{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://beyer.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=6328", "Beyer, Ciscomani, and McGarvey Introduce Bipartisan, Bicameral Legislation to Improve Disability Claims Process for Veterans", "2024-12-13", "2024", "2024-12", "Democrat", "House", "VA", "Donald S. Beyer, Jr.", "B001292", "beyer.house.gov", "beyer", "https://beyer.house.gov/news/documentquery.aspx?DocumentTypeID=27", "scraper", "Reps. Don Beyer (D-VA), Juan Ciscomani (R-AZ), and Morgan McGarvey (D-KY) introduced the Veterans Transition Support Act to improve the post-discharge disability claims process for veterans. The bill would expand the Solid Start program to engage transitioning service members pre-separation and minimize interruptions in medical care and benefits. Senators Jon Ossoff (D-GA) and John Cornyn (R-TX) lead companion legislation in the Senate.\n\n\u201cOur veterans often encounter barriers filing post-discharge VA disability claims and lengthy waits before receiving benefits, but it does not have to be this way,\u201d said Rep. Beyer. \u201cThose who served deserve a disability claims process that is simple, efficient, and honors their service. By expanding the Solid Start program, our legislation would encourage more service members to take part in the Benefits Delivery at Discharge program and file their disability claims early. This would streamline their claims process and minimize the gap between their discharge and when they begin to receive benefits. With this bill, we hope to ensure veterans receive the services and benefits they\u2019ve earned without unnecessary gaps in care and support.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur service members selflessly dedicate themselves to our nation but unfortunately I often hear of the challenges associated with transitioning out of the military,\u201d said Rep. Ciscomani. \"This is why I am proud to co-lead this bipartisan, bicameral bill to streamline the medical and disability claim process to ensure our veterans have access to the care and support their service earned. By requiring proactive outreach prior to separation from the service, it is my hope that this legislation will help make the process not only smoother but also ensure veterans do not slip through the cracks and miss opportunities to apply for benefits that they have earned.\u201d\n\n\u201cOur veterans deserve as much support leaving service as when they go in,\u201d said Rep. McGarvey. \u201cWhen VA knows something is working\u2014like the Solid Start program\u2014it should do everything it can to scale up and expand that program. I\u2019m proud to join my colleagues in introducing the Veterans Transition Support Act which would expand the Solid Start program to reach out to veterans before they leave service to ease the transition to civilian life and ensure a warm handoff between DOD and VA.\u201d\n\nDue to time constraints in a service member\u2019s transition to civilian life, inconsistent education about filing disability claims, and incompatibilities between the Department of Defense\u2019s (DOD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs\u2019 (VA) health record systems, veterans often face lengthy waits before receiving benefits. The Veterans Transition Support Act would amend the Department of Veterans Affairs\u2019 (VA) Solid Start program by requiring that a VA representative contact transitioning service members 120-210 days prior to separation to coincide with their eligibility to file a VA disability claim through the Benefits Delivery at Discharge (BDD) program. Filing a claim through the BDD program would ensure service members still have access to their medical and personnel records and enable the VA to rapidly deliver a decision. This bill aims to provide veterans with a more seamless transition and less of a coverage gap between exiting the service and receiving benefits.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-07T22:13:55Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://beyer.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=6328"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.7007358837872744, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}