Caring For Our Veterans

I joined the Marine Corps Reserves to give back to our country. Today, our veterans and their families face more challenges than ever before after returning home from service. As a veteran who serves on the House Armed Services Committee, I work every day in Congress to tackle these challenges and ensure veterans receive the support they deserve. We must step up for veterans the way they stepped up for us.

The stories I have heard from veterans about issues with adequate or timely VA service are unacceptable, and they are problems we have to solve. From accessible health care to job opportunities to financial aid for continued education, we must make good on our commitment to those who serve. We also need to take care of our most vulnerable veterans and, through funding and bills like my Home for the Brave Act, I am working to ensure we help veterans experiencing homelessness obtain resources and get back on their feet.

I am advocating to expand services for crucial programs to reintegrate veterans into the workforce with resources like job training and housing assistance. Deployed veterans have a 41% higher suicide risk compared to the general population, and mental health services must be easily available for our veterans. We have to implement more programs to ensure that veterans living with depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other trauma can get the care they need.

There are nearly 40,000 veterans living in the 24th District with almost 4,000 more serving on active military duty. Whether its reducing VA wait times, increasing accountability and transparency, improving care or helping returning troops transition back into the civilian world, I will honor their service by taking action to improve the lives of veterans on the Central Coast and across our nation.