Barrett, Colleagues Introduce Historic Take Care of America's Veterans Act Ahead of America 250

Washington, D.C. - Congressman Tom Barrett (MI-07) today joined his colleagues on the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs committees to introduce the Take Care of America's Veterans Act (H.R. 9237), historic legislation that combines more than 60 bipartisan bills to modernize, enhance, and reform the delivery of health care and benefits at VA for veterans and their families. Committee leadership in both chambers announced a negotiated plan to pass the legislation in the coming weeks.

The bill to honor and support veterans, which comes ahead of the United States' 250th anniversary, includes eight bills introduced and led by Barrett, as well as the Major Richard Star Act, a bill Barrett co-sponsored to provide full military retirement pay to veterans who were combat-injured and forced to retire early.

"Far too often, the men and women who defended our nation face obstacles and delays to the benefits they deserve," said Barrett. "The Take Care of America's Veterans Act will implement a wide range of critical, bipartisan reforms that my colleagues and I have been working on to expand benefits and improve service for those who wore the uniform. Whether providing pay parity for wounded veterans who had to retire early, reducing health care wait times, or helping service members afford a home, this historic legislation will strengthen support for these American heroes and their families."

One of the most significant pieces of the Take Care of America's Veterans Act (H.R. 9237) is the Major Richard Star Act. Under current law, service members who are forced to retire due to combat injuries are ineligible to receive full retirement pay on top of their disability compensation; the bill would correct that disparity and provide wounded veterans with the retirement pay they deserve.

The Take Care of America's Veterans Act also incorporates the following eight bills that Congressman Barrett introduced, including six that have already passed the House of Representatives with bipartisan support:

• Sharri Briley and Eric Edmundson Veterans Benefits Expansion Act to provide the first significant benefits increase in decades for the most severely disabled veterans and Gold Star Families.
• Home Affordability for Guard and Reserve Act to expand VA home loan eligibility by allowing more Guard and Reserve members to qualify for these loans with competitive interest rates and no down payment required.
• Clear Communications for Veterans Claims Act to review the notices that the VA sends to veterans about benefit claims and determine how to make communications shorter and clearer.
• CRUISE Act to streamline payments for disabled veterans' vehicle modifications within the VA and eliminate the backlog of overdue payments.
• ASSIST Act to ensure disabled veterans have accessible transportation by covering a wider range of medically necessary vehicle adaptations.
• Delivering Digitally to Our Veterans Act to empower veterans to choose faster, more reliable communication about the benefits they earned.
• ARCA Act to enhance oversight and streamline the VA's process for acquiring IT and medical systems, logistics platforms, and large service contracts.
• Veterans Community Care Scheduling Improvement Act to upgrade the VA's scheduling platform to empower VA employees to easily book appointments at the VA and community health care providers using a single interface.

Other highlights of the bill include the Veterans ACCESS Act to expand the community care program and the Love Lives On Act to ensure veterans' surviving spouses can continue getting their benefits after they remarry, regardless of age.