Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Missouri very much. Our Nation's veterans were promised access to healthcare for their service and their sacrifice. This week we continue our work to uphold that pledge. The bill before us, the VA MISSION Act, aims to transform the Department of Veterans Affairs delivery of community healthcare. That is a welcome job. Specifically, the VA MISSION Act consolidates and improves VA community care programs so veterans have access to healthcare and services in their own communities. This is important because veterans should have access to the best healthcare and services in a timely manner, regardless of where they live. Under this legislation, a veteran and his or her doctor will decide where that veteran will receive care, taking into consideration the veteran's healthcare needs and the availability and the quality of both VA and community care. For largely rural States, like Arkansas, this makes all the sense in the world. We have two VA medical centers in the Natural State, in Little Rock and in Fayetteville, as well as facilities in neighboring States that often serve Arkansas veterans. The healthcare providers and staff at those facilities that are community-based outpatient clinics in Arkansas truly do an excellent job in caring for our veterans. But the VA medical centers are in populated areas, which, in cases where veterans need more advanced care than the CBOC can provide, it means a full-day trip for many veterans.…”