Highlight any text to annotate

This bill recognizes the military service of approximately 310 women who served in female cultural support teams from 2010 through 2021, working alongside special operations forces during the Global War on Terror. These women participated in dangerous, classified missions and some suffered injuries including traumatic brain injuries and post-traumatic stress, but many have been denied veterans benefits because their service was not officially credited. The bill requires the military departments to add this service to personnel records and include it in retirement pay calculations within one year of enactment, and instructs the Department of Veterans Affairs to treat this service as combat engagement for purposes of determining disability and death benefits. Veterans who previously had claims denied can resubmit claims within three years of the bill's passage with the new service recognition, and the VA must conduct outreach to inform eligible women and survivors of their right to file supplemental claims. The bill includes no specific funding amounts but directs the VA to improve training for employees processing these claims and to contact eligible individuals directly about the new benefits.

Add a comment

Sign in to comment on this bill.

Annotate the text

Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.