WASHINGTON – U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., chairman and ranking member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, respectively, today released the following statement regarding the unanimous Senate passage of the 21^st Century Veterans Benefits Delivery and Other Improvements Act (S.1203):

“From addressing benefits processing for veterans to helping service members transition from military to civilian life, the 21^st Century Veterans Benefits Delivery and Other Improvements Act includes numerous commonsense measures that will help deliver the best possible services to veterans in a timely manner. This bill is yet another example of bipartisan work in the Senate to address issues at the Department of Veterans Affairs and improve the lives of our veterans. We thank our Senate colleagues and look forward to seeing this bill signed into law.”

The 21^st Century Veterans Benefits Delivery and Other Improvements Act, originally introduced by Senator Dean Heller, R-Nev., is an omnibus bill that includes numerous provisions to help veterans, including measures to:

• Address disability claims and appeals processing at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
• Increase cooperation between the VA and other agencies, including the National Guard Bureau, Department of Defense and Department of Labor.
• Improve the Transition Assistance Program for service members who are leaving the military.
• Expand the VA medical workforce by updating training programs and recruitment efforts.
• Improve the Montgomery GI Bill-Selected Reserve education program and Post 9/11 GI Bill.
• Assist surviving spouses of veteran owners of small businesses.
• Revive a pilot program that hired veteran medics and corpsmen to be skilled nursing assistants in VA’s emergency departments.

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