Success Story

IAVA Joins Lawmakers on Capitol Hill to Applaud New Stop-Loss, GI Bill Benefits
June 17 2009

On June 17th, IAVA joined House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, other lawmakers and the National Military Families Association (NMFA) on Capitol Hill in applauding the House of Representatives for taking action on three critical issues impacting veterans and millitary families:  advanced funding for VA health care, retroactive stop-loss payments and new education benefits for Gold Star families. 

"Today, IAVA is pleased to join Speaker Pelosi in applauding the House for listening to the veterans’ community and taking decisive action on behalf of our nation’s veterans and their families," said IAVA Executive Director Paul Rieckhoff.  "In just the last twenty-four hours, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle put aside partisan politics to ensure that the sacrifices of our men and women in uniform do not go unrecognized.  With these bills, the VA can improve health care access for six million veterans, thousands of troops will receive the overtime stop-loss compensation they deserve, and the children of servicemembers who have made the ultimate sacrifice can pursue an education."

• Interested in learning more about the provisions for advanced appropriations, GI Bill benefit transferability and retroactive stop-loss payments?  Click here to read a dispatch from IAVA Legislative Associate Tom Tarantino.
• Click here to read an editorial from IAVA Executive Director Paul Rieckhoff applauding Congressional efforts to ensure stop-lossed troops receive compensation for their overtime.