María Elvira Salazar: “I believe that this Congress needs to recognize that caring for our veterans is a continuing cost of the war on…”

“I believe that this Congress needs to recognize that caring for our veterans is a continuing cost of the war on terrorism. My amendment adds $630 million in emergency funding so that the VA can better meet the needs of veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan, and with this financial relief the VA will also be able to provide better care to the heroes of earlier conflicts. Here is the situation. The VA projected that it would treat 110,000 Operation Iraqi and Enduring Freedom veterans this fiscal year. At the end of January, the first third of the fiscal year, the VA had already treated 74,000 veterans. At this rate, the VA will treat twice the number of veterans than projected. Our veterans need our support now. There is no better place to include funding for our veterans and military families than in the bill addressing the costs of the war. First, I have added $250 million for mental health. According to a recent Army study, as many as one in three veterans returning from combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan will experience symptoms related to mental health problems.…”