“THE WORST KIND OF BETRAYAL”: AHEAD OF HOUSE VOTE, CONGRESSMAN PAT RYAN STANDS WITH HUDSON VALLEY VETERANS AGAINST HARMFUL GOP BILL
“The Worst Kind of Betrayal”: Ahead of House Vote, Congressman Pat Ryan Stands with Hudson Valley Veterans Against Harmful GOP Bill
H.R. 9237 is the latest attempt to cut veterans benefits and is opposed by 20+ Veteran Service Organizations, including VFW, DAV, and IAVA
Ryan has joined his fellow Democratic veteran colleagues for weeks railing against the bill, which makes the largest cuts to veterans benefits in a generation
The GOP’s bill slashes veterans benefits, purging several service-connected disabilities from VA coverage and forcing veterans to pay more for home loans – all during a housing and healthcare affordability crisis and as war rages on in Iran
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Pat Ryan – an Iraq War combat veteran and the first West Point graduate to represent the Academy in Congress – condemned a harmful GOP bill slashing benefits for veterans who have served this country. The bill – H.R. 9237 – is opposed by 20+ Veteran Service Organizations, including Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans, Iraq and Afghan Vets of America.
H.R. 9237 creates the largest cut to veterans benefits in a generation, more than 1.5 million future veterans and servicemembers would lose benefits. Under this bill, veterans suffering from tinnitus, ringing or buzzing in the ears, caused by prolonged exposure to high-decibel military environments like gunfire, explosions, and heavy machinery, which is the most common service-connected disability, would no longer receive compensation. This bill also guts sleep apnea compensation and creates a dangerous precedent for the Administration to continue purging VA disability ratings.
The bill raises fees on veteran borrowers by $4 billion by nearly tripling VA home loan fees and forcing veterans to pay on average an additional $3,780. It also doubles the loan assumption fee – all while Americans face a growing housing affordability crisis.
H.R. 9237 also shifts vital resources away from VA mental health and PTSD programs, strips away the VHA’s care-coordination role, and locks in privatization – weakening the integrated VA health system and risking lower-quality care.
The bill represents the latest step in Republicans’ long-running efforts to privatize veterans’ care and cut veterans benefits – this time, as a war in Iran enters its fifth month and has killed 13 U.S. servicemembers and wounded hundreds more.
“Brave men and women sign up to serve because they trust us to have their backs. They trust that when they get home, the country they fought for will be ready to embrace them. This bill breaks that sacred trust,” said Congressman Pat Ryan. “Taking care of the heroes who risked their lives for this country is not a partisan issue – it’s a fundamental American value. We shouldn’t have to tear critical benefits away from our nation’s heroes to fund programs for others – especially not when the Pentagon has a $1.5 TRILLION budget and seemingly endless cash for Trump’s war in Iran. I’ve heard from countless local veterans about how devastating the impacts of this would be in the Hudson Valley – I’m proudly standing with them and voting NO on this betrayal.”
The bill is opposed by: the Veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled American Veterans, Iraq and Afghan Vets of America, Hispanic Veterans Leadership Alliance, Black Veterans Project, Reserve Organization of America, Veterans Education Success, Student Veterans of America, Marine Corps League, Marine Corps Reserve Association, Minority Veterans of America, Common Defense, Vet Voice Foundation, National Security Leaders for America, Swords to Plowshares, The Chamberlain Network, United for Veterans Coalition, Veterans for Common Sense, Veterans for Responsible Leadership, 50501 Veterans.
“As a Vietnam Veteran, it is so sad to hear when our Veterans are being cut short of the support that is needed for them,” said Nathan B. Grant, Post 37 Legion Commander, Poughkeepsie. “Our Veterans should not have any needs after serving in our Military. I believe that many untold stories need to be told for those who do not understand the pain that many of our Veterans go through.”
“Veterans deserve our gratitude, and as they grapple with the high cost of living we can't afford to cut the VA benefits that they rely on to get by,” said Daniel Lennox-Choate, an Army veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, Central Valley. “I'm grateful to Pat Ryan for continuing to fight for our veterans and servicemembers.”
“This package of bills does the opposite of taking care of America's veterans, by making it harder for veterans to access the benefits we have earned,” said Malia DuMont, an Army veteran and Chair of Congressman Ryan's Veterans and Military Families Advisory Board. “This comes on top of significant recent cuts to Department of Veterans Affairs doctors, and further hurts veterans who most need the help: those who are injured and disabled as a result of their military service. It is an insult.”
“The Take Care of America's Veterans Act is a shell game: every cup hides a wounded soldier,” said Andee Hidalgo, a West Point graduate, Army veteran, and member of Congressman Ryan’s Veterans and Military Families Advisory Board. “A nation that can send a soldier to war can afford to care for the veteran who returns, without robbing one wounded warrior to pay for another. The Republican-sponsored bill moves money out of one veteran's pocket and into another's. Washington owes veterans more, not fewer — and certainly not a shell game.”
“As a retired Army officer and veteran, I know that every service member accepts the risks of military service with the understanding that America will stand behind them if they are injured or become ill,” said Stan Warrick, West Point graduate and US Army veteran, Warwick. “We should be reinforcing that covenant by improving healthcare, strengthening benefits, and recognizing the sacrifices made not only by veterans, but also by their families and caregivers. This bill does the opposite. I appreciate Congressman Ryan's opposition to this bill and his commitment to service members and their families.”
“The severe negatives of this bill ultimately outweigh the positives,” said Robert K. Lanier, Chief, U.S. Coast Guard, retired, Beacon. “By changing the disability rating schedule to reduce future compensation, shifting focus to costlier private care that threatens the sustainability of vital VA facilities, and imposing out-of-pocket costs on future disabled service members, this bill undermines the very support veterans have earned. Politicians have long exhibited public reverence for military service while dismantling post-service assistance; passing this Act degrades that reverence to mere cosplay, stands as an affront to those who swore to defend the Constitution, and proves that veterans truly deserve better.”
“Buried inside [the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act] are provisions that slash disability compensation for veterans with tinnitus and sleep apnea, that allow Congress to rewrite the VA Schedule for Rating Disabilities through legislation instead of the established medical process, and that significantly increase fees for veterans using the VA Home Loan program—all to pay for the package instead of funding these priorities through the normal appropriations process,” said Jess Finucan, Director of Policy & Advocacy of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA). “We CANNOT accept legislation that takes benefits away from one group of veterans to pay for another. Veterans should never be used as the offset for helping other veterans.”
“We reject the false premise that we must cut benefits for tomorrow's heroes or strip the rights of the workers who care for them to pay for the promises made to yesterdays,” said Craig Romanovich, Executive Director of the AFL-CIO’s Union Veterans Council (UVC). “To the lawmakers backing the bill: stop using veterans as political leverage. Protect our union VA workers and fund the Major Richard Star Act in the right way. A grateful nation pays its debts. It does not send veterans the bill.”
“The Take Care of American’s Veterans Act breaks America’s sacred promise to our veterans: serve your country, then your country delivers the care and benefits you’ve earned and need,” said Congressman Chris Deluzio. “If this bill passes, servicemembers would return from Trump’s reckless Iran War to a weaker VA with poorer healthcare and fewer benefits. Our message here is clear: don’t cut veterans benefits—not now, not ever. Republicans should join me in supporting the discharge petition to pass the Major Richard Star Act.”
“Veterans’ benefits are not offsets. When service members take their oath to protect and defend our country, we thank them with a promise to take care of them when they take off their uniform. It is reprehensible that Republicans are considering breaking that promise to one generation of veterans to pay for benefits for another,” said House Veterans Affairs Committee Ranking Member Mark Takano. “That is why I oppose the ‘Taking Benefits from America's Veterans Act’ and urge my Republican colleagues to support my discharge petition for the Major Richard Star Act instead.”
“The so-called 'Take Care of America’s Veterans Act' does nothing of the sort. This bill constitutes the largest cut to veterans benefits in a generation. In pushing through this shameful bill, House Republicans are not only harming our veterans, they’re also completely ignoring the overwhelming support behind passing the standalone Major Richard Star Act,” said Congressman Gil Cisneros. “I’m proud to support Ranking Member Takano’s discharge petition, which would pass the Major Richard Star Act without any cuts to critical VA programs and benefits. When Republicans are ready to come to the table for serious negotiations, they can let us know.”
“When Americans answer the call to serve, we make them a promise that their sacrifice will be honored in full,” said Congressman Dr. Raul Ruiz. “The Take Care of America's Veterans Act breaks that promise. It claims to fix the wounded veteran's tax, but it caps their benefits and takes PACT Act benefits away from 1.5 million veterans to pay for it. The solution is the Major Richard Star Act. No shortchanging. No caps. No cuts.”
“A bill that calls itself the ‘Take Care of America’s Veterans Act’ ought to live up to that name,” said AFGE National President Everett Kelley. “It ought to walk the walk. Instead, this bill should be called the ‘America’s Veterans Beware Act.’ This bill would eliminate or reduce benefits for up to 1.5 million veterans, cut $57 billion in future disability payments over the next decade, further privatize mental health services and VA clinical research, and strip thousands of VA psychologists of their workplace rights. If we are to keep our promise to take care of those who have served us, we cannot turn our backs on them, and we cannot weaken the system designed to care for them.”
“NFFE strongly opposes the so-called Take Care of America’s Veterans Act, a massive, deceptively titled legislative package that would strip veterans of earned benefits and weaken workplace rights for VA healthcare providers,” said NFFE National President Randy Erwin. “Up to 1.5 million veterans would be affected by cuts to disability compensation to the tune of $57 billion over the next decade, among other reductions of critical programs. At a time when workplace morale is at record lows, this bill would also undermine collective bargaining rights for psychologists, harming the recruitment and retention of essential clinicians who provide direct care to our veterans. Veterans have earned these benefits through their service and sacrifice. Congress must reject these cuts and protect the healthcare we have promised to our military heroes.”
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