Legislative Report

Tim Valentin, Vice President

Well, this week we just finished up our Advocacy and Legislative week in D.C. virtually. It was as always, an exhausting week of seminars and meetings but very productive. We were able to meet with Senator Klobuchar’s staff, along with staff from Congresswoman Betty McCollum’s office and Congressman Tom Emmer’s office. The hill visits were not as plentiful as usual, but we found them to be just as productive. Our 2022 Legislative Priorities were as follows:

1.Protect Access to VA’s Specialized Health Care Services 2. Expand Access to VA Long-Term Services and Supports 3. Improve VA Health Care Services and Benefits for Catastrophically Disabled

Veterans and their Survivors 4. Increase Access to VA Health Care and Benefits for Women Veterans with SCI/D 5. Protect the Civil Rights of People with Disabilities 6. Strengthen and Enhance Social Security Benefits 7. Increase Employment Prospects for Veterans with Disabilities

As you can see, we definitely had a lot to go over in short period of time. In MN we have a fine-tuned advocacy and legislative team that can pick up where one drops off at and still keeps it rolling.