I hope you are all enjoying the summer. This week, I helped pass a comprehensive VA reform bill to improve health care for our veterans. I also spoke in support of New Hampshire small farmers at an Agriculture subcommittee hearing on inappropriate actions by the Department of Labor. 

Making Progress for Veterans

I was extremely pleased that the House passed a comprehensive bill – which I helped introduce – to address widespread mismanagement at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). As a member of the U.S. House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, I have long urged passage of legislation to address the problems at the VA to ensure that all veterans can receive the health care services they need in a timely manner. We owe our veterans an enormous debt of gratitude for their courageous service, and they should never – under any circumstances – have to wait to receive the health services they need and deserve.

I’m proud of my colleagues in the House for coming together to pass this comprehensive legislation, which will help the VA reduce wait times, provide avenues for New Hampshire veterans to pursue non-VA care closer to home so they won't have to travel to Boston, and increase transparency and oversight at the VA so this kind of mismanagement never happens again. Last week, I sent a letter to House and Senate leadership calling on Congress to stay in session until comprehensive VA reform has passed, and I applaud the Senate for voting last night to get this done. I’m pleased to announce that this legislation is now on its way to the President’s desk to be signed into law.

But our work is far from done. So much more must be done to ensure our veterans can always easily access the care they need, I call on the VA to continue to work with Congress to implement important reforms that will get the VA back on track and put our veterans first. 

Advocating for NH Farmers

On Wednesday, I participated in an Agriculture Subcommittee hearing on the impact of Department of Labor practices on fruit and vegetable growers. I spoke about the importance of protecting small farmers from excessive federal bureaucracy, and allowing them to thrive and produce essential crops. While I believe that enforcing our labor standards and ensuring the equitable treatment of farm workers is incredibly important, I am concerned about the heavy-handed actions taken by the Department of Labor in certain cases and I’ll continue working to ensure that the success of our farmers is not hampered by overly burdensome regulations.

Thanking Our Excellent Interns

Thank you to the wonderful interns in both my Concord and Washington offices for all of your hard work and positive energy throughout the summer. They assist my staff with a variety of projects, from policy research, to leading Capitol tours, to interacting with all of you on the phones and in person. Their commitment to public service at such a young age is an inspiration! To Katie, Asher, Emily, Sam, Irina, Mike, and Sean: best of luck back at college and please stay in touch.

Helping Granite Staters

I was recently contacted by Mark Yetman, from Bethlehem, about two Medicare issues he was experiencing.  He still had not received his Medicare card after many requests, and was being billed for a prescription drug plan he did not want.  Our office was able to obtain a card for him and ensure that he was dis-enrolled from coverage he did not want, without any financial penalty. If my office may ever be of assistance with a problem you are facing, please contact my staff at 603-226-1002 so we may help you resolve your problem or get you the information you need. 

Have a great week and thanks for everything you do to make New Hampshire such a special place to live!