Peace Garden News

The Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee has unanimously advanced two bills led by Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) aimed at improving health care access for rural veterans and expanding suicide prevention services in states that have not previously received such support. The legislation will now move to the Senate floor for further consideration.

Senator Cramer, a member of the committee, emphasized the importance of ensuring all veterans receive adequate care. “It doesn’t matter where a veteran lives, every veteran has earned access to quality and timely health care,” said Cramer. “These bipartisan bills do a couple of things. The one ensures veterans across rural America, including North Dakota, can travel to their medical appointments, whether it’s in their community or at a VA facility. And then, it allows every veteran across the country to be able to receive suicide prevention support if they need it. It’s time to pass this measure on the Senate floor. I know it will pass easily; we just need our leadership to put it up.”

In April, Senators Cramer and Chris Coons (D-DE) introduced the Every State Counts for Veterans Mental Health Act. This bill prioritizes applications for SSG Fox Suicide Prevention Grant Program (SPGP) funding from entities in states like North Dakota and Delaware that have not previously received grants under this program. The proposal is included within the broader Helping Optimize Prevention and Engagement (HOPE) for Heroes Act, which reauthorizes SSG Fox SPGP and increases grant funding for mental health support providers serving veterans.

Additionally, language supporting improved access to suicide prevention services was included by Senator Cramer in the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations package with the aim of ensuring that North Dakota veterans are eligible for these resources.

The Supporting Rural Veterans Access to Healthcare Services Act also advanced out of committee. Introduced with Senators Angus King (I-ME) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK), this bill would permanently reauthorize the Department of Veterans Affairs Highly Rural Transportation Grant Program (HRTG). The HRTG provides free transportation for veterans living in rural areas so they can attend VA-authorized healthcare appointments. The new legislation would expand eligibility to Tribal Organizations and Veterans Service Organizations and offer more assistance for purchasing vehicles needed for transportation programs. Thirty-five counties in North Dakota currently benefit from HRTG-supported services.

The committee also approved two other measures cosponsored by Senator Cramer: The Service Dogs Assisting Veterans (SAVES) Act would establish grants supporting nonprofits providing service dogs to eligible veterans—a step building on previous legislation such as the PAWS for Veterans Therapy Act signed into law in 2021—and the Veterans Cost of Living Adjustment Act would require cost-of-living increases in compensation rates for disabled veterans as well as dependency benefits for survivors.