Sens. Franken, Klobuchar Introduce Bill to Bring Hard-Earned VA and Military Benefits to Minnesota National Guard & Reserve Soldiers Who Served on Active Duty

Press Release

Today, U.S. Sens. Al Franken (D-Minn.) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) introduced new legislation to ensure that Minnesota National Guard and Reserve members who were called to serve on active duty can access their hard-earned health care, education, and retirement benefits.

Under current law, many Guard and Reserve members have found it exceedingly difficult to enroll in military health care, receive GI Bill education support after coming home, or qualify for earlier retirement. In fact, in one instance, members of the Minnesota National Guard who were deployed to the hostile Sinai Peninsula in Egypt had their GI Bill applications rejected after returning home.

Sen. Franken and Klobuchar's measure would fix this oversight by making sure that Guard and Reserve men and women who were called to active duty-including the Minnesotans deployed to the Sinai-aren't denied these important benefits.

"The men and women who serve our country put everything on the line to protect us, and in return, they deserve hard-earned health care, education, and retirement benefits,"said Sen. Franken. "Unfortunately, there are members of the National Guard and Reserve--including several in Minnesota--who can't get care, can't afford college, and are being disqualified from early retirement. My new bill fixes this injustice and is a commonsense action we can take to improve the lives of Minnesotans who serve."

"Our servicemembers deserve nothing but the best; however, due to a loophole in current law, some Minnesota National Guard and reserve soldiers have been denied important health, education, and retirement benefits," said Sen. Klobuchar. "Our legislation will close this loophole and help ensure these servicemembers can access the hard-earned benefits they deserve."

Last month, Sen. Franken penned a bipartisan letter to Defense Secretary Ash Carter about working to address this problem.

Source