Bost Seeks VA Review of VFW Over Cartoon as 60-Bill Veterans Package Splits Groups
Updated
Updated · Military Times · Jul 10
Bost Seeks VA Review of VFW Over Cartoon as 60-Bill Veterans Package Splits Groups
3 articles · Updated · Military Times · Jul 10
Summary
July 1 brought the dispute into public view when House Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost blasted a VFW advocacy cartoon and, with Rep. Jack Bergman, asked VA to review whether the group complied with accreditation and licensing rules.
The request grew out of a fight over the Taking Care of America’s Veterans Act, a roughly 60-bill package that would fund some benefits with projected savings from VA disability-rating changes affecting conditions including sleep apnea and tinnitus.
VFW and Disabled American Veterans back much of the bill but reject using disability-compensation savings as an offset, while TAPS, MOAA and the Elizabeth Dole Foundation argue Congress is preserving savings from a rule VA already expected to finish.
That funding debate is complicated by two moving targets: VA now says no disability-rating changes are planned or imminent despite earlier testimony pointing to fiscal 2026 completion, and the omnibus uses the narrower Major Richard Star Act covering about 54,000 veterans, not a broader 300,000-plus expansion.