"This past week, as our nation came together on Memorial Day to pay tribute to those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our country, I traveled across the Fifth District and met with many veterans from Henry County to Brunswick County and from Fauquier County to Danville.
This
week served as a reminder of how fortunate we are to live in this
great nation and enjoy these tremendous freedoms, but if it were not
for those willing to serve, we would not have these blessings. I was
grateful to have the opportunity to thank some of our American heroes
for all they have sacrificed for American liberty and gain insight on
how their lives can be made easier.
At Southern
Virginia Community College in Brunswick County,
I met with student veterans, and I toured Liberty
University Army ROTC offices
meeting with students and faculty. While at
Buckingham County High School,
JROTC cadets performed their rope bridge demonstration, and I was
honored to participate in their promotion ceremony, and at Fork
Union Military Academy, I
was able to meet with faculty who prepare these young cadets for
service.
At
American Legion Posts in Warrenton and Appomattox and
while meeting with veterans in Mecklenburg and Fluvanna Counties,
I continued to hear about how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
continues to be an impenetrable bureaucracy for so many of our
veterans. While visiting
veterans at the Halifax War Memorial,
I heard about the excessive backlog of claims in Virginia. As a
result of this backlog, they told me how their claims have been sent
to different states that seem to have different standards of
assessing claims. I talked with veterans who explained that they have
been waiting an entire year for the VA to respond to their claims,
because it takes the VA as long as six months to even access the
necessary records.
Another
veteran at the Halifax War Memorial told
me how the “40 mile rule” created to allow veterans residing over
40 miles from the nearest VA medical facility to receive care outside
the VA system is not fulfilling its intended purpose because some
clinics are included in this criteria do not provide the type of care
the veteran may need. I was encouraged that the Senate passed a bill
that will change the 40-mile calculation to be based on the nearest
VA facility that provides the service being sought by the veteran. I
hope that the House considers this commonsense bill expeditiously.
Our
veterans deserve better. Period. We have an obligation to take care
of those who have taken care of us, and it is our responsibility to
make sure they receive the highest level of care. I encourage our
veterans and our active-duty members of the armed services to contact
our office if
we may ever be of assistance in dealing with the Veterans
Administration or any other federal agency.
I
am grateful to all of the veterans who took the time to meet with me
this week. I am humbled by the opportunity to serve Virginia’s
Fifth District veterans, and I remain fully committed to ensuring
that our citizens who have given the most receive the benefits they
have earned and deserve.
If
you need any additional information or if we may be of assistance to
you, please visit my website at hurt.house.gov or call my Washington
office: (202) 225-4711, Charlottesville office: (434) 973-9631,
Danville office: (434) 791-2596, or Farmville office: (434) 395-0120.
"
(Also in today's e-mail, Gentle Readers, was a video report from hurt.house.gov. The computer I'm using this week can't handle videos at all, but readers in the Fifth District should be able to find Congressman Hurt's videos there.)
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