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CVA Applauds 26 Vets Members of Congress for Demanding VA Reform

By Concerned Veterans for America

MillionVetBacklog For Immediate Release:

Media Contact: Kate Pomeroy | 703-638-3927 Arlington, VA – This morning over two-dozen members of the House of Representatives (24 Republicans, 2 Democrats, and all military veterans) sent a letter to President Obama urging him to take action to alleviate the claims backlog at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).  To read the full letter, click here. These military veterans in Congress called on the president to acknowledge the problem and enact bold reforms to improve benefit delivery. Their letter notes that the dysfunctional VA is “on the wrong track” and in need of “capable leadership.” The letter reads, in part: “Despite the commitment of VA Secretary Eric Shinseki to streamline the disability claims process and bring the VA into the digital age, almost 900,000 claims remain unprocessed, with over 69 percent of claimants waiting more than 125 days… Regardless of the reason for a surge in new claims, we are confident that you agree such excessive wait times are unacceptable.” Pete Hegseth, CEO of Concerned Veterans for America (CVA) and Army veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan, issued the following statement in response:

“It’s really encouraging to see these veterans—who have served in uniform and are now serving in Congress—step up to demand reform at VA. It has been four years since both President Obama and VA Secretary Shinseki vowed to fix the VA disability claims backlog; and it hasn’t happened. It’s time for the White House to stop making excuses and start delivering results. Only Presidential leadership can end this backlog, and we urge the president to make reforming VA a priority. We applaud these Congressional members for taking a strong stand on this critical issue.”

Concerned Veterans for America recently launched MillionVetBacklog.com, which includes a video and petition calling on President Obama to fix the VA backlog and relieve Secretary Shinseki. Signatories to the Congressional letter include: Duncan Hunter (R, CA-50), Tim Murphy (R, PA-18), Adam Kinzinger (R, IL-16), Tom Rooney (R, FL-17), John Kline (R, MN-2), Darrell Issa (R, CA-49), John Conyers (D, MI-13), Joe Wilson (R, SC-2), Bobby Rush (D, IL-1), Michael Grimm (R, NY-11), Tom Cotton (R, AR-4), Joe Heck (R, NV-3), Steve Palazzo (R, MS-4), Walter Jones (R, NC-3), Mike Conaway (R, TX-11), Steve Stivers (R, OH-15), Vern Buchanan (R, FL-16), Brett Guthrie (R, KY-2), Tim Griffin (R, AR-2), Chris Gibson (R, NY-19), Ron DeSantis (R, FL-6), Paul Cook (R, CA-8), Paul Broun (R, GA-10),Todd Young (R, IN-9), Pete Olson (R, TX-22), Doug Collins (R, GA-9).

 To schedule an interview with Concerned Veterans for America, please contact Kate Pomeroy at 571-384-4935 or kpomeroy@concernedveteransforamerica.org.

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 Concerned Veterans for America is a non-partisan, non-profit, 501(c)(4) organization that advocates for policies that will preserve the freedom and liberty we and our families so proudly fought and sacrificed to defend.