The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee approved Sinema’s Nursing Home Care for Native American Veterans Act and VA Mission Telehealth Clarification Act
WASHINGTON – Today the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee approved two of Arizona senior Senator Kyrsten Sinema’s bipartisan bills ensuring Arizona veterans receive the care and benefits they’ve earned. The Committee passed Sinema’s Nursing Home Care for Native American Veterans Act and the VA Mission Telehealth Clarification Act.
“The bipartisan bills passed today help fulfill our promises to Arizona’s veterans, improving access to telehealth services and providing quality care to Native American veterans,” said Sinema, a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
Sinema’s Nursing Home Care for Native American Veterans Act was introduced with Republican Senator Kevin Cramer (ND) and supports the construction of veteran nursing homes on tribal lands. Currently, there are no veteran nursing homes on tribal lands, which impacts rural communities across the country. Tribal lands are excluded from a law that allows for 65 percent of construction costs of veteran nursing homes to be reimbursed. The Nursing Home Care for Native American Veterans Act fixes this issue, allowing federal grant money to reimburse tribal veteran nursing home construction.
Sinema’s VA Mission Telehealth Clarification Act was introduced with Republican Senators Kelly Loeffler (GA) and Marsha Blackburn (TN) and allows the Department of Veterans Affairs health trainees to train on and utilize the VA telehealth system. During the coronavirus pandemic, many non-emergency medical services are now being conducted via telehealth. Increasing access to telehealth for Arizona veterans reduces the spread of the coronavirus and help save lives.
The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee also cleared the Veterans Burn Pits Exposure Recognition Act of 2019, the Deborah Sampson Act, and the TEAM Veteran Caregiver Act, all of which Sinema is a cosponsor of.