(U.S. Senate) — Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester today joined veterans and Veterans Service Organizations to urge Congress to put combat-injured veterans first and adopt his Major Richard Star Act as an amendment to the annual must-pass defense bill, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Tester announced he is planning to file this bipartisan bill to deliver combat-injured veterans their full military benefits as an amendment to the NDAA this week with U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho).

“Generation after generation, Americans have stepped up and served their country with a solemn promise: that if they came home changed by their service, we would take care of them,” said Tester. “But for combat-injured veterans that were forced to retire before completing 20 years of service, their government is currently failing to deliver on that promise. Congress has the opportunity to do the right thing for these veterans and their families by setting up a vote to adopt the Major Richard Star Act as an amendment to the NDAA to finally fix this unfair policy and provide medically-retired combat veterans their full military benefits.”

Tester continued, “We need to live up to the promises we’ve made to our fighting men and women and I urge each and every one of my colleagues to put veterans first and party politics last to get this bill included in the NDAA. Our nation’s combat-injured veterans and their families are counting on it, and they deserve nothing less.”

Named in honor of decorated war veteran Major Richard A. Star, who was forced to medically retire due to his combat-related injuries, the Major Richard Star Act would fix an injustice that prevents combat-injured veterans with less than 20 years of military service from receiving their full military benefits. It is a top legislative priority for Tester and military and veterans’ groups.

Tester spoke alongside combat-injured veterans who were forced to medically retire early and would directly benefit from the Major Richard Star Act and advocates from Wounded Warrior Project, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Military Officers Association of America, The Military Coalition, and Reserve Organization of America.

A staunch advocate for delivering veterans their earned benefits and health care, Senator Tester has been leading the charge to fix the current system that prevents combat-injured veterans with less than 20 years of military service from receiving the full amount of their Department of Defense (DoD) retirement and Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) disability payments. His bipartisan Major Richard Star Act will fix this policy for medically retired veterans—providing them their full VA disability and DoD retirement payments.