Wounded Warrior Project Issues Statement on the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act
WASHINGTON, DC (June 29, 2026) – Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) CEO Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Walt Piatt today released a statement on the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act (H.R. 9237/S. 4744).
Read Piatt’s full statement here.
After conducting a thorough review, Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) supports S. 4744 and H.R. 9237, the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act, and urges Congress to continue advancing this critical legislation on behalf of veterans, service members, families, survivors, and caregivers.
This comprehensive package reflects years of bipartisan, bicameral work and includes more than 60 provisions to strengthen veterans’ benefits, health care, education, transition assistance, caregiver support, and survivor services. Taken together, these reforms would deliver meaningful, long-term improvements for millions in the veteran community — both today and in the future.
WWP is especially encouraged by the inclusion of the Major Richard Star Act, our top legislative priority. This long-overdue reform would finally address the unjust offset that forces more than 59,000 medically retired, combat-injured veterans to forfeit a portion of their earned military retirement pay in order to receive disability compensation. Correcting this injustice would have a meaningful and lasting impact on some of the most severely wounded veterans we represent.
The bill also includes important provisions to expand mental health services, improve spinal cord injury care and prosthetics, strengthen support for survivors and families, enhance caregiver programs, and advance services for women veterans — delivering long-sought improvements across the community.
At the same time, WWP shares the community’s concerns regarding the offsetting provisions included in the bill, particularly the proposal to codify changes to how the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) evaluates future claims and compensates veterans for service-connected sleep apnea and tinnitus. Embedding changes to the Veterans Affairs Schedule for Rating Disabilities (VASRD) in statute is an uncommon approach and, under normal circumstances, one we would not support.
Recent public comments from VA have raised new questions about whether the regulatory changes underlying the bill’s pay-for assumptions will be implemented as anticipated. After engaging with coalition partners and leading veterans and military service organizations, WWP has reassessed these unresolved issues and urges VA and the White House to provide immediate clarity on whether similar rating-schedule changes may proceed independently through regulation, executive direction, or other administrative action.
That transparency is essential because the bill’s financing rests on assumptions that remain unresolved. If similar changes move forward outside this legislation, potential savings could revert to the Treasury rather than be reinvested in veterans, families, survivors, and caregivers.
WWP maintains that long-overdue benefits should not be limited by budgetary mechanisms that are poorly aligned with earned veterans’ benefits. Ideally, Congress would advance these priorities without requiring offsets from future disability compensation, including by waiving pay-as-you-go requirements for provisions that fulfill longstanding commitments to those who have served.
Ultimately, this moment is about whether Congress can turn long-standing bipartisan agreement on the provisions in this package into meaningful action for veterans, survivors, caregivers, and families who have waited too long. The practical question before us is whether this process should continue so these resources can be reinvested into the veteran community, or whether the opportunity to enact this package is lost while unresolved funding questions remain. WWP believes the goodness and positive impact of this package should not be lost in the debate over its financing.
As Congress continues its consideration of this bill, WWP urges lawmakers to preserve and strengthen key protections in any final package, including protections for those currently serving, no retroactive harm to veterans currently receiving compensation, prospective application only to future claims, and responsible implementation that expands benefits without undermining those that veterans and Service members have already earned.
WWP remains committed to working with Congress, VA, the Administration, and coalition partners to strengthen this legislation, identify other credible alternatives, and secure the strongest possible outcome. We will continue to support any final proposal that expands access to critical benefits and advances key priorities — specifically the Major Richard Star Act and the Sharri Briley and Eric Edmundson Veterans Benefits Expansion Act.
Twenty-three years ago, WWP was founded on a promise to stand by those who defend our freedom — no matter what. That promise continues to guide our work and drive our efforts to advance bipartisan solutions that strengthen support for veterans and their families.
We urge swift action to advance the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act and stand ready to work with lawmakers in both chambers to honor our nation’s commitments to all those who served.
About Wounded Warrior Project
Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP) is the nation's leading veterans service organization, focused on the total well-being of veterans, service members, and their families. Our programs, advocacy, and awareness efforts help warriors thrive, provide essential lifelines to families and caregivers, and prevent veteran suicides. Learn more about Wounded Warrior Project.
Media Contact: Olya Voytovich, 904.677.2659, OVoytovich@woundedwarriorproject.org