White House Ceremony Marks Enactment of Veterans
Caregiver Legislation
President Obama signed historic legislation (S. 1963)
yesterday that provides comprehensive support to caregivers
of severely disabled veterans, a central plank of DAV's
Stand Up For Veterans platform. The legislation finally reached the
President's desk after more than two years of discussion, debate and
negotiations, resulting in substantial new benefits for caregivers,
including stipends for thousands of financially strapped family
members.
New Law Also Boosts Women Veterans Health Care
Programs
Time magazine runs a story on how the new law
will boost women veterans health care programs for the nation's 1.8
million women veterans. DAV worked closely with Senator Patty Murray
(WA) and Congresswomen Stephanie Herseth Sandlin
(SD) while drafting the legislation to address many of the obstacles women
face when seeking health care at VA medical facilities. As enacted,
VA will for the first time cover the costs for up to seven days of
post-natal care for newborn infants of women veterans receiving maternity
services at VA facilities.
House Hearing Examines Claims Processing Backlog
DAV and others are testifying
today at a House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Disability and
Memorial Affairs examining how VA can address the growing backlog of claims
for veterans disability compensation.
Subcommittee Chairman John Hall (NY) is focusing the hearing on improving
quality and accuracy rather than just production to address the root causes
of the backlog.
About the Stand
Up for Veterans Initiative
Stand Up for Veterans is an initiative of the
Disabled American Veterans, an organization of 1.4 million disabled
veterans who are focused on building better lives for disabled veterans and
their families. The initiative seeks to find public policy solutions
for all veterans, particularly those returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, who have incurred
devastating injuries and disabilities, including traumatic brain injury,
post-traumatic stress disorder and other psychological wounds of war.
Please visit www.standup4vets.org
to learn more about this effort.
Stand up for veterans. They stood up for us.
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