Secretary McDonald

The Department of Veterans Affairs announced that it will soon be able to provide in vitro fertilization (IVF) to eligible unmarried Veterans and eligible Veterans in same-sex marriages.

The Department of Veterans Affairs will deploy 25 mobile medical units across the country during the next six months to provide health care and support to homeless and at-risk Veterans.

Secretary McDonough discusses a wide range of topics and introduces newly confirmed Under Secretary for Benefits Joshua Jacobs.

The Department of Veterans Affairs has added several key leaders to the team in recent months, all of whom will help VA serve Veterans, their families, caregivers and survivors.

Kim Bracey, thank you for that kind introduction. It’s a tremendous honor to join so many extraordinary Veterans and community leaders to celebrate the life and enduring legacy of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

On Aug. 1, the Department of Veterans Affairs awarded $431 million in grants to 258 non-profit organizations across the nation to help homeless and at-risk Veterans and their families.

What Objective Rally Point is about, what Code of Support is about . . . let me just say that what you’re doing for Veterans is one of my highest priorities. That is, bringing Veterans and businesses together.

We have all been given one of the greatest gifts possible by America's Veterans—the opportunity to live in a country as free and as prosperous as the United States. The question is: Are we earning it?

Today—even though there are 2 million fewer Veterans than in 2009—there are nearly 1.2 million more Veterans receiving some type of VA care and services, 1.2 million more Veterans are enrolled for VA healthcare, 1.3 million more receive disability compensation, a half-million more Veterans have VA home loans, and we’ve seen a 76 percent increase in Veterans receiving educational benefits.

Let me speak directly to all the Veteran caregivers. I admire what you do. It’s a legacy as old as the nation itself. And it’s profoundly important for Veterans in so many ways.

Supporting Veteran caregivers is supporting our Veterans. Their hard work is essential to helping wounded, ill, and injured Veterans recover more quickly. They’re making Veterans’ lives better with their skill, with their compassion, with their love.

By 2020, Americans aged 65 and over will have grown from 15% to 22% of the population. The population of Americans 85 and older will grow from about 6 million to nearly 12 million by 2035.