WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Angus King (I-ME), Mike Rounds (R-SD), Kevin Cramer (R-ND) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) are introducing legislation to fast-track veteran’s access to earned health care benefits from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Servicemember to Veteran Health Care Connection Act would codify and expand the existing VA pre-transition health care registration process for all servicemembers transitioning to civilian life. This would ensure that the VA, in partnership with Department of Defense (DoD), will pre-register all servicemembers leaving active duty and contact them after their discharge to complete registration if they wish to enroll in VA health care services — all to keep servicemembers from suffering a bureaucratic lag in access to care and benefits.

Every year, more than 200,000 servicemembers transition from military to civilian life. Studies have shown the first year of servicemember’s transition to civilian life is the most difficult and a time when they are at a higher risk of suicide. By providing servicemembers the option to pre-register in VA care, they will have access to the mental and physical care they deserve immediately upon separation — helping to mitigate impacts of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and reducing the risk of suicide.

“Our servicemembers continually put their lives on the line to protect our freedoms and they deserve the very best care and support long after they retire the uniform,” said Senator King. “The Servicemember to Veteran Health Care Connection Act is a simple way to ensure these brave men and women can easily access the health benefits they earned and deserve. By eliminating this bureaucratic lag, we are keeping our promise to deliver timely, quality care to those who served.”

“Veterans represent the best of our country. Our men and women in uniform have made incredible sacrifices so that we can be free, and we have a responsibility to fulfill our commitment to them once their service is complete,” said Senator Rounds. “Many servicemembers are faced with the potential for a lapse in their care when transitioning from the military to civilian life. The Servicemember to Veteran Health Care Connection Act would start the process for servicemembers to enroll in the VA health care program before they officially make the transition out of active duty, making certain there is no lapse in the health care services newly-separated veterans need.”

“As service members in North Dakota and across the U.S. return to civilian life, we must ensure they have access to critical health care services and resources before a time of crisis,” said Senator Cramer. “Our bipartisan legislation will allow the Department of Veterans Affairs to connect with service members as they transition to civilian life, allowing them to more proactively use the benefits they’ve earned.”

“Leaving the military and transitioning to civilian life in the first year presents many challenges for service members, often making it difficult for them to access crucial medical treatment and benefits. DAV would like thank Sens. Angus King and Mike Rounds for their leadership in re-introducing the Servicemember to Veteran Health Care Connection Act,” said Jon Retzer, the Deputy National Legislative Director for Heath for Disabled American Veterans. “This piece of legislation takes a proactive approach by allowing service members to pre-enroll in VA health care before separation, thus eliminating potential delays in receiving care.”

“The Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) strongly supports the Servicemember to Veteran Health Care Connection Act, recognizing that the transition period from active duty to veteran status is one of the most critical times for our servicemembers,” said Joy Craig, the Associate Director of Service Member Affairs of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. “The Department of Defense and the VA must work together to ensure that no veteran falls through the cracks during this time. By pre-registering transitioning servicemembers for VA health care while they are still on active duty, this legislation helps to streamline the process and reduce unnecessary delays in accessing the care they have earned. The VFW applauds Senators’ King, Duckworth, Rounds and Cramer for prioritizing this vital phase and for taking steps to make the transition smoother, more efficient, and veteran-friendly.”

The Servicemember to Veteran Health Care Connection Act will:

• Require VA to pre-register all transitioning servicemembers in VA health care so that if they are eligible and choose to use VA health services, their enrollment and use of those services will be streamlined;
• Require VA to do outreach to servicemembers before they leave the military to explain the pre-transition health care registration process;
• Require VA to do outreach to discharged servicemembers to help them finish enrollment (if desired) once they have the appropriate discharge paperwork;
• Require VA to do outreach to recently discharged and enrolled veterans who have not used VA health care within the first 6 months of discharge and offer to help make them an appointment, if they wish to do so;
• Require VA and DoD to discuss the pre-transition health care registration process as part of the DoD Transition Assistance Program (TAP);
• Provide a report to Congress on the feasibility of allowing members of the Armed Forces who are close to separation to get one “no-cost” VA health care appointment before they leave the military to familiarize them with the services VA can offer, even before they fully enroll;
• Provide additional reports to Congress on: VA’s efforts to identify servicemembers/veterans with a service connected disability and connect them with the pre-transition health care registration process; VA’s efforts to pre-populate relevant VA databases to facilitate the enrollment process and minimize what additional information a servicemember needs to collect to complete enrollment; any challenges VA faces getting timely data and information from DoD regarding transitioning servicemembers; and other relevant information to implementing this registration process.

Representing one of the states with the highest rates of veterans per capita, Senator King is a staunch advocate for America’s servicemembers and veterans. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, he has worked to ensure that veterans have access to jobs and training after separating from military service. In 2024, Congress passed Senator King’s bipartisan legislation to improve veterans’ access to health care and benefits. He has been among the Senate’s most prominent voices on the need to address veteran suicide, and has repeatedly pressed for action from top Department of Defense (DoD) officials on this issue. Last summer, Senator King introduced the Lethal Means Safe Storage for Veteran Suicide Prevention Act to help reduce suicides among veterans by providing firearm lockboxes and bolstering mental health training for VA caregivers. He also contributes to the Veterans History Project, a Library of Congress initiative to collect and preserve the stories of American veterans; he most recently interviewed a 101-year-old World War II veteran from Millinocket, Maine. Senator King uses this interview series to learn and share the stories of the lives, service and sacrifices of Maine’s veteran community. Most recently, Senator King introduced bipartisan legislation alongside Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) to lock into law the Veterans Experience Office within the VA.