WASHINGTON, November 13, 2026 — The House of Representatives passed the Take Care of America’s Veterans Act on Veterans Day, advancing a sweeping benefits package that combines 62 separate legislative provisions into a single vehicle. The measure cleared the chamber Wednesday on a voice vote at approximately 2:46 p.m. Eastern, leaving no recorded tally of individual lawmakers’ positions.
A Mega-Bill With a Contested Calculus
The legislation, H.R. 9237, represents the most ambitious veterans policy effort of the congressional session. Its centerpiece is the Major Richard Star Act, which would allow approximately 54,000 combat-injured military retirees to collect both full retirement pay and VA disability compensation. Under current law, many medically retired service members with fewer than 20 years of service see their retirement payments reduced dollar-for-dollar by their VA disability compensation. The Star Act eliminates that offset for eligible retirees, addressing what advocates have long described as a structural inequity.
The package also incorporates the Sharri Briley and Eric Edmundson Veterans Benefits Expansion Act, increasing special monthly compensation for severely disabled veterans, alongside provisions expanding caregiver assistance, survivor benefits, and community health care access. Committee Chairmen Mike Bost, R-Ill., and Jerry Moran, R-Kan., have framed the bill as a vehicle to resolve long-standing priorities through a single legislative effort.
Disability Rating Changes Drive Opposition
The strategic framing that enabled the bill’s assembly also sparked the rebellion that nearly derailed it. To offset the cost of expanded benefits, Section 108 adjusts how the VA evaluates future claims for tinnitus and obstructive sleep apnea — two of the most commonly filed service-connected disabilities. The Veterans of Foreign Wars and Disabled American Veterans argue the changes will reduce compensation for future claimants, effectively financing the Star Act and other provisions on the backs of a new generation of veterans.
“It is an insult to America’s veterans,” the VFW said in a statement condemning Wednesday’s passage. The organization contends that improvements for current veterans should not come at the expense of future ones. The American Legion, by contrast, has backed the legislation, calculating that the broader package justifies the rating adjustments.
Procedural Maneuvering on Veterans Day
The voice vote itself became a flashpoint. More than 200 VFW members had lobbied against the bill all week, flying out just hours before the measure was brought to the floor. San Antonio VFW Post 76 Vice Commander Janae Sergio criticized the timing directly. “It seems like they put it on the floor today because they knew we were all leaving and everybody would be distracted with Veterans Day,” she said.
Sergio argued the procedural choice signaled a lack of confidence in the whip count. “That was indicative of the fact that they knew that it would not pass an actual vote,” she said. “They wanted to make sure that it wasn’t a recorded vote, so that none of them could be held accountable for doing a benefits grab on Veterans Day.”
Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., the top Democrat on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, told POLITICO he was negotiating last-minute changes when the vote was called. He characterized the move as “treachery and trickery of the majority,” adding that the minority had no opportunity to request a recorded vote. Speaker Mike Johnson had acknowledged the bill’s complexity as recently as August, telling a San Antonio audience that the disability rating provision “was put in, and I don’t think it was fully understood by all the members of the body when it came.”
Refinance Fee Increase Adds Industry Opposition
The bill’s funding mechanisms extend beyond disability ratings. The measure nearly triples the fee for the VA’s Interest Rate Reduction Refinance Loan program from 0.5% to 1.42%. Brendan McKay, owner of McKay Mortgage Co. and chief advocacy officer of the Broker Action Coalition, praised the intent to fund expanded survivor and disability benefits but warned the approach shifts costs onto active-duty service members and other veterans. The Mortgage Bankers Association warned in June that the increase would “significantly increase the cost of a VA loan relative to comparable products, undercutting the very program designed to reduce refinancing barriers for Veterans.”
Senate Hurdle Remains
The legislation now moves to the Senate, which remains under Republican control until January. Takano predicted the measure “will go nowhere in the Senate.” The upper chamber must pass the bill before it can reach President Donald Trump’s desk. The voice vote in the House leaves no public record of which members supported the final package — a fact that VFW lobbyists and Democratic lawmakers say was the point.
Sources
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Photo: U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Kathleen Gorby (Public domain)
