Beto O’Rourke Unveils Plan<br />to Improve Care For Veterans On June 24, presidential contender<br />Beto O’Rourke proposed a four-part<br />plan to improve veteran care. The first part would be the ending<br />of “forever wars” and the creation<br />of trust funds for all future wars. These funds would be generated<br />from a new "war tax" which would<br />be paid by non-military taxpayers. The second part of O’Rourke’s plan<br />would be to improve the current Veterans<br />Affairs (VA) health care system. This includes filling over 45,000<br />vacant positions currently at the VA. The third part would be to ensure all<br />veterans are provided with equal treatment<br />regardless of sex, race or sexual orientation. O’Rourke plans to enforce this by requiring<br />the VA to cover the full spectrum of women’s<br />health care, including reproductive health, as well as offer care that is inclusive of<br />all troops, regardless of their sexual<br />orientations and gender identities. Finally, O’Rourke would expand transition<br />assistance programs to help veterans<br />successfully return to civilian life. This includes offering “reverse boot camps”<br />as well as directing government resources<br />to prevent veteran homelessness.
