I think you said it was a 5 percent increase, but you also said that the increase of women veterans has doubled.

Thank you for accepting I think many requests from our colleagues and our veterans service organizations and veterans nationwide to hold this hearing to discuss the improvement and the potential expansion of the VA Caregiver Program.

I would really like it if you could give us, you know, a firmer timeline.

Ultimately, I am confident that the data will show us that the VA and the taxpayers will save money in the long run by expanding the Caregiver Program.

I think everyone in this room can agree that the Caregiver Program has its flaws, but it is not an excuse to abort the mission, to give up on getting it right, or to abandon the veterans whose welfare depends on the Caregiver Program.

The key, though, is that veterans pre or post have the choice. And I think in most instances the veteran will choose in-home care.

Honorable Julia Brownley, Member

What is a more fundamental element of veterans' choice than the choice to receive quality care at home from the people they trust the most?

I am talking about the issues that need to be addressed, that that is going to cost some money, whether it is IT, whether it is additional training--

I appreciate you making it very clear in your statement that all veterans from every era, pre- and post-9/11, should receive caregiver services, if they need it.

Between 2009 and 2016, veteran homelessness was reduced by 47 percent.

But I want to make sure that in a county like Ventura County that they can utilize their vouchers, because the need is there, before they would give up those vouchers to another area.