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Last night, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 3230, the The Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014 by a vote of 420-5. This wide-ranging bill expands a VA facility in Cobb County and includes legislation championed by Congressman Scott to recruit more mental health professionals and to allow for in-state tuition.
 
“Ever since the scandals at the Atlanta VA have been exposed, I have been fighting to improve service at the VA,” Congressman Scott said. “Last year, I toured the Atlanta VA with the Republican Chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee and I was the first to call for the resignation of Secretary Shinseki. But, this was not politics for me. This is a serious problem in need of full bi-partisan commitment to change the culture at the VA. H.R. 3230 is a major step toward these goals. But, our work is not over. I will keep working on this issue until I hear from Georgia veterans that they are receiving first class care in a timely manner.”
 
To improve access to and quality of care for veterans, the bill would allow a veteran who is enrolled in the VA health care system to receive care outside of the VA system if the veteran is unable to secure an appointment at a VA medical facility within 30 days or if the veteran resides more than 40 miles from the nearest VA medical facility. To expand the VA’s internal capacity to provide timely care to veterans, the bill would authorize 27 major medical facility leases, including $6.4 million to expand the outpatient clinic in Austell.

To provide real accountability for incompetent or corrupt senior managers, the bill would authorize the VA to fire or demote Senior Executive Service (SES) employees for poor performance or misconduct.
 
“I am glad that legislation that I have sponsored is included in H.R. 3230,” Congressman Scott said. “First, this measure will include expanded student loan repayment programs to recruit specialty doctors, including psychiatrists, to the VA. Second, this bill allows for veterans to receive in-state tuition.”
 
H.R. 3230 includes improved student loan repayment incentives to recruit more specialty doctors at the VA. Earlier this year, Congressman Scott introduced H.R. 4234, the Ensuring Veterans Resiliency Act, with Rep. Larry Buschon. Their bill would help recruit more psychiatric physicians through a loan repayment program.
 
To improve education benefits for veterans and dependents, the bill would require public colleges to provide in-state tuition to veterans and eligible dependents in order for the school to remain eligible to receive G.I. Bill education payments. This is an issue that Congressman Scott has long championed. In 2003, he introduced H.R.1991, the Military In-State Tuition Act of 2003 and in 2005 he introduced H.R.197, the Military In-State Tuition Act of 2005.
 
For more information, visit the Veterans Affairs Committee website.

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