Political Quotes

“Mr. President. as many of my colleagues know. the transition from military to civilian life can be very difficult. To address these kinds of challenges. Vet Centers were created in the wake of the Vietnam War to provide critical services for veterans. service members. and their families in community-based settings separate from other Veterans Health Administration facilities. Today. there is a need to enhance these Centers to continue to realize that original vision-- which is why I am reintroducing the Vet Center Improvement Act. This legislation is the product of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation that Senator Tester and I requested into allegations that changes to performance metrics at Vet Centers may have negatively impacted quality of care as well as additional concerns that we had about their staffing practices. The GAO report concluded that recent changes ``have the potential to negatively affect care and create undue burden and stress on counselors providing that care at some Vet Centers.'' This report included recommendations to improve care, transparency. and hiring and staffing methods that are the foundation for our legislation.…”