For Immediate Release
Saturday, November 11th, 2023
Contact: Victoria Opperman, communications@azdem.org

Arizona Democratic Party Statement on Veterans Day

Today, Arizona Democratic Party Chair Yolanda Bejarano released the following statement commemorating Veterans Day:

“On Veterans Day, we honor the bravery of those who have served our nation and the sacrifices they made to protect our freedom. On this day, and everyday, we continue to recognize the dedication these men and women have made so that we can live free and recommit to supporting them and their families.

From expanding access to health care for veterans by signing into law the historic PACT Act to taking action to end veteran homelessness. Arizona Democrats are continuously grateful that President Biden and Vice President Harris are standing up for our nation’s heroes and delivering for America’s veterans. While Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans like Rep. David Schweikert (AZ-01) who voted TWICE against the PACT Act have repeatedly failed and left behind those that have served our country. Democrats will continue fighting to protect those who have risked everything to protect us.”

Here’s how the Biden-Harris administration is delivering for veterans:

• Expanded access to health care for toxic-exposed veterans so they can receive the care they need — including granting over 8,043 claims for veterans in Arizona. Throughout the nation, the PACT Act has been delivering for veterans:

1. 1. Over 4.1 million veterans have received free screenings from the VA for toxic exposures
   2. More than $1.85 billion in benefits have been delivered to veterans and their survivors
   3. 332,252 Veterans, including 113,719 individuals from the PACT Act population, have enrolled in VA health care.
   4. Increasing the VA’s capacity to serve veterans through an expanded outreach campaign

• Fighting to end homeless veterans by helping find permanent housing for over 40,000 veterans, working to triple the number of rental assistance vouchers for extremely low-income veterans, and providing grants to support job training programs for homeless veterans to help reintegrate them into the workforce
• Investing in mental health and suicide prevention efforts for veterans
• Giving veterans more flexibility with choosing caregivers and expanding caregiver support programs – including mental health services for caregivers

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