TEAM Act of 2020

H.R. 617 - Department of Energy Veterans' Health Initiative Act; H.R. 748 - CARES Act; H.R. 886 - Veteran Treatment Court Coordination Action of 2019; H.R. 1271 - Vet HP Act; H.R. 1812 - Vet Center Eligibility Expansion Act; H.R. 2359 - Whole Veteran Act; H.R. 2372 - Veterans Care Quality Transparency Act; H.R. 2385 - Veterans Legacy Program; H.R. 2629 - CARE for Reservists Act of 2019; H.R. 3221 - Dependency and Indemnity Compensation Improvement Act of 2019; H.R. 3224 - Deborah Sampson Act; H.R. 3504 - Ryan Kules and Paul Benne Specialty Adaptive Housing Improvement Act of 2019; H.R. 3587 - VA Website Accessibility Act of 2019; H.R. 4477 - Reducing High Risk to Veterans and Veterans Services Act; H.R. 4511 - Veteran Benefits Enhancement & Expansion Act; H.R. 4625 - Protect the GI Bill; H.R. 5050 - Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act; H.R. 6168 - Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act; H.R. 6589 - VA Chief Financial Officer Authority and Collaboration Act of 2020; H.R. 6933 - Caring for Survivors Act of 2020; H.R. 7105 - DELIVER Act; H.R. 7469 - Modernizing Veterans Healthcare Eligibility Act; H.R. 7608 - State, Foreign Operations, Agriculture, Rural Development, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Act; H.R. 8207 - Justice for Servicemembers Act of 2020; H.R. 8247 - Veterans COMPACT Act of 2020; H.R. 8319 - FY 2021 Continuing Appropriations & Other Extensions Act; H.R. 8354 - Servicemembers and Veterans Initiative Act of 2020; H.R. 8412 - Community Care Wait Time Transparency Act; H.R. 8483 - Pandemic Assistance for Student Veterans Act; H.R. 8484 - Ensuring Survivors Benefits during COVID-19 Act of 2020; H.R. 8506 - Veterans Exposed to Toxic Substances; H.R. 8559 - Surviving Families Benefit Expansion Act; H.R. 8900 - Further Continuing Appropriations Act 2021; S. 332 - Agent Orange Exposure Fairness Act; S. 450 - Veterans Improved Access and Care Act; S. 514 - Deborah Sampson Act; S. 524 - Tribal Advisory Committee Act; S. 629 - Accountability in Department of Veterans Affairs Scheduling and Consult Management Act; S. 711 - CARE for Reservists Act of 2019; S. 743 - Merrill's Marauders Congressional Gold Medal Act; S. 785 - Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act; S. 1047 - A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to create a dependency and indemnity compensation allowance for surviving spouses receiving dependency and indemnity compensation from the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.; S. 2096 - NCA Grants for Training; S. 2216 - A bill to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to formally recognize caregivers of veterans, notify veterans and caregivers of clinical determinations relating to eligibility for caregiver programs, and temporarily extend benefits for veterans who are determined ineligible for the family caregiver program, and for other purposes.; S. 2558 - Nursing Home Care for Native American Veterans Act; S. 2661 - National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020; S. 2833 - Veterans and Consumers Fair Credit Act; S. 3182 - HEALTH Act; S. 3753 - VA DROP Act; S. 4166 - Ensuring Survivors Benefits during COVID-19 Act of 2021; S. 4287 - COVID-19 Benefits for Active Duty Servicemembers, the Reserve Components, and their Survivors; S. 4384 - K2 Advocacy Act; S. 4393 - TEAM Act of 2020; S. 4460 - State Veterans Homes Domiciliary Care Flexibility Act; S. 4594 - Caring for the Survivors and Families of Veterans Act of 2020; S. 4883 - Brian Tally Act; S. 4909 - Native American Veteran PACT Act; S. 4910 - GRACE Act.

Client expense: $416,877 · Firm income: Not reported

Government targets: Air Force, Dept of, Army, Dept of (Corps of Engineers), Army, Dept of (Other), Commerce, Dept of (DOC), Congressional Budget Office (CBO), Defense Commissary Agency, Defense Department Field Activities, Defense Finance & Accounting Service (DFAS), Defense, Dept of (DOD), Government Accountability Office (GAO), Government Printing Office (GPO), HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Health & Human Services, Dept of (HHS), Homeland Security, Dept of (DHS), Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Natl Guard, Natl Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Navy, Dept of, Office of Management & Budget (OMB), Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Office of the Secretary of Defense, President of the U.S., SENATE, Treasury, Dept of, U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), U.S. Marines, Veterans Affairs, Dept of (VA), Veterans Employment & Training Service, Vice President of the U.S.

Reviewed and discussed H.R. 8506 (House Version of TEAM Act). Discussed strategy for H.R. 5701, Care for the Veteran Caregiver Act and reintroduction in the 117th Congress as H.R. 110. Discussed VAs Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers. Support of Omnibus Veterans Bill (HR 7105). With the Consortium for Citizens with Disabilities: Support the CHAMPVA Childrens Protection Act - Young dependents of catastrophically disabled veterans can be covered for health insurance under this program operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Support legislation to restore reproductive rights of service-disabled veterans - Veterans who have lost the ability to have children through their service to the nation should not be denied the opportunity to have a family. Support legislation to improve mental health care for veterans - the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act in the 116th Congress. Support legislation to remove work disincentives and barriers to employment for veterans with significant disabilities - Veterans with significant service-connected disabilities do not receive adequate transition guidance concerning their rights as persons with disabilities when retiring from the military and the VA vocational rehabilitation program often fails to serve these veterans other than preparing them for a life outside the workforce. Legislation such as the Veterans Economic Recovery Act would strengthen the VA Veterans Readiness and Employment (VR&E) program to provide consistent and predictable benefits for veterans with disabilities. Modernizing the VA Automobile Adaptive Grant program - Congress authorizes VA to provide one-time grants in the amount of $21,058.69 to service-connected disabled veterans to purchase a new or used automobile with appropriate adaptive equipment to accommodate their disability. On average, the cost to replace modified vehicles ranges from $40,000 to $65,000 when the vehicle is new and $21,000 to $35,000 when the vehicle is used. Establish DIC equity with other federal survivor benefits - Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) is a benefit paid to surviving spouses of service members who die in the line of duty or veterans who die from service-related injuries or diseases, and includes additional payments for dependent children. Reduce the 10-Year Rule for DIC - For the survivor of a veteran with a 100 percent disability rating to receive DIC, the veteran must have had that rating for 10 consecutive years. However, if the veteran passes away due to a nonservice-connected condition before reaching 10 consecutive years of being totally disabled, the dependents are not eligible for any DIC benefit. Toxic Exposure in American Military (TEAM) Act Clinical TEAM Culture Act - Provisions like those contained in the Clinical TEAM Culture Act would require VA to develop standards for the provision of care by non-VA providers through the Community Care Program, and require community care providers to complete specified training, including training on suicide and military sexual trauma. Swiftly implement the DOL VETS Disabled Veterans Outreach Program - In 2019, Congress created a Disabled Veterans Outreach Program within DOL VETS to focus on the particular challenges faced by veterans with significant disabilities in returning to the workforce. Unfortunately, the agency has been slow in filling this position. Reverse FCC policy governing automated voice recognition technology and Preserve the Lifeline Program - In mid-2020, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved an application from MachineGenius to provide Internet Protocol Captioned Telephone Service (IP CTS), also known as captioned telephone service, using automatic speech recognition (ASR) only technology. ASR can be problematic for many veterans and others with disabilities. Make improvements in Social Security Administration processing of Wounded Warrior/VAPT disability insurance claims - Claims for SSDI by service members and veterans with catastrophic disabilities are supposed to receive expedited processing by the Social Security Administration. However, an SSA Inspector General report in July 2019 found that the Social Security Administration had no consistent processes in place for handling SSDI claims of service-injured service members or veterans with 100% permanent and total disability ratings from the VA.

Client expense: Not reported · Firm income: $85,000

Government targets: Centers For Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), Centers For Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Defense, Dept of (DOD), Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Health & Human Services, Dept of (HHS), Housing & Urban Development, Dept of (HUD), Labor, Dept of (DOL), Natl Institutes of Health (NIH), Office of Management & Budget (OMB), SENATE, Social Security Administration (SSA), Veterans Affairs, Dept of (VA), White House Office

National Defense Authorization Act for 2021, including military families legislation (HR6395); Deborah Sampson Act and veterans benefits provisions within the year-end FY 2021 Omnibus appropriations package; President-elect Biden personnel nominations, including nominations for secretaries of Defense and Veterans Affairs; Supporting Education Recognition for Veterans during Emergencies Act (HR8105); CDR John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act (S785); Veterans Economic Recovery Act (HR7111 and S3899); Presumptive Benefits for War Fighters Exposed to Burn Pits and Other Toxins Act (HR8261 and S4524); Toxic Exposures in the American Military Act (HR8506 and S4393); Global War on Terror Memorial Location Act (HR5046); National Suicide Hotline Designation Act (HR4194 and S2661); Fair Access to Co-ops for Veterans Act (HR5923); Pandemic Care for Burn Pits Exposure Act (S3868); and other veterans, military, and military family legislation supported through our association with The Military Coalition.

Client expense: $74,100 · Firm income: Not reported

Government targets: Defense, Dept of (DOD), HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, SENATE, Veterans Affairs, Dept of (VA)