Wisconsin is the proud home of servicemembers, veterans, and military families who have made incredible sacrifices for our country. Tammy has worked across party lines to do right by our veterans and make sure they have the care, good paying jobs, and community support that they have earned and deserve.

Expanding health care and benefits to more than 3.5 million servicemembers

Tammy helped pass legislation to expand VA health care and benefits to the more than 3.5 million veterans who were exposed to toxic burn pits during their service in the 1990s and post-9/11 wars. The Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring Our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics of 2022 (PACT Act) is the most significant expansion of veteran benefits and care in more than three decades.

Improving Veterans’ Care In The VA And Their Communities

Tammy has met with veterans across Wisconsin to hear their ideas for improving their health care. For veterans facing incredible frustrations and delays while looking for care in their own communities through the VA Choice Program, Tammy developed a three-point plan to cut bureaucratic red tape, increase oversight of contractors like HealthNet, and streamline scheduling.

In VA facilities, whistleblowers hold the system accountable to our veterans. Joining a small coalition of Republicans and Democrats, Tammy pushed to pass the Department of Veterans Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act. Signed into law by President Trump, these VA reforms will protect future whistleblowers and allow the VA Secretary to fire bad employees who put our veterans in harm’s way.

Veterans across America are stuck in limbo after the broken VA appeals process led to a massive backlog of thousands of unresolved cases. Working with a broad group of Republicans and Democrats, Tammy passed the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act. It was signed into law by President Trump to cut the VA’s unacceptable backlog and allow our veterans to get back to living their lives.

Creating Good Paying Jobs and Strengthening Support for Veterans

Tammy has worked across party lines to make sure that when our veterans return home, they have the good paying jobs and community support that they need. Joined by Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Tammy introduced the BRAVE Act — bipartisan legislation that incentivizes businesses to hire veterans.

When many veterans return home, they are targeted by shady credit card companies and financial scams that seek to cheat them. Tammy did right by our veterans and their families by pushing to create the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, which has put millions of dollars back into the pockets of scammed servicemembers. Tammy then introduced the Military Consumer Enforcement Act to protect our active duty servicemembers from unfair eviction, exploitative debt collection practices, and other fraudulent schemes.

Jason’s Law: A Family’s Tragedy Turned Into Hope For Others

Like too many of our veterans, U.S. Marine veteran Jason Simcakoski went to the VA to get help, but instead got hooked on prescription drugs. Tragically, Jason Simcakoski died in 2014 from mixed drug toxicity while receiving care at the Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center. The Simcakoski family decided to turn their tragedy into hope for other military families. Working closely with Tammy, they crafted bipartisan legislation named in honor of Jason to reform the VA and help stop the overprescribing of opioids at the VA.

Tammy and the Simcakoski family worked together to get the job done, building support for the legislation from Republicans and Democrats, veterans service organizations, and medical professionals across the country. Following Tammy and the Simcakoski family’s hard work to see the bipartisan bill passed in the Senate and House, it was then signed into law as Jason’s Law.

Jason’s Law has strengthened opioid prescribing guidelines and implemented new oversight and accountability rules at the VA. It’s also helping provide safer and more effective pain management services for veterans across the country.

Tammy has also introduced additional bipartisan VA prescribing reforms. Their bipartisan Veterans Overmedication Prevention Act confronts the overmedication of veterans and would help prevent suicide deaths.