“The House approved a $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package Wednesday that includes $17 billion for the Department of Veterans Affairs.
The House passed the bill with vote of 220-211 after three hours of debate. Democrats erupted in applause after the vote.”
“One Democrat — Rep. Jared Golden of Maine — voted against the bill, and no Republicans voted in favor of it. The action followed passage by the Senate on Saturday, which approved the bill with a party-line vote of 49-50. President Joe Biden is expected to sign it into law Friday.”
“The package includes direct payments of up to $1,400 for most Americans, as well as rental payment assistance, an expansion of the child tax credit and funds to boost coronavirus vaccine distribution and testing…”
“The bill gives about $17 billion to the VA. Most of that — $14.5 billion — goes toward vaccine distribution, veterans’ health care, mental health care, staffing, suicide prevention, research and women’s health, as well as expanding telehealth, serving homeless veterans and stocking personal protective equipment.”
“When advocating for the measure, VA officials said the department needed more funding to treat veterans who have put off health care visits during the pandemic. More than 19 million appointments were canceled, changed or deferred in the past year, said VA Secretary Denis McDonough.”
“’As a result of deferred care … we’re going to see increased costs,’ he said. ‘The American Rescue Plan is critical to our ability to make sure we can keep up with those demands…”
“More than $270 million goes toward processing veterans’ claims for benefits. The VA has been working through a backlog of hundreds of thousands of benefits claims after the process was paused at the start of the pandemic…” Read the full article here.
Source: Congress approves $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, with $17 billion for the VA – By Nikki Wentling, March 10, 2021. Stars and Stripes.
