Photo Courtesy of Sen. Gillibrand’s Office
“I’m proud to introduce this legislation to recognize the extraordinary sacrifice of all of our veterans, including women veterans, and I urge my colleagues to quickly pass it into law,” Sen. Gillibrand said.
By Forum Staff
U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-Garden City) announced on Thursday that they will introduce a new bill to revise the mission statement for the Department of Veterans Affairs to be more inclusive of women veterans and surviving family members.
The current VA mission statement is a quotation from President Abraham Lincoln that reads: “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan.” As it stands, the mission statement fails to recognize the service and sacrifice of the thousands of women in uniform who have served the country, Gillibrand and Rice said. The bill that they are introducing would change the mission statement to read: “To fulfill President Lincoln’s promise to care for those ‘who shall have borne the battle’ and for their families, caregivers, and survivors.”
Additionally, the measure would require that within 30 days of enactment, the secretary of Veterans Affairs publish a notification on the department’s website explaining the mission statement change, update each department website, and issue guidance and a timeline to the entire department for updating all previous mission statement references. Within six months, the secretary will be required to submit a report to Congress on the department’s compliance.
The number of women serving on active duty has grown substantially in recent decades—more than 345,000 women have deployed since Sept. 11—and as a result, the number of women veterans is expected to reach a record high.
“Women have served in our military and given their lives to defend our nation since the founding of the country, and that includes the thousands of women who have made the brave and selfless decision to serve in our armed forces around the world today. It’s time for the VA’s motto to formally reflect that fact,” Gillibrand said. “I’m proud to introduce this legislation to recognize the extraordinary sacrifice of all of our veterans, including women veterans, and I urge my colleagues to quickly pass it into law. Our women veterans were willing to give their lives to this country, and I will always do everything in my power to make sure their service and sacrifices are given the respect they deserve.”
Gillibrand and Rice noted that the VA’s current mission statement underscores larger feelings of disenfranchisement and inequality among women veterans. A study recently published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine on mental health care services at VA provided insight into women veterans’ experiences at VA facilities and the challenges they face in accessing mental health services. The study found that women veterans: are significantly more likely to believe that they are not entitled to or eligible for VA mental health services; face unique barriers to VA care, largely related to challenges associated with being a woman in a traditionally male-dominated system, as well as issues that are specific to military sexual trauma; and experience frustration with both having to prove they are veterans and combat veterans to VA doctors who question or belittle their war experience.
