There are more than 845,000 veterans in Illinois and roughly 35,000 residing within Illinois’ 6th Congressional District. Congressman Roskam takes seriously his responsibility to ensure the brave men and women who have selflessly served our nation are provided the best care and resources available to them when they return home.
Since coming to Congress in January 2007, Congressman Roskam has stood up for our veterans by ensuring their health care premiums and co-pays do not increase. He has voted to double the travel reimbursement rate for disabled veterans traveling to and from Veterans Administration health care facilities and worked to address the deplorable conditions at Walter Reed’s outpatient facility.
In August 2008, Congressman voted to increase funding to all veterans health care, construction, housing, and support programs $4.6 billion above the previous year’s funding level and $2.8 billion above the President’s request.
Post Traumatic Stress Funding
As an often unseen cost of war, post-traumatic stress disorder impacts more veterans than ever before. This is why Congressman Roskam has consistently supported legislation to increase veterans care.
Roskam was proud to support the House version of FY08 Military Construction/VA Appropriations which contained a $18.2 billion increase of veteran funding over 2007.
- Including $37.1 billion for the Veterans Health Administration
- $600 million for new initiative for mental health and PTSD
- $2.9 billion for specialty mental health care
- $4.1 billion for VA’s medical facilities account to address current maintenance needs in order to prevent a Walter Reed-type scandal from occurring
Jobs for Returning Veterans
“Congressman Peter Roskam is spearheading an effort to make it easier for employers to get tax credits when they hire Iraq war veterans” - WBBM, 4/4/08
Congressman Roskam is working on bipartisan legislation to make it easier for returning veterans to be hired by employers through a tax credit incentive system. Nationwide, unemployment among veterans is disproportionately high at 10.4 percent, more than double Chicago’s overall jobless rate of 4.7 percent.
Original Cosponsor of GI Bill
Congressman Roskam was an original cosponsor of Democrat Senator Jim Webb's 21st Century GI Bill, which rewards those who serve by expanding the GI bill to provide a full, four-year college benefit to veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
Congressman Roskam was an original cosponsor and helped pass the 21st Century GI Bill, which rewards those who serve by expanding the GI bill to provide a full, four-year college benefit to veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars.
This bill accounted for the largest expansion of education benefits and opportunities for veterans in United States history.
Teamsters Helmets-to-Hardhats Program
“The Illinois Teamsters so-called "Helmets to Hardhats" program says unemployment is unacceptably high among veterans, so it makes no sense that the requirements for one program to help veterans get jobs are unusually high as well. Congressman Peter Roskam agrees.”- WBBM, 4/4/08
Congressman Roskam is a strong supporter of the Helmets to Hardhats program which connects National Guard, Reserve and transitioning active-duty military members with quality career training and employment opportunities within the construction industry.
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