Heard on the Hill

Teresa Morris, Director, Advocacy & Government Relations

Greetings NOVA Members –

I hope all of you are staying safe during this crazy winter. The 117th Congress continues working and has for the most part organized committees and named committee members. The House and Senate VA Committee members can be found at the links below:

Senate VA Committee Members released - list of members:

Committee Members | United States Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs  

House VA Committee Members list

Members | About | The House Committee on Veterans' Affairs  

As mentioned before, both of these committees have jurisdiction over VA legislative policy to include important oversight authority of issues already in law. This year, it looks like there will be oversight into how VA is implementing several large legislative packages that cleared at the end of the last Congress – John Scott Hannon Mental Health Act and the Deborah Sampson Act, as well as a look into toxic exposures and VA’s COVID-19 response and vaccine rollout. Other HVAC and SVAC priorities announced include:

• Suicide Prevention

• Strengthening Services for Women

• Modernizing VA

• Long Term Care

As we get into March, it appears that the coronavirus relief package is heading for a vote without bipartisan support. The $1.9 trillion dollar “American Rescue Plan'' contains around $17 billion ($13.5 billion for VHA) in funding for several areas within VA, to include:

1. Increases in Telehealth

2. Support for Homeless Veterans and those impacted by the Pandemic

3. Increased capacity to handle inquiries from Veterans and caregivers

4. Improvement in emergency readiness, specialized equipment, PPE, and mobile care facilities that can supplement medical centers

5. Support for Modernizing VA's supply chain system

NOVA will continue  legislative advocacy with a concentration on our 2021 Legislative Priority Goals. Link to goals can be found on the NOVA website: 2021_nova_legislative_priori.pdf (ymaws.com)

The goals are available for your use and I encourage all NOVA members to become familiar with them and to pass them along to your Members of Congress (House & Senate) and those interested in health care policy.

I will continue monitoring hearings and bills of interest so watch our social media sites for up-to-date information and links to important congressional action.

We hope that all of you to join us as we educate and mobilize to find the best way to advocate for the VA Nursing community.

Stay Tuned!