12.12.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs Ranking Member Elizabeth Esty (D-CT) released the following statement after she joined Chairman Phil Roe, M.D. (R-TN) in hosting a full Committee hearing examining the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) implementation of the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017:
“When the bipartisan Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017
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12.10.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) released the following statement after the House of Representatives passed S. 2248, the Veterans Benefit and Transition Act of 2018:
“Today’s legislation includes over 20 provisions that will make meaningful improvements to the lives of veterans across the country, including my bill the Veterans’ Electronic Health Record Modernization Oversight Act of 2017, which will ensure Congress has the
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12.10.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) renewed his call for transparency in a letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, calling on the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to immediately provide to the Committee unredacted communications between VA officials and Mar-a-Lago members Ike Perlmutter, Bruce Moskowitz, and Marc Sherman, as well as all travel records to and from Mar-a-Lago.
Today’s letter comes in response to
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11.30.18 • Press Release
Washington, D.C. - Today, after numerous reports highlighted continued delays in GI Bill benefits payments and failures in the implementation of certain housing provisions of the Forever GI Bill, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Vice Ranking Member Mark Takano led Democratic Members in demanding answers from Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Robert Wilkie.
The Harry W. Colmery Veterans Education Assistance Act of 2017 (Forever GI Bill) made significant improvements to
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11.28.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) released the following statement after the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced sweeping changes in the processing of GI Bill benefits payments under the Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017 (Forever GI Bill). VA’s announcement comes after IT issues have caused thousands of student veterans to go months without receiving the GI Bill housing benefits they were
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10.23.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) sent the following letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie expressing concern about the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) processing delays for GI Bill tuition, fees, and housing allowances and to urge the Department to communicate immediately and accurately to beneficiaries facing financial hardship as a result of the delays about the assistance available to them. Ranking Member Walz
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10.16.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) led 45 Members of Congress in sending a letter to Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-GA) urging him to bring H.R. 299, the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2018, to a vote in committee so that the legislation can be brought to the Senate floor as soon as possible.
The Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act would finally grant presumptive Agent Orange exposure
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10.09.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN), released the following statement after he sent a letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie urging the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to comply with an August 8 request to provide the Committee any and all communications between VA officials and Ike Perlmutter, Bruce Moskowitz, and Marc Sherman as well as travel records to and from Mar-a-Lago.
The August 8 request followed news
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09.27.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) released the following statement after the full committee met in open session to discuss veteran suicide prevention, hear from experts in the veteran community, and question current Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) officials over the progress of core VA initiatives aimed at eliminating suicide among veterans.
The hearing comes one day after the VA Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention
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09.26.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) released the following statement after the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Mental Health and Suicide Prevention released its report, “National Suicide Data Report 2005-2016.”
“As a veteran as well as the original author of the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention for American Veterans Act, I believe that the VA report released today simply reiterates what many of us have known for a long
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09.25.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) released the following statement after the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Inspector General (OIG) released its report, “Review of Mental Health Care Provided Prior to a Veteran’s Suicide Minneapolis VA Health Care System Minnesota.”
“This is profoundly unacceptable,” said Ranking Member Walz. “The findings outlined in the Inspector General’s report are deeply disturbing. The finding
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09.04.18 • Press Release
(Washington D.C.) - U.S. Senators Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) and Representatives Phil Roe (TN-01) and Tim Walz (MN-01) are urging the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to begin clinical trials to better understand the potential benefits or dangers of medical cannabis use.
In a letter to VA Secretary Robert Wilkie, the members ask him to begin a large-scale study as soon as possible, so veterans using medical cannabis to treat post-traumatic stress disorder and chronic
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08.08.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN), sent the following letter to Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie requesting that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provide any and all communications between VA officials and Ike Perlmutter, Bruce Moskowitz, and Marc Sherman to Congress without delay. The letter follows news reports alleging that the three men, all members of President Trump’s private Palm Beach, Florida club Mar-a-Lago,
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07.26.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN), sent the following letter to Attorney General Jeffrey Sessions urging the Department of Justice (DOJ) to immediately investigate Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Acting Secretary Peter O’Rourke for false or misleading statements made before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs on June 26, 2018 and July 17, 2018. Ranking Member Walz was joined by Representatives Mark Takano (D-CA) and Kathleen
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07.24.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) released the following statement after the House of Representatives passed seven bipartisan veterans bills, including multiple pieces of legislation championed by Democrats:
“We owe our deepest gratitude and respect to the brave men and women who risked their lives to defend this nation,” said Ranking Member Tim Walz. “The legislation the House passed today will make meaningful improvements to the
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07.24.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Vice Ranking Member Mark Takano (D-CA) released the following statement after the full committee met in open session to assess how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has implemented the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017 since the legislation was signed into law. During the hearing, Vice Ranking Member Takano addressed several challenges facing appeals modernization, including leadership vacancies and
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07.23.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN) released the following statement after the Senate voted to confirm Robert Wilkie to be Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA):
“I firmly believe that any individual nominated by President Trump to be Secretary of Veterans Affairs will inherently work to move key VA services, initiatives, and resources into the private sector,” said Ranking Member Tim Walz. “That is why I find Mr.
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07.19.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN), released the following statement after he led a group of nine committee Democrats in sending a letter to Special Counsel Henry Kerner requesting an investigation into whether Acting Secretary of Veterans Affairs, Mr. Peter O’Rourke or his staff have violated the Hatch Act or other Title 5 prohibitions against removing, demoting, or reassigning Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees for
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07.18.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Ranking Member Tim Walz (D-MN), alongside House Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies (MCVA) Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL), released the following statement in response to a letter sent by Senate Budget Committee Chairman Mike Enzi (R-WY) and House Budget Committee Chairman Steve Womack (AR-03) to the members of the conference committee for H.R. 5895,
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07.17.18 • Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Vice Ranking Member Mark Takano (D-CA) released the following statement after the full Committee met in open session to investigate how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017 (Accountability Act) has been implemented over the past year.
The Accountability Act was a compromise bill that was intended to give VA more tools to hold bad employees accountable while maintaining
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