Hudson Hosts House VA Committee at Fayetteville Field Hearing

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – On Friday, March 23, U.S. Representative Richard Hudson (NC-08), the representative of Fort Bragg, hosted the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs to conduct an open oversight field hearing entitled, “Partnering, Payment and Provider Access: VA Community Care in North Carolina.” Rep. Hudson was joined by Chairman Phil Roe, M.D. (TN-01), Rep. Neal Dunn, M.D. (FL-02), and Rep. Robert Pittenger (NC-09) for the hearing at Fayetteville Technical Community College.

During the hearing, Rep. Hudson and the Committee heard from caregivers, veterans, representatives from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and community health providers and discussed strategies to improve the VA’s care in the community programs – including the Choice program – to facilitate access to timely, quality care for veterans in North Carolina, both inside the VA health care system and in the community. As part of that conversation, the Committee assessed actions that may be needed to strengthen VA’s community partnerships, create successful working relationships with community providers, and streamline prompt payment and access to information.

Rep. Robert Pittenger (NC-09), Rep. Neal Dunn, M.D. (FL-02), Chairman Phil Roe, M.D. (TN-01), and Rep. Richard Hudson (NC-08)

Please see below for highlights and excerpts from the field hearing.

The chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs held an open session Friday in Fayetteville to discuss veterans care.

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U.S. Rep Richard Hudson was in attendance. "This bureaucracy is not going to get fixed unless Congress makes it get fixed, and we're working really hard on doing that," said US Rep. Richard Hudson. Hudson and Chairman Phil Roe said they're taking the concerns back to Washington to urge lawmakers to get to work on these important issues.

Four House Republicans gathered as part of the hearing, which was hosted by Fayetteville Technical Community College. They included two members of the committee – chairman Rep. Phil Roe of Tennessee and Rep. Neal Dunn of Florida – and two congressmen representing Fayetteville and the surrounding communities – Reps. Richard Hudson and Robert Pittenger.

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Roe and Dunn each praised Hudson and Pittenger for their efforts to help local veterans. And the two local congressmen said they were committed to improving access to VA care.

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Several veterans service organizations from across North Carolina attended the hearing. Afterward, Hudson and Pittenger encouraged veterans and organizations to reach out to their offices with issues or suggestions to improve care for veterans.

“Veterans all have a voice,” Hudson said. “This is a good opportunity for us to have our voices heard.”

Today a North Carolina Congressman is in Fayetteville to find ways to improve care [for veterans] in North Carolina.

Fort Bragg’s Congressman Richard Hudson says he’s listening. “We hear about the wait times for folks just to get in to have the care. So to me it’s loud and clear that veterans need more flexibility to choose their provider.”

Congressman Richard Hudson said he wanted to bring lawmakers from Washington here to Fayetteville today to hear from veterans out in the field. Specifically today’s hearing focused on problems that veterans have quickly accessing care they need and then also getting reimbursed when they have to go to the private sector to receive care that’s been authorized by the VA.

“It’s kind of like my two and a half-year old son. His teeth are not going to get brushed unless I make him brush his teeth,” said Rep. Hudson. “This bureaucracy is not going to get fixed unless Congress makes it get fixed.”