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Bringing Senior VA Leadership to Memphis to Address Veterans' Concerns

June 20, 2014
Enewsletters

Dear Friend,

This week marked the 149th anniversary of Juneteenth, my work to bring senior VA officials to Memphis paid off, and I voted to ensure that our troops have the resources they need to stay safe and protected as they defend the United States from international threats. I also announced my next “Building a Healthier Memphis” wellness event, and a new report came out that shows Tennesseans are saving almost 70% on their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act’s tax credits. Keep reading to learn more about what happened this week.

Bringing Senior VA Leadership to Memphis to Address Veterans’ Concerns
Building a Healthier Memphis
Commemorating Juneteenth
Saving Memphians Money on Their Health Insurance
Stopping Animal Abuse and Cruelty
Protecting our Environment and Saving Money
Stopping New Taxes on the Internet
President Obama Seeking Mentors for Young People
Make Sure to Claim Unclaimed Property

Bringing Senior VA Leadership to Memphis to Address Veterans’ Concerns

Any delay in providing care to the brave men and women who risked their lives for our safety is unacceptable, and they deserve to receive the highest quality of care available. Since reports calling into question the quality of care provided at the Memphis VAMC were uncovered, I have repeatedly requested that high-ranking VA officials visit our facility to ensure that the agency fully understands the needs of the Memphis veteran community here on the ground.

This week, my efforts to secure a visit from senior leadership at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs have paid off, with Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Health for Operations and Management Jan Murphy set to visit the Memphis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) next week, tour its medical facilities, and meet with Mid-South veterans to address their concerns. This visit by senior VA leadership will also serve to reassure the nearly 200,000 veterans served by the VA Medical Center in Memphis that the Department takes safety concerns seriously and is working to address them.

While the Memphis VA under the leadership of Director C. Diane Knight has implemented the recommendations of the VA Inspector General, I have also been working closely with President Obama’s administration to bring senior VA leadership to Memphis. I am pleased that Deputy Under Secretary Murphy has accepted my invitation and will be able to address our veteran community’s concerns in person.

Veterans who would like to attend the Town Hall meeting should RSVP to my Memphis office at 901.544.4131. Due to space constraints, proof of veteran status will be required.

Building a Healthier Memphis

More than 8 million Americans have enrolled in high-quality, affordable health insurance coverage through the marketplaces created by President Obama’s landmark health care reform law. With so many Americans now enrolled, President Obama is right when he says “the Affordable Care Act is here to stay.”

The Affordable Care Act is already helping millions of Americans get covered and receive the care they need, but we can do more. In February, I launched my “Building a Healthier Memphis” series on health and wellness in the Ninth District with a panel discussion and education session focused on racial disparities in breast cancer outcomes in Memphis; I continued the series in April with an event focused on stemming the rising tide of diabetes diagnoses in Memphis. During these events, experts have helped identify how Memphians can take advantage of provisions of the President’s Affordable Care Act that include no co-pay and no deductible preventive services to address the disparities and improve outcomes for themselves, their families, and their communities.

I am pleased to invite you to my next event in my "Building a Healthier Memphis" series on the Tuesday, July 8th at Church Health Center Wellness beginning at 9:30 AM. I hope you can join us for a discussion about maternal health and infant mortality, an issue that disproportionately affects Memphis families. If you are interested in attending, please RSVP to 901.544.4131.

Commemorating Juneteenth

On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas and announced in the town square that all slaves were free. Although this came nearly three years after the issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation, the newly freed men and women rejoiced in the streets with jubilant celebrations, and thus, the Juneteenth holiday was born.

This year, the Memphis Juneteenth celebration was very different from past celebrations. First, the Board of Directors changed the name of the celebration from the ‘Juneteenth Freedom & Heritage Festival’ to the ‘Juneteenth Urban Music Festival.’ Second, the celebration took place in the Robert R. Church Park on Beale Street in Downtown Memphis instead of the historic Douglass Neighborhood, where the celebration has taken place for the past twenty years. The importance of this change in location to the Robert R. Church Park is especially significant to the celebration of this important day in history because Robert R. Church continues to be a prominent and revered political figure in Memphis for his work to make the processes of government inclusive to all members of society, regardless of race or social class. As such, the Juneteenth celebration this year focused on the same mission: expanding the Juneteenth celebration so that thousands more people may take place in this joyous celebration.

This year, the celebration included a variety of musical performances varying from gospel performers to neo soul artists. In addition to these performances, the celebration offered a poetry slam and a showcase featuring majorettes, drummers, cheerleaders, and steppers. By appealing to all members of the community and relocating to a larger space, the Juneteenth celebration provided the people of Memphis with a celebration that was consistent with the mission of Robert R. Church: a mission of inclusiveness that we should all strive for as we continue to serve the people of our great nation.

Saving Memphians Money on Their Health Insurance

Earlier this week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a report showing that Tennesseans saved an average of almost 70% on health insurance plans with tax credits selected through the HealthCare.gov marketplace. With the tax credits available through the Affordable Care Act’s health insurance marketplace, the average Tennessean’s monthly premium dropped from $281/month to just $86/month. The report also found that nearly 80% of Tennesseans selected plans with tax credits and those who selected silver plans, the most popular plan type, paid just $78 per month for their insurance. Of the Tennesseans who selected insurance plans with tax credits, 42% paid $50 per month or less.

This new report makes it clear the President’s landmark health care reform law is achieving its goal of making high-quality, affordable health coverage a right, not just a privilege. With Tennesseans saving more than 2/3rds on their health insurance coverage, there can be no question that the Affordable Care Act is working. But while the law is working and Memphians are seeing many of the law’s benefits, thousands of Tennesseans are without coverage because of Govornor Haslam’s refusal to expand our state’s Medicaid program, TennCare. It is time for Republican leaders to put the political brinksmanship behind them and stop blocking the law’s benefits and end their attempts to take the law’s protections away from the American people.

Stopping Animal Abuse and Cruelty

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Hundreds of animal rights advocates came to Washington this week to support a bill that Republican Congressman Ed Whitfield of Kentucky and I have sponsored to prevent the cruel horse training method known as “soring.” How we treat animals is a direct reflection of our character, both as individuals and as a society. When we allow the mistreatment and disrespect of any conscious being, we also devalue our own humanity. And there can be no question, soring is animal cruelty, plain and simple.

In an era of partisan gridlock, our PAST Act is a rare diamond in the rough that has broad bipartisan support and a large consensus that agrees with preventing soring. The PAST Act proves that Congress can still come together to find common ground. 292 members of the House and 56 Senators from all across the political spectrum are cosponsoring our bill.

Now, we just need House Leadership to bring it to the floor so that Congress can have its say. I am confident that, if Speaker Boehner allows a vote on our bill, it will pass overwhelmingly. With two-thirds of the House and a majority of the Senate already in support of the PAST Act, I hope that the outpouring of grassroots support this week at the PAST Act Walk on Washington helps convince my colleagues in the Capitol that it is time to ensure that horses are treated humanely and that we need to act to prevent this horrendous form of animal abuse.

Protecting our Environment and Saving Money

On Wednesday, I introduced the Clean and Efficient Public Safety Vehicles Act of 2014 to help municipal public safety and law enforcement agencies save money on fuel costs and reduce their negative effects on our environment. Many emergency vehicles like ambulances must run continuously in order to power critical on-board systems. But this constant engine idling uses significant amounts of fuel while waiting at the scene of an emergency or while waiting to be called into action. My bill will encourage local government agencies like fire and police departments to invest in technology that reduces both fuel consumption and environmental impacts, which will save local governments money and protect the air we breathe.

Stopping New Taxes on the Internet

This week, the House Judiciary Committee approved the Permanent Internet Tax Freedom Act, which I have cosponsored to help keep internet access tax free. Taxing internet service hurts low-income families and stifles expansion into underserved areas that need access to this critical, essential service.

President Obama Seeking Mentors for Young People

It is important that all children can count on caring adults who are engaged in their lives, but too many young people lack this important support. That’s why President Obama is calling on Americans to sign up as long-term mentors to young people through his new “My Brother’s Keeper” initiative. The President is seeking people from all walks of life who want to develop sustained and direct mentoring relationships that will play vital roles in the lives of young people in Memphis and around the country. If you are interested in signing up to help young adults in our city stay on track, you can do so here.

Make Sure to Claim Unclaimed Property

The State of Tennessee maintains a searchable database of unclaimed property, which can include bank accounts, stocks and dividends, wages, refunds, insurance payments, gift certificates, credit balances and overpayments, and a number of other things. There is no cost for accessing the database, and you may find that you are owed money or property. If you have not searched the database yet or if you haven’t searched in a while, you can visit https://www.claimittn.gov and see for yourself whether the state is holding any property or assets for you. And you may pass this information along to your friends and family as well!

As always, I remain.
Most sincerely,

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Steve Cohen
Member of Congress

Issues:9th DistrictArtsHealth CareMemphisVeterans' Affairs