In April, representatives Jeff Denham (R-Calif.) and Sean Patrick Maloney (D-N.Y.) proposed legislation emphasizing accessible care for disabled veterans. President Barack Obama signed the proposal into law, according to Oakdale Leader.
Here are five key points:
1. The H.R. 5091 legislation, the Appropriate Care for Disabled Veterans Act, mandates that the Department of Veterans Affairs report its capacity to offer specialized treatment and rehabilitative services for disabled veterans to Congress.
2. From 1996 to 2008, Congress required that the VA maintain its capacity for disabled veteran needs and treatments within set measurements, and report those numbers to Congress. These measurements included number of staffed beds, for example.
3. In 2008, this reporting mandate expired, however.
4. Disabled veterans experience a variety of complications, such as spinal cord injury and traumatic brain injury.
5. Disabled American Veterans and the Veterans of Foreign Wars backed the legislation.