{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=77E40ED0-2FE4-493C-AF61-9E25B160A96D", "Heitkamp: VA Extends Grand Forks Vet Center beyond Six-Month Trial Period", "2016-10-25", "2016", "2016-10", "Democrat", "House", "ND", "Heidi Heitkamp", "H001069", "www.heitkamp.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "BISMARCK, N.D. \u2013 U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today announced that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will extend operations of the five-day Vet Center she successfully pushed for in Grand Forks \u2013 a positive step for area veterans who will continue to have the opportunity to get counseling services closer to home.\r\nThe Grand Forks Vet Center opened May 31, following Heitkamp\u2019s efforts to bring needed counseling services to veterans in the region. And now, after evaluating the first six months of the facility\u2019s operations, VA has decided to extend the Vet Center beyond its initial trial period \u2013 including recently hiring two full-time Grand Forks counselors, indicating the need for the mental health and readjustment services the Vet Center provides.\r\n\u201cAfter successfully pushing to bring a Vet Center to Grand Forks in May, it\u2019s a promising step for North Dakota veterans that VA has decided to extend this Vet Center,\u201d said Heitkamp. \u201cArea veterans told me about the real need for these mental health services, which is why I called on VA to bring a Vet Center to Grand Forks last year. The VA\u2019s commitment to extend this Vet Center in Grand Forks, and the fact that they\u2019ve recently hired two dedicated counselors there, demonstrates that area veterans are using the counseling and readjustment services that they\u2019ve earned \u2013 and I hope they continue to take advantage of this critical resource.\u201d\r\nHeitkamp convened area veterans, VA leaders, and health care providers in August in Grand Forks to encourage them to take advantage of the Vet Center services, and to discuss fixes she has proposed to improve the Veterans Choice program so North Dakota veterans get quality care in their home communities.\r\nThe Vet Center offers counseling and other services to veterans, servicemembers, and their families out of The Link, a Grand Forks Housing Authority space located at 300 Cherry Street in Grand Forks. It is open Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The phone number is 701-306-4669.\r\nIn November 2015, Heitkamp began pressuring VA Under Secretary David Shulkin and VA Secretary Robert McDonald to bring a much-needed Vet Center to Grand Forks. Heitkamp\u2019s most recent work to pave the way for the Vet Center was earlier this year, when the U.S. Senate agreed unanimously to include her bipartisan legislation to strengthen the case for a Grand Forks Vet Center in a spending bill the chamber passed in May. Specifically, her legislation required better coordination between the VA\u2019s Readjustment Counseling Service and the Office of Rural Health to make sure veterans in rural areas can access the support they need, which is often difficult to come by in small towns or remote regions.\r\nThe\u00a0bipartisan year-end spending bill Congress passed in December of 2015, which Heitkamp supported, included $258 million for Readjustment Counseling Services \u2013 $15 million above the requested level. The increased funds are directed towards Vet Centers to address unmet mental health needs of veterans in rural and very rural areas like North Dakota, and Heitkamp consistently pushed for VA to use those funds in Grand Forks.\r\nVet Centers help veterans readjust to civilian life by providing free counseling, screening, and referral services while removing the stigma of seeking mental health care. In North Dakota, the VA currently maintains Vet Centers in Fargo, Bismarck, and Minot.\u00a0Expanding access in Grand Forks from one day a week to five days \u2013 as Heitkamp has long called for \u2013 has dramatically increased opportunities for counseling services for veterans and servicemembers. Combat veterans and those who have experienced military sexual trauma may receive care at a Vet Center. Vet Centers will not turn away any veteran or servicemember, providing up to three humanitarian visits. Families of servicemembers who died while on active duty may qualify for bereavement services. \u00a0\r\nNorth Dakota has lost more post-9/11 servicemembers to suicide than combat, and Heitkamp hopes the Grand Forks Vet Center can help alleviate veterans\u2019 readjustment and mental health challenges.\r\nTransitioning servicemembers often cluster around military bases after concluding their military service \u2013 and in North Dakota, the majority of the state\u2019s more than 7,000 post-9/11 veterans have settled near U.S. Air Force bases in Minot and Grand Forks. With over 3,500 residents of Grand Forks or nearby counties deploying overseas since 9/11, many more combat veterans eligible to receive Vet Center services will settle in the Grand Forks region in years to come.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "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://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=77E40ED0-2FE4-493C-AF61-9E25B160A96D"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.520112156867981, "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"}