Hamadeh's VA Staffing Bill Passes Committee

Representative Abe Hamadeh (R-AZ) celebrated the recent passage of his Health Professionals Scholarship Program (HPSP) Improvement Act out of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee.

The bipartisan HPSP Improvement Act requires the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ensure HPSP recipients receive full-time employment contracts at the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) no less than 90 days after completing their studies.

Additionally, the bill requires a hiring report to be sent to the House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees to identify the most essential jobs and the needs of VA facilities.

"I want to thank Congresswoman [Nikki] Budzinski (D-IL) for joining me in offering this bipartisan bill to address a critical gap in VA healthcare delivery," Rep. Hamadeh said in his press release, adding, "The Inspector General's reports are clear: staffing shortages are compromising veteran care. Wait times for urgent and emergency care continue to climb while qualified healthcare professionals sit idle, waiting months for the VA bureaucracy to process their employment contracts."

Rep. Hamadeh further emphasized the HPSP Improvement Act's cutting of red tape to ensure that recipients are hired and appointed where needed in a timely manner, and how "the core mission of the HPSP Improvement Act is about getting doctors and nurses into VA facilities where veterans need them most."

"My fellow veterans in Arizona's 8^th District deserve better than the status quo," the Arizona Congressman concluded. "When I served as an Army Intelligence Officer, we lived by a simple principle: mission first, people always. This embodies that commitment."

In March, Hamadeh introduced the Standardized Accreditation Information for Veteran Ease (SAVE) Act, which enhances the accreditation of individuals and organizations assisting veterans in filing benefits claims by requiring them to create and use a certification symbol for websites and other promotional materials. The act also establishes civil penalties for those who misuse the emblem.

"Veterans should not have to question whether or not the information provided by a government agency could put them at risk of fraudsters or unaccredited organizations that would take advantage of their need for assistance," Hamadeh said about the bill.