Rosen Co-leads Bipartisan Bill to Better Support Families of Fallen Servicemembers

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Jacky Rosen (D-NV) joined Senator Tim Sheehy (R-MT) in leading a bipartisan bill to better support the families of fallen servicemembers. The bipartisan Honor Gold Star Families Act would double the death gratuity payment given to families of fallen servicemembers from $100,000 to $200,000, establish an annual adjustment to match the cost of living and inflation, and require the Department of Defense to publish the adjusted benefit amount annually in the Federal Register. The legislation will apply retroactively to servicemembers who lost their lives on or after January 1, 2026 - prior to the beginning of Operation Epic Fury. Congress created the military death gratuity in 1908 to provide immediate financial assistance to surviving family members following the death of a servicemember. However, the gratuity amount has gone unchanged for two decades, without accounting for inflation or rising costs.

"Our servicemembers and their families sacrifice so much to protect our freedom. The least we can do is support their families after they make the ultimate sacrifice, when they need us most," said Senator Jacky Rosen. "This bipartisan bill will correct a failure to properly support Gold Star families by increasing the death gratuity payment and ensuring that it remains tied to inflation. No family of a fallen servicemember should ever have to go through the stress of not being able to make ends meet, which is why I will continue fighting across the aisle to support our servicemembers and their families."

Senator Rosen has continuously fought to ensure that servicemembers, veterans, and their families have access to all the benefits and federal resources that they have earned. Recently, she introduced the bipartisan Sergeant Dave Crete FORGOTTEN Veterans Act, which would require the Department of Defense to join the Department of Energy in identifying all servicemembers and veterans who worked at locations where radiation and toxic exposure occurred and provide them with the same presumption of exposure, allowing such veterans to better access the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) healthcare and benefits they have earned. Last year, she also introduced a bipartisan bill that would allow medical providers to more easily practice for both the Dept. of Defense and the VA - addressing the medical shortage and ensuring care for veterans and servicemembers. Last Congress, Senator Rosen helped pass the Love Lives On Act in the Senate, which would have allowed surviving Gold Star spouses to retain their benefits upon remarrying before the age of 55.

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