WASHINGTON, DC – In an effort to provide our nation’s combat veterans and their families with a broad range of counseling, outreach, and referral services, Congress established Vet Centers nationwide in 1979.  These facilities help guide eligible veterans and their families through major adjustments in lifestyle that often occur after a veteran returns from combat.  Vet Center services are free and confidential and may include Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and marriage and family counseling, as well as alcohol and substance abuse assessment.  Vets Centers can also help with job referrals and other issues and interventions that are designed to help veterans from experiencing bigger problems down the road.

There are about 300 Vets Centers nationwide, including one in in Rhode Island (Warwick) and three in Montana (Billings, Great Falls, and Missoula).

Today, there is a need to enhance these community-based Vet Centers and eliminate barriers to care to better serve our nation’s combat veterans and their families and help them make successful transitions from active duty to civilian life.

U.S. Senator Jack Reed (D-RI), Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, and U.S. Senator Jon Tester (D-MT), the Chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee, teamed up to introduce the Vet Center Improvement Act.  This legislation is an outgrowth of a Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation that Senators Reed and Tester requested last year into allegations that changes to performance metrics at Vet Centers may have negatively impacted care and additional concerns about staffing practices.  The subsequent GAO report, issued in September 2020, concluded that recent changes “have the potential to negatively affect care and create undue burden and stress on counselors providing that care at some Vet Centers.”  This report included recommendations to improve care, transparency, and hiring and staffing methods that form the foundation for our legislation.

“Vets Centers provide life-changing, life-saving assistance, and this bill will ensure they have the capacity and resources to meet growing demand.  Any combat veteran who needs mental health counselling or other treatment should get the help they need.  It can take a lot to seek help, so we need to ensure the door is open, the welcome mat is out, and veterans and their families or caregivers have access to the resources they need and that the care and treatment they receive is top-notch.  That means ensuring our Vet Centers are properly staffed and can offer the necessary level of care and assistance.  The Vets Center Improvement Act would go a long way toward providing better help and heading off other issues down the road,” said Senator Reed.

“Vet Centers are an invaluable resource for veterans and families to access mental health care, counseling, and supportive services in the community,” said Senator Tester. “To keep Vet Centers providing this top-notch care, our bill directs VA to establish necessary metrics to prevent staff burnout and keep these centers running as smoothly as possible. And, it establishes a pilot program that’ll make sure all veterans, servicemembers, and their families have the resources they need to put food on the table.”

Companion legislation is being offered in the U.S. House of Representatives by Congressman David Cicilline.

“Vet Centers are a critical resource for our men and women in uniform,” said Congressman Cicilline. “This bill will help ensure they have the staff and resources necessary at a time when more veterans are seeking mental health care, counseling, and other life-saving services. It’s critical that we get this important bill signed into law so Vet Centers can continue meeting the needs of our country’s heroes.”

Specifically, the Vet Center Improvement Act requires periodic review and reform of performance standards at Vet Centers; the creation and periodic reevaluation of a staffing model, along with standardization of position descriptions and responsibilities across Vet Centers; the creation of a working group to implement changes to improve quality of care for veterans and recruitment and retention of staff; and the GAO to review Vet Center infrastructure and examine what future investments are needed.

Additionally, the bill creates a pilot program to provide $50 million in federal grants to combat food insecurity and provide necessary utility bill assistance to veterans and their families.  Food insecurity and the need for heating and cooling assistance are growing issues for veterans and others as a result of the pandemic.

SUMMARY: Vet Center Improvement Act (S. 1944)

Requires VA to Periodically Review and Reform Productivity Expectations for RCS Counselors by evaluating its performance metrics and implementing needed changes.  Ensures that RCS counselors are able to provide systematic feedback anonymously and requires appropriate storage of data to facilitate mandatory evaluations by GAO and third parties. 

Improves Staffing and Hiring Practices at Vet Centers by requiring the creation and implementation of a staffing model to improve availability of care and proper staffing levels through the standardization of position descriptions and responsibilities across Vet Centers.

Creates a Working Group of RCS Counselors, Outreach Specialists, and Directors to evaluate productivity expectations and staffing levels.  The working group will provide feedback to improve quality and access to care for veterans and recruitment, retention, and welfare of staff.

Requires a GAO Report on Vet Center Infrastructure and Future Investments to study the adequacy, and future needs of, Vet Centers to ensure that veterans, their families, and those that provide care for them, have the resources they need. 


Creates a Pilot Program to Combat Food Insecurity among Veterans and Their Families authorized at $50 million to support partnerships between Vet Centers, local organizations, and Veteran Service Organizations (VSOs) to provide nutrition education and benefit counseling to veterans to reduce food insecurity and provide essential heating assistance for veterans and their families.