04.07.14 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
President
Obama
signed
into
law
today
bipartisan
legislation
that
will
address
many
of
the
immediate
systemic
problems
within
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs.
The
bill,
the
Veterans'
Access
to
Care
through
Choice,
Accountability,
and
Transparency
Act
of
2014,
takes
steps
to
ensure
veterans
receive
care
in
a
timely
fashion,
and
also
strengthens
accountability
and
transparency
within
the
Department.
U.S.
Rep.
Mike
Michaud
(D-ME),
Ranking
Member
on
the
House
… Read More
01.28.14 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
explored
veteran
recruiting
and
retention
initiatives
of
the
private
sector.
Wal-Mart,
Microsoft
Corporation,
and
JPMorgan
Chase
were
among
those
testifying
at
today's
hearing.
"Any
employer
should
be
proud
to
have
an
employee
with
the
resiliency,
leadership
and
collaboration
skills
that
are
fundamental
to
all
our
service
men
and
women.
However,
far
too
often
these
experiences
are
not
readily
translated
to
match
the
needs
of
… Read More
11.20.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
After
approving
a
bill
authorizing
major
medical
facility
leases
for
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA),
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
held
a
hearing
that
examined
the
VA's
major
construction
program.
Multiple
internal
and
external
reviews,
including
committee
hearings,
have
found
serious
deficiencies
in
the
management
of
the
VA's
construction
program,
leading
to
significant
cost
increases
and
substantial
delays
in
the
design
and
construction
of
medical
center
… Read More
11.12.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
Representative
Mike
Michaud,
Ranking
Member
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee,
praised
House
passage
of
S.
893,
the
Veterans'
Compensation
Cost-of-Living
Adjustment
(COLA)
Act
of
2013,
which
provides
veterans
a
projected
1.5
percent
COLA
beginning
in
January.
"Without
this
annual
COLA
increase,
veterans,
their
families,
and
survivors
would
see
the
value
of
their
hard-earned
benefits
slowly
erode.
Many
of
the
millions
of
veterans
and
survivors
who
receive
… Read More
10.30.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Rep.
Dina
Titus
(NV-01),
the
Ranking
Member
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Subcommittee
on
Disability
Assistance
and
Memorial
Affairs,
led
a
hearing
today
that
examined
the
current
state
of
national
veterans'
cemeteries.
Titus
joined
other
western
members
of
Congress
in
raising
concerns
over
a
lack
of
access
to
national
cemeteries,
particularly
in
western
states.
The
National
Cemetery
Administration
(NCA)
has
grown
dramatically
since
its
creation
in
1862
when
14
… Read More
10.30.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Representative
Mike
Michaud
joined
the
bipartisan
leadership
of
the
House
and
Senate
Veterans'
Affairs
Committees
on
Capitol
Hill
today
to
call
for
a
vote
on
H.R.
813,
a
bill
Michaud
and
Chairman
Jeff
Miller
(R-FL)
introduced
to
provide
advanced
funding
to
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA).
The
VA
currently
receives
its
health
care
budget
a
year
in
advance,
and
Michaud
and
Miller's
bill
would
ensure
that
the
remaining
VA
budget
is
treated
the
same
way.
The
bill
… Read More
10.28.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
House
of
Representatives
passed
bipartisan
legislation
(H.R.
2189)
designed
to
help
the
Department
of
Veterans'
Affairs
(VA)
accomplish
its
goal
of
eliminating
its
claims
backlog
by
2015.
The
legislation
incorporates
provisions
from
a
number
of
bills
that
were
announced
by
Democrats
on
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
earlier
this
year
as
part
of
a
10
bill
legislative
package
to
address
the
backlog.
"There
is
no
easy
quick
fix
to
the
claims
backlog.
While
… Read More
10.09.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
held
a
hearing
that
examined
the
impacts
of
a
federal
government
shutdown
on
benefits
and
services
provided
by
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA).
VA
Secretary
Eric
Shinseki,
who
was
the
only
witness
at
the
hearing,
provided
testimony
detailing
the
latest
impacts
of
the
shutdown
on
the
VA
and
veterans.
His
testimony
can
be
found
here.
"This
shutdown
is
unacceptable
and
must
end.
Washington's
brinksmanship
cannot
be
… Read More
10.08.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
Rep.
Mike
Michaud
(D-ME),
Ranking
Member
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee,
reacted
to
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
announcement
that
over
7,000
Veterans
Benefits
Administration
(VBA)
employees
will
be
put
into
furlough
status
and
that
regional
VBA
offices
will
be
closed.
In
addition,
2,754
Office
of
Information
Technology
employees
will
also
be
furloughed
due
to
the
exhaustion
of
FY
2013
carry
over
funding.
Despite
these
furloughs,
claims
… Read More
10.01.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
Rep.
Dina
Titus
(NV-01),
Ranking
Member
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Subcommittee
on
Disability
Assistance
and
Memorial
Affairs,
co-hosted
a
roundtable
on
the
VA
appeals
process
with
Rep.
Jon
Runyan
(NJ-03),
the
subcommittee's
chairman.
The
roundtable
attendees
included
representatives
from
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA),
Board
of
Veterans'
Appeals,
the
courts,
and
subject
matter
experts.
Titus
amended
legislation
that
is
now
pending
in
the
House
(HR
… Read More
10.01.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
Representative
Mike
Michaud
(ME-02),
Ranking
Member
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee,
reacted
to
the
federal
government
shutdown's
impact
on
veterans
and
warned
his
colleagues
about
the
future
impacts
of
sequestration
on
the
administrative
expenses
of
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA).
"This
is
a
sad
day
for
America,"
said
Michaud.
"While
some
critical
services
are
spared,
the
government
shutdown
will
have
a
direct
impact
on
many
veterans.
I'm
… Read More
09.11.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
House
Committee
on
Veterans'
Affairs'
Subcommittee
on
Disability
Assistance
&
Memorial
Affairs
held
a
hearing
today
on
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs'
(VA)
implementation
of
its
Fully
Developed
Claims
process,
which
is
an
optional
new
program
that
allows
veterans
to
receive
claims
decisions
faster.
Claims
are
considered
to
be
"fully
developed"
when
veterans
submit
all
available
supporting
evidence
to
VA
at
the
time
they
first
file
a
formal
claim
and
… Read More
08.01.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
–
Today,
the
House
Veterans’
Affairs
Committee
voted
to
approve
seven
omnibus
bills,
which
incorporate
thirty-four
pieces
of
legislation
addressing
a
number
of
issues,
including
the
disability
claims
backlog,
foreclosure
protections
for
veterans,
research
and
treatment
of
tinnitus,
advanced
appropriations,
and
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
planning
and
budgeting.
“This
markup
represented
collaboration
between
the
majority
and
minority,
and
… Read More
07.19.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
Subcommittee
on
Health
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
held
a
hearing
focused
on
examining
the
care
and
treatment
available
to
survivors
of
military
sexual
trauma
(MST).
The
subcommittee
also
examined
the
coordination
of
care
and
services
offered
to
victims
of
MST
through
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
and
the
Department
of
Defense
(DOD).
"Many
who
have
suffered
through
an
ordeal
such
as
sexual
assault
often
times
are
reluctant
to
discuss
… Read More
07.17.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
Rep.
Mike
Michaud
(Maine-02),
Ranking
Member
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee,
announced
the
introduction
of
the
"Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
Budget
Planning
Reform
Act
of
2013,"
a
bill
he
wrote
to
require
the
VA
to
institute
a
forward-looking
strategy
with
goals
and
objectives,
and
a
five-year
program
with
expected
outcomes,
milestones
and
resources.
The
bill
also
designates
a
Chief
Strategy
Officer
to
ensure
that
the
planning
and
programming
phases
of
… Read More
06.27.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
House
Committee
on
Veterans'
Affairs
held
a
hearing
on
the
capital
investment
options
available
to
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs
(VA)
in
light
of
changes
made
by
the
Congressional
Budget
Office
(CBO)
on
how
the
cost
of
major
medical
facility
leases
are
scored.
Due
to
COB's
scoring
changes,
the
full
costs
of
certain
leases
are
now
required
to
be
accounted
for
up
front.
"The
implications
of
CBO's
scoring
of
VA
medical
facility
lease
authorizations
are
… Read More
06.18.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Subcommittee
on
Disability
Assistance
and
Memorial
Affairs
held
a
hearing
examining
the
growing
backlog
of
appeals
pending
with
the
Department
of
Veterans'
Affairs
(VA).
In
recent
years,
VA
regional
offices
have
shifted
resources
away
from
appeals
and
towards
claims,
which
has
led
to
lengthy
appeals
timeframes.
The
subcommittee
is
concerned
that
a
large
increase
in
the
adjudication
of
claims,
as
assumed
by
VA's
efforts
to
eliminate
the
… Read More
06.04.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
U.S.
House
of
Representatives
passed
H.R.
671,
the
Ruth
Moore
Act,
by
a
voice
vote.Introduced
by
Rep.
Chellie
Pingree
(ME-01),
the
Ruth
Moore
Act
aims
to
spur
reform
of
the
evidentiary
standards
for
survivors
of
military
sexual
trauma
(MST)
who
file
claims
for
mental
health
conditions
with
the
Department
of
Veterans
Affairs.
The
ultimate
goal
of
the
bill
is
to
make
it
easier
for
veteran
sexual-assault
victims
to
receive
service-connected
benefits
and
treatment
… Read More
06.04.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
the
Subcommittee
on
Oversight
and
Investigations
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee
held
a
hearing
that
examined
the
security
of
veterans'
private
information.
"Veterans
need
to
know
the
information
they
submit
to
VA
will
not
be
compromised
under
any
circumstances,"
said
Rep.
Ann
Kirkpatrick
(Arizona-01),
the
subcommittee's
ranking
member.
"Whether
it's
reducing
the
claims
backlog,
system
integration
with
the
Defense
Department
on
records,
or
safeguarding
… Read More
06.03.13 •
Press Release
Washington,
D.C.
-
Today,
Representative
Mike
Michaud,
Ranking
Member
of
the
House
Veterans'
Affairs
Committee,
issued
the
following
statement
on
the
passing
of
Senator
Frank
Lautenberg
of
New
Jersey:
"Senator
Lautenberg
committed
much
of
his
life
to
serving
this
country.
His
service
in
World
War
II
and
his
subsequent
work
in
the
United
States
Senate
speaks
not
only
to
his
commitment
to
our
country's
future,
but
also
to
the
enduring
contributions
that
he
and
all
of
our
veterans
have
made,
… Read More
