Submitted written testimony outlines support for helping veterans land jobs in trucking industry, increase financial benefits for catastrophically disabled veterans and more.
The American Legion is submitting three Statements for the Record (SFRs) this week.
First up was an SFR for the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, submitted Dec. 2 by Steven Betsch, an American Legion policy associate in the Veterans Employment and Education Division. The topic of the hearing was “Strengthening the Workforce of Veterans in America.”
The SFR (download statement here) offered American Legion support on a number of critical issues including:
• Proposed changes to the TAPS program.
• Legislation to help veterans land jobs in the trucking industry, which is called for in H.R. 2954, the Veterans’ Transition to Trucking Act of 2025.
• Strengthening career opportunities for veterans leaving military service as outlined in H.R. 4594, the Military Learning for Credit Act.
• H.R. 1458, the Veterans Education and Technical Skills (VETS) Opportunity Act, which expands access to high-quality, high-demand skilled trade and technical training programs for those who served.
On Dec. 3, American Legion senior legislative associate Bailey Bishop submitted testimony before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs. The American Legion’s testimony (download statement here) focuses on:
• H.R. 6047: Sharri Briley and Eric Edmundson Veterans Benefits Expansion Act, which the Legion supports with amendments. This legislation seeks to provide an overdue increase in financial benefits for survivors and catastrophically disabled veterans receiving care through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
• H.R. 4077: GUARD Veterans’ Healthcare Act, which the Legion supports as is. This would permit recovery from VA of costs from Medicare Advantage and Medicare prescription drug plans and to modify the authority for recovery by the United States of reasonable charges for certain care or services furnished to veterans for non-service-connected disabilities.
Additionally, American Legion health policy analyst Dr. Marie Black submitted a SFR on Dec. 3 before the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, which was considering legislation on “Medication Management in VA Health Care.”
The American Legion’s testimony (download statement here) focuses on:
• The Protect Veteran Access to Telemedicine Services Act. This would amend title 38, United States Code, to authorize certain VA health professionals to deliver or dispense controlled substances via telemedicine under certain conditions. Telemedicine dramatically expands access to care — especially for the 2.7 million veterans living in rural areas — by increasing the number of available prescribers and offering safe, secure medication without forcing veterans to spend hours on the road. The American Legion supports this draft legislation, with a proposed amendment, which urges Congress to permanently allow VA health professionals to practice telemedicine across state lines within the scope of their federal duties.
• The Written Informed Consent Act, which would direct the Secretary of VA to expand a Veterans Health Administration directive regarding informed consent to apply to certain types of medications, which often host FDA warnings for suicide risk.
- Legislative