Brown Votes to Pass Veterans Bill

Press Release

Today, U.S. Senator Scott Brown (R-MA) issued the following statement after passage of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs (MILCON) Appropriations bill.

"As a member of the Senate Armed Services and Veterans' Affairs Committee, I am pleased the Senate passed a bill that provides our military with the tools and resources it needs in a responsible manner. This bill will ensure that we keep our commitment to our veterans by providing funding to the VA and other veterans' causes, such as the mental health care needs of those who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan."

The bill would allocate the following funding:

* $3 billion for the mental health care needs of veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
* $6.9 billion for long-term care for aging and severely wounded veterans.
* $3.2 billion for information technology projects such as developing electronic health care records and integrating medical and service records with the Department of Defense.
* $581 million for medical and prosthetic research into issues such as mental health, traumatic brain injuries and sensory loss.
* $250 million for the Rural Health Initiative to assist veterans in rural areas receive health care.

Today's MILCON bill also contains funding for several Massachusetts projects, including $34.04 million for Hanscom Middle School, $9 million for the Army National Guard Readiness Center, $23.3 million for the Westover Air Reserve Base, $7.8 million for the Otis Air National Guard Base and $22 million for the Army Reserve Center in Attleboro.

Massachusetts will receive a total of: $96.14 million

Last week Brown attended a Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee hearing on improving mental health care services administered by the VA.

The bill passed the Senate today by a vote of 97-2.

Source