[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 22, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S2801]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            VA MISSION BILL

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, today the Senate will begin 
considering the VA MISSION Act. It marks a major step forward for the 
VA system and the millions of heroes who rely on it for services.
  The bipartisan reform legislation before us builds on the earlier 
progress of the Veterans Choice Act of 2014 and reaffirms a clear 
message: Delays at the VA cannot stand between veterans and the medical 
care they need. The shortcomings of a Federal bureaucracy do not free 
our Nation from its promises to our All-Volunteer Armed Forces. 
Veterans deserve prompt, thorough care, period.
  In the few short years since the creation of VA Choice, the program 
has seen important success. More than 2 million veterans have taken the 
opportunity to see private providers when the VA system couldn't meet 
their needs. In Kentucky, it helped more than 23,000 veterans in 2017 
alone.
  Thanks to the leadership of Chairman Isakson, this new legislation 
builds on this significant progress, continues it, and improves it in 
ways that will help veterans even more.
  The VA MISSION Act will clear the path for veterans to receive 
greater healthcare choices. It will eliminate the wait time and 
distance requirements that keep veterans out of the driver's seat and 
empower them, in consultation with their respective physicians, to take 
charge of their own care. It will help prioritize and speed 
improvements to existing VA facilities. It will direct $5.2 billion to 
fund the Veterans Choice Program, and it will establish more 
streamlined delivery of care through the veterans community care 
program.
  The bill before us passed the House by an overwhelming bipartisan 
margin. It carries the support of the President and 38 veterans 
advocacy organizations. It is based on a simple idea: Promises made to 
those who sacrifice for our freedoms must be promises kept. Let's make 
good on these promises this week.

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