Heller Shares How Nevadans Will Benefit from New Laws to Aid Veterans, Childhood Cancer Patients

Statement

Hi, I'm Senator Dean Heller, and I want to give you an update on two bills that are now law and tell you a bit about them and how they help Nevadans.

This week, I had the opportunity to join the President as he signed two critical bills into law: the VA MISSION Act and the STAR Act.

The VA MISSION Act improves the VA's ability to hire high-quality doctors and it allow veterans to get care that works for them, on their schedules, near their homes.

Here's an example. Recently, a veteran from Gardnerville contacted me and said that he prefers to see a doctor at the clinic one mile down the road from his home, but even under the Choice Program he's forced to travel 100 miles roundtrip to see a foot doctor. That doesn't make any sense, and it is exactly what the VA MISSION Act fixes.

This bill also expands the VA Caregivers program, which provides a stipend to the families of severely disabled veterans who require care in their homes. Previously, only post-9/11 veterans were eligible to apply, now veterans from all eras are eligible. This is something that's particularly important to Nevada's veteran community as it was voiced to me by my Veterans Advisory Councils.

In addition to the VA MISSION Act, the President also signed the STAR Act, a bill that I cosponsored.

This new law provides hope to many young patients in Nevada who are fighting pediatric cancers. It supports survivors and provides the critical resources needed to develop new treatments that could save lives.

Back in April, Johnny from Sparks visited me. He's a childhood cancer survivor and he told me just how essential the STAR Act is for so many families. So I worked to send it to the President's desk. I was proud to see him sign it this week.

As Nevada's senior senator, I will continue to wake up each day and work to pass into law solutions that improve the lives of Nevadans.

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