The BVA national leadership joined together this week at both the National Headquarters and via the technology of Microsoft Teams for three days of business meetings and headquarters staff dialogue on a variety of subjects affecting the Association. The March 19-21 activities for the in-person attendees—National President Paul Mimms, Vice President Wade Davis, Secretary Tracy Ferro, Treasurer Joe Bogart, and Judge Advocate Stephen Butler—consisted of day trips to Capitol Hill and the Department of Veterans Affairs Central Office. 

On March 19, the group visited, in two separate meetings, majority and minority staff members of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs. On Wednesday, it was off to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Central Office where the exchanges touched on topics such as the caregiver program, qualifications of optometrists vs. ophthalmologists to perform eye surgeries, and BVA’s push for a Federal Advisory Committee on accessibility. Thursday’s day trip took the group to the Senate side of Capitol Hill for meetings with Senators Jon Tester (D-MT) and Jerry Moran (R-MO), respectively the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs. They also met with Doug Hartman, staff member of the Senate Aging Committee, and Zachary Shaw from the office staff of Senator Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA).

Senator Tester shared a message later in the day on X about his experience with the group. Read what he said here.