Congressman Daniel Webster has signed onto bipartisan legislation that would provide veterans with easier, quicker, and better access to mental healthcare by ensuring the VA is granting such services in their local communities.
The Protecting Veteran Community Care Act strengthens the existing community care program, limits the VA’s ability to restrict access to care in the community, and requires the VA to track relevant community care data and provide those statistics to Congress.
“Many of our returning veterans carry with them invisible wounds sustained in the service of our country,” said Webster, a Republican who represents The Villages. “This important legislation ensures that our brave heroes have the access to the care they need, the benefits they earned, and the opportunities they deserve. We owe them a debt we can never repay.”
The Protecting Veteran Community Care Act would:
- Amend the MISSION Act to specifically include inpatient mental health standards.
- Adds clarity to veteran eligibility for care in the community.
- Requires the VA to track and present to Congress data on how veterans are requesting and using community care, along with what services community care funds are paying for.
- Requires passage of a Joint Resolution in both chambers of Congress to modify community care eligibility.
Current House cosponsors: Reps. Donald Davis (D-NC), Brad Finstad (R-MN), Matt Rosendale (R-MT), Michelle Steel (R-CA), Eli Crane (R-AZ), Stephanie Bice (R-OK), Jeff Van Drew (R-NJ), Morgan Luttrell (R-TX), Chip Roy (R-TX), Derrick Van Orden (R-WI), Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) Kevin Hern (R-OK)
