05.08.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA - Today, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) made the following statement after the announcement that April's veteran unemployment numbers rose to nearly twelve percent.
"The COVID-19 crisis has seriously impacted our country's economy and laid bare that our veterans are not immune to this financial instability. As unemployment numbers have skyrocketed nationwide, veterans have been hit hard as well, and this month veteran unemployment soared
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05.08.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA -This week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) spoke with John Rowan, the Vietnam Veterans of America (VVA) National President, to discuss how their members are adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic and social distancing practices-- especially in light of Vietnam veterans being at increased risk of contracting the novel coronavirus as a result of many veterans having pre-existing conditions. See the full conversation with the Vietnam Veterans of
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05.07.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA - Last week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) spoke with Randy Reese, Executive Director of the Disabled American Veterans (DAV), to discuss how their members are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and concerns about caregiver benefits and VA staffing. See the full conversation with the Disabled American Veterans here.
Watch the full conversation here.
"Thankfully I'm hearing that VA has been doing outreach on mental health, and I am
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05.06.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA - Last week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) spoke with Carl Blake, Paralyzed Veterans of America's (PVA) Executive Director, to discuss concerns regarding access to caregivers and VA's tightened restrictions for routine care amid the COVID-19 pandemic. See the full conversation with the Paralyzed Veterans of America here.
Watch the full conversation here.
"I want to thank your membership for the leadership they've shown during the
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05.05.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA - Last week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) spoke with Vincent "B.J." Lawrence, the Veterans of Foreign Wars' (VFW) Executive Director, to discuss how their members are adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic and concerns regarding this crisis' economic impact on veterans and their families. See the full conversation with the Veterans of Foreign Wars here.
Watch the full conversation here.
"The VFW's been a strong partner in anticipating the
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05.04.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA - Last week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) spoke with Chanin Nuntavong, the American Legion's Executive Director, to discuss how their members are adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic and concerns regarding VA staffing and access to care as the country reopens. See the full conversation with the American Legion here.
Watch the full conversation here.
"Let me just say Chanin--I appreciate the partnership that we have with the American
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05.01.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D- Calif.), Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs Ranking Member Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Rep. Mike Levin (D-Calif.), Chair of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, and Rep. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.), Chair of the House Armed Services Committee Military Personnel Subcommittee, led a letter to Department of Defense (DoD) Secretary Mark Esper regarding the unfair financial
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04.29.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Last night, President Trump signed HR. 6322, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Takano and Ranking Member Roe's bipartisan Student Veteran Coronavirus Response Act of 2020 (H.R. 6322) into law. The legislation, which passed through the House in March with more than 51 cosponsors and wide VSO support, will help minimize the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on student veterans as schools and universities take proactive measures to mitigate the spread of the
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04.28.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA - Today, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (CA-41) delivered opening remarks in the first live, public, and entirely virtual, bipartisan congressional forum entitled "Coronavirus Pandemic Response: The Impact of Economic and Healthcare Services on Homeless Veterans in America" featuring Kathryn Monet, Chief Executive Officer at the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. A Link To The Video of Chairman Takano's historic opening statement and remarks as
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04.27.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, during Sexual Assault Awareness Month, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) sent a bipartisan letter with Ranking Member Dr. Phil Roe (R-Tenn.) to the Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie highlighting the need for increased support for survivors of military sexual trauma (MST)-- especially as the COVID-19 pandemic and social-distancing may exacerbate stressors for these veterans. Following a joint hearing of the House
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04.24.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA - This week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) spoke with Student Veterans of America's President Jared Lyon to discuss how student veterans are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. With schools rightly taking proactive measures to mitigate the spread of coronavirus, many veterans are left uncertain about their GI Bill benefits, housing, and work study programs. Chairman Takano's legislation, the Student Veteran Coronavirus Response Act of 2020,
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04.22.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) called on Department of Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Charles Rettig to automatically provide the additional CARES Act economic impact payments for veterans with children living at home in a letter sent Wednesday. Following a push from Chairman Takano pressing for automatic payments of stimulus
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04.20.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) sent a bipartisan letter with Ranking Member Dr. Phil Roe (R-Tenn.) to Secretary Wilkie calling on VA to postpone their planned elimination of the 48-hour review period in the disability claims process and work with Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs) to consider alternatives to a complete elimination of this review. Six major VSOs already expressed their concern over the decision in a letter to
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04.17.20 • Press Release
RIVERSIDE, CA. - Today, following calls from Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and Richard Neal (D-Mass.), Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, VA, the Treasury Department, and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced plans to automatically identify and distribute COVID-19 stimulus checks to our most vulnerable veterans. Today's decision ensures these individuals-- including homeless veterans and those relying primarily on VA benefits, who
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04.16.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) led a letter sent to White House Coronavirus Task Force Chair Vice President Pence and Office of Management and Budget Acting Director Vought urging the administration to break the "logjam" and allow VA to cooperate with Congress and provide key documents essential to empowering lawmakers with the ability to aid America's veterans.
Despite dozens of requests for information, the Committee has not
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04.15.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - This week, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) spoke with Dr. Lynn Bufka, the Associate Executive Director of Practice Research and Policy at the American Psychological Association, to learn how veterans can mentally and physically take care of themselves and support their communities and at-risk veterans throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. As the spread and uncertainty of the pandemic has increased stress and anxiety for many veterans, Dr.
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04.14.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, following reporting in CNBC that as many as 2 million veterans could miss out on the federal stimulus payments, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-Calif.) strengthened his call for U.S. Department of Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Charles Rettig to automatically distribute COVID-19 stimulus checks to our most vulnerable veterans- including homeless veterans and those relying primarily on VA
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04.13.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (CA-41) announced the postponement of all previously scheduled Committee hearings through May 1st, 2020 to mitigate the spread of COVID-19:
"Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs has relentlessly worked to advocate for veterans and fulfill our oversight of VA's response to this crisis. However, given the continued public health risk posed by COVID-19, the Committee will
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04.08.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D- Calif.) and Subcommittee on Technology Modernization Chair Susie Lee (D-Nev.) released the following statement regarding VA's delay of the Electronic Health Record Modernization (EHRM) project. Last Friday, the Department of Veterans Affairs announced the delay due to the necessary reallocation of staff to combat the COVID-19 pandemic:
"As we've said many times before, if VA is not ready, the
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04.03.20 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Leaders from the House Veterans' Affairs and Ways and Means Committees today called on U.S. Department of Treasury (Treasury) Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner Charles Rettig to automatically provide the economic impact payments authorized by the CARES Act to people who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) and to individuals who receive Veterans Affairs (VA) compensation and pensions. Veterans' Affairs Chairman Mark Takano (D-CA)
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