8/12/2019 Tester's VA Legislative Agenda

1/1

Senator Testers VA Legislative Agenda As a leading member of the Veterans Affairs Committee, Tester has introduced a bill

that will clarify and strengthen the role of the VAs Office of Medical Inspector, and

ensures it is actively investigating access to care issues, including waiting lists. This bill

will also make the Inspectors reports public for the first time

As a member of the Appropriations Committee, Tester is allocating $5 million for the VAInspector General to investigate facilities across the country.

Tester has introduced language that prohibits payments of performance bonuses to VAmedical directors until the IG investigation is complete.

Tester is supporting Appropriations language that allocates additional funding for theDepartment of Justice to investigate any criminal wrongdoing at the VA.

Tester has introduced legislation to provide the VA with more flexibility to recruit andretain medical professionals by removing the cap for student loan repayments and

reauthorizing a program that allows VA to provide tuition assistance for students

pursing employment with VA.

Tester has introduced legislation to bring more Mental Health Counselors and Marriageand Family Therapists into the VA mental health workforce.

As Chairman of the Senate subcommittee on the federal workforce, Tester held ahearing on morale issues among federal employees. In the wake of the hearing, he is

looking at legislation that will address the challenges of recruiting, retaining and

deploying a quality VA health care workforce.

Tester is working on legislation to ensure the VA has the tools and flexibility it needs tohold employees accountable while protecting due process and employee rights.

Tester is pushing the VA to expand upon Project ARCH, a program that has beentremendously successful in connecting Montana veterans to timely and quality care.

Tester is pushing the VA to build more partnerships with rural providers so in theabsence of timely care from the VA, veterans can seek care closer to home.