Jacky Rosen’s big gains for Nevada veterans earns her their endorsement

Along with helping pass the PACT Act to expand veterans’ access to healthcare, Rosen claims to have helped secure funding for a new veterans’ hospital in Reno, as well as a new resource to help veterans and their families start new businesses. 

Military veterans make up more than 8% of Nevada’s population, and one coalition of former servicemembers this week announced they were backing Democratic US Sen. Jacky Rosen for re-election. 

Citing Rosen’s support of key legislation signed into law in 2022 that expanded health care coverage for conditions linked to military service, as well as separate initiatives that uniquely benefit Nevada veterans, VoteVets, a progressive organization that advocates for veterans issues and has more than 1.5 million members nationwide, according to its website, officially endorsed Rosen on Tuesday. 

“When you have Republican veterans putting their party above the livelihood of veterans, it’s a really easy decision,” said Travis Tazelaar, the group’s political director and a US Marine Corps veteran. “When we look at Sen. Rosen, when we look at Sen. [Jon] Tester, when we look at Sen. [Bob] Casey, they’re all running against Republican veterans. When somebody is not on the side of veterans, whether they be Democrat or Republican, we call them out.”

More than 200,000 veterans reside in Nevada, and their vote could be the deciding factor in this year’s election, Rosen told attendees at Tuesday’s event, which took place at an American Legion hall in Las Vegas’ Historic West Side. But the November election is not only about building on the progress made to bolster benefits for veterans, Rosen said, it’s also about protecting America’s democracy. 

“Your bravery and your passion is going to help us keep our democracy safe and strong,” Rosen said. 

While Rosen’s Republican challenger, Sam Brown, is a retired US Army captain, Tazelaar said his group has found success in working with Democrats like Rosen to deliver meaningful policy that impacts veterans. He pointed to Republicans’ initial refusal to support the PACT Act, which Rosen was a co-sponsor of and which allocated nearly $800 billion to expand and extend health care benefits for veterans and active duty personnel exposed to chemical toxins during their military service.

“Tens of thousands of veterans have been exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange, other toxic substances while serving our country,” said Aliciana Graham, a US Air Force veteran who said she recently earned coverage for a respiratory disease caused by burn pit exposure while serving abroad in Djibouti. “And until recently, the system didn’t provide the benefits to cover the critical and often life-saving health care services that these veterans need and have earned.”  

Since President Joe Biden signed the PACT Act into law, more than 23,000 Nevada veterans have signed up for benefits, with roughly 14,000 claims having been already granted as of May 24, according to White House figures. That has resulted in approximately 1,870 new veterans enrolling in health plans through the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

Rosen has claimed her advocacy helped secure funding for a new veterans’ hospital Reno in last year’s federal budget. She told supporters at Tuesday’s event that officials are still determining a final location for the hospital, but once completed, it will be a state-of-the-art facility that can hopefully keep veterans in Northern Nevada from having to travel to access health care. 

Mishon Montgomery, a disabled retired Air Force veteran who served for more than 20 years, said access to health care was perhaps the most important factor in deciding to call Nevada home once her service ended. She said she enlisted in part to see the world, and now as a North Las Vegas resident, Montgomery said having access to VA hospitals like the one near Nellis Air Force Base, has helped the transition to civilian life.

“As veterans, we know all too well that things like outdated and insufficient facilities mean things like longer wait times and less quality care available for those who need it and have earned it,” Montgomery said. 

Rosen also has taken credit for coordinating with the Small Business Administration to bring Nevada its first Veterans Business Outreach Center (VBOC) — specialized centers that offer personalized counseling on accounting, financial planning, and asset management to transitioning or active duty servicemembers, veterans, reserve members, and military spouses. 

Entrepreneurs also can get assistance in securing capital, as well as assistance to access loans and available grant programs.

That’s on top of marketing and outreach services, and a special VBOC program called Boots to Business, which teaches basic principles for soon-to-be discharged servicemembers at a number of military installations throughout the state.

Rosen told the crowd there is still work to do. Between pending legislation that would give veterans financial support when learning new vocational skills to efforts to make child care more accessible for all Americans, Rosen said she’ll need “all hands on deck” to win her reelection bid and keep delivering for Nevadans. 

“I know Nevadans want someone with a proven bipartisan track record for delivering for veterans, for delivering for everyone, and that’s what I promise to do,” Rosen said. “For every story we hear, those stories become the seeds of legislation that help us make sure we can take care of everybody.”