over 22 million veterans of the benefits to
which they are entitled.
Legislation I introduced last week, the Veterans' Outreach Act of
2013, would authorize the Department of Veterans Affairs to carry out a
2-year demonstration project to award grants to State and local
government programs and nonprofit organizations to improve the
coordination and collaboration of veterans' health care and benefit
services across Federal, State, and local assets. By providing State
and local government programs and nonprofit organizations the
opportunity to submit a grant proposal with stated goals and
objectives, VA would be able to better leverage the countless services
across the Nation that support veterans and their family members.
Finally and most importantly, my legislation would require recipients
to submit outcomes data back to VA in order to document a recipient's
ability to increase awareness, efficiency, and effectiveness of
Federal, State, and local outreach activities; enhance the availability
of Federal, State, and local resources for veterans; and strengthen the
overall culture of community-based support within a given community
across our great Nation. With this 2-year demonstration project, VA
will be able to examine what outreach activities work and reassess its
outreach strategy accordingly.
Last month I was in Brooklyn, NY, where I met two combat veterans
from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. One was a U.S. Marine Corps
captain and the other was a sergeant in the U.S. Army. Both were
receiving health care at VA and struggling to pay for their copays.
Similarly, both were unaware of their eligibility to receive 5 years of
free health care at VA following their most recent discharged from
Active-Duty. Most displeasing was the lack of understanding of this
very same health care benefit by senior VA officials who accompanied me
that day. If senior VA officials are unaware of such a principal health
care benefit available to combat veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan
wars, much more remains to be done inside and outside of VA to ensure
veterans of all eras are informed and understand the benefits and
services they are entitled.
I urge my colleagues to ask veterans across their State and see how
many understand all of the benefits and services available to them. For
instance, countless veterans across this Nation remain unaware that
some of them may be entitled to one-time dental care if they apply at
VA within 180 days of separation from Active Duty. Little known
benefits like this, can go a long way in placing our newest generation
of veterans on sound footing following their exit from military
service. Other veterans may be eligible for no-cost or low-cost health
care and medications if they meet eligibility requirements for VA
health care. To claim this coverage they must enroll at their local
Department of Veterans Affairs medical center. These uncertainties
surrounding VA health care eligibility will most certainly be
compounded by the additional health care options that become available
as we approach implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Veterans need
to know and understand their options.
The men and women who have sacrificed so much in defense of this
country deserve to know about the benefits and care to which they are
entitled, and it is VA's job to make sure they know. Simply knowing
about benefits in certain instances is not enough. If VA is trying to
reach rural veterans, knowing where and when a mobile vet center will
visit your community is critical. If VA is trying to reach more and
more veterans in the community, knowing when and where the local
medical center or community-based outpatient clinic will hold events
and activities can drive up the number of veterans in attendance.
Furthermore, VA needs to do more to proactively identify outreach
efforts that work locally while leveraging the countless services
supporting veterans that are made available by organizations all across
the country.
Highly able and willing organizations and agencies are already
providing
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quality social services and outreach into communities across the
Nation. Some of these organizations report a lack of coordination and
collaboration with local VA facilities. Additionally, many small
nonprofits and local organizations sometimes lack the additional
resources needed to strategically develop guidance and partnerships
with and across Federal, State, and local assets. More effective and
localized outreach will better address the community-based needs of
today's veterans and do so in a cost-efficient way.
This legislation goes beyond authorizing VA to issue grants. This
legislation would also allow VA to enter into cooperative agreements
and arrangements with various State agencies to carry out, improve, or
enhance outreach activities for veterans. Simply put, if a State is
already supporting our Nation's veterans, then this legislation would
allow VA to reinforce the bond between Federal and State resources to
ensure local veterans outreach activities are streamlined and cost-
avoidances identified.
One thing is undeniable, and that is that VA should be making every
effort to ensure veterans are aware of the benefits and services
afforded to them. I recently held a committee hearing where we heard
about some of the progress the Department has made in addressing the
important issue of outreach. We also heard from community-based
organizations that are coordinating and collaborating across Federal,
State, and local levels to leverage resources in order to provide cost-
effective programs. But what struck me the most was the steadfastness
with which each of these community-based organizations identifies
veterans and links them to the Federal, State, and local benefits and
services they are entitled.
Widely available information and a clear understanding of the
information are two basic components of effective outreach. If our
Nation's veterans are to take full advantage of the benefits and
service they have earned, effective outreach is indispensable. When our
Nation's over 22 million veterans are able to take advantage of these
benefits and services, they more often than not are placed on a
positive path toward an encouraging future.
Mr. President, we have made a solemn commitment to aid veterans after
they leave military service. We can only honor this commitment if
veterans and their families are aware of the benefits and services
available to them. This legislation would strengthen VA's outreach and
support the organizations and agencies that seek to stand shoulder to
shoulder with VA in support of our nation's heroes.
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