]

Dear Neighbor,

The past four years left the VA in bad shape with a variety of problems, one of which was overspending the VA healthcare budget by $22.8B, which in turn caused the administration to dip into this year's budget to survive. On January 20th, this changed with the inauguration of President Donald Trump. 

We must look to the future and have faith that we finally have a leadership team that knows how to revitalize our country and will look out for our brave men and women who fought so hard to make our country great. Congressman Bost, Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee met with VA Secretary Doug Collings and said: "I was honored to sit down with my old friend and former House colleague, newly confirmed VA Secretary Doug Collins today to discuss our shared priorities and 'veteran-first' agenda." 

The committee is talking about streamlining the claims process by removing multiple levels of bureaucracy and revisiting the Mission Act with a goal of making it better by ensuring our veterans have prompt access to health care. With control of the White House, Senate, and the House of Representatives, I envision a productive four years for our veteran community.

With all that's happening this new Congress, it is my greatest honor to represent you and hear from you about the issues that matter most. You can read below about what we've been up to this week, and as always, you can stay up to date with us here, on our website, and on X, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

For the Republic,

Congresswoman Kat Cammack                                                                                Proudly Representing Florida's Third Congressional District

VA Wait Times (February 20, 2025)

Specialty Adapted Housing

Up to $117,014 (FY 2024) for Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) are available if a servicemember or veteran owns or will own a home and has a qualifying VA disability. For additional information, please contact an accredited service officer. 

Be The One: American Legion

Across the nation, change is underway to reduce the number of military-affiliated Americans who are lost to suicide. Various estimates have put the daily toll at 18 or 22, while others say those figures underestimate the real number. In any case, The American Legion believes one is too many.

Be the One is The American Legion's top priority, a mission to reduce the number of veterans and servicemembers who die by suicide.

Reinstatement For Refusing COVID Vaccine

We are on alert for the official announcement of POTUS's promise to veterans discharged for not taking the COVID vaccine. We hope to learn more about the plans: 

• To reinstate military members discharged for refusing to take vaccine mandate with retroactive pay. We will share implementation guidance as it becomes available.
• To update discharge upgrades to include entitlement to education benefits.

Denial Eligibility

We continue to receive questions from our veterans about their dental eligibility if they are rated under Increased Compensation Based on Unemployability (IU). The Assistant Chief Patient Processing & Benefits (PPB) (Eligibility) and they advised that a veteran must be Permanent and Total (100%) or service-connected for dental issues.

VA Vet Centers

Treatment for dealing with stress associated with seeing the horrors of war up front can be complicated. For this a strong relationship is necessary to support what’s best for the patient and ideally a successful outcome. For many veterans this is difficult to achieve when receiving care through a structured health care environment. 

Vet Centers (Readjustment Counseling) were set up by Congress in 1979 out of the recognition that a significant number of Vietnam-era vets were still experiencing readjustment problems. Vet Centers are community based and part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. In April 1991, in response to the Persian Gulf War, Congress extended the eligibility to veterans who served during other periods of armed hostilities after the Vietnam era. Those other periods are identified as Lebanon, Grenada, Panama, the Persian Gulf, Somalia, and Kosovo/Bosnia. These centers are not associated with the established VA health care system and their records are not part of your official medical records. 

Many of our veterans find this a better resource for dealing with their stressors as they can establish these important relationships with their counselors. For more information on what a Vet Center can do for you, please call (352) 331-1408. 

Privacy Form Signatures

The "No Disclosure Without Consent" rule stating "no agency shall disclose any record which is contained in a system of records by any means of communication to any person, or to another agency, except pursuant to a written request by, or with the prior written consent of, the individual to whom the record pertains [subject to 12 exceptions]"  requires a handwritten signature for congressional offices to work on your behalf. 

Our goal is to address your concern as professionally and efficiently as possible. We have argued the technicalities that this stipulation may allow for electronic signatures to no avail. These agencies share that they verify identity through using various pieces of identification in your records to include the handwritten signature. Without your written signature it will result in delays in our efforts to better serve you.

Unsubscribe