Washington, D.C. — Bipartisan legislation backed by U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff to honor Vietnam War veterans has passed the U.S. Senate.
The U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan Dustoff Crews of the Vietnam War Congressional Gold Medal Act, legislation Sen. Ossoff co-sponsored to honor Vietnam War Dustoff crew veterans.
Dustoff crews, more commonly known as medevacs, operated during the Vietnam War between 1962 and 1973, transporting and treating almost 900,000 people to medical facilities. Dustoff crews saved lives by reaching the previously unattainable goal of delivering the sick or injured to an operating table within the vaunted “golden hour,” –– the standard for best medical outcomes.
A prominent Dustoff crew servicemember, Maj. Charles L. Kelly, was born in Wadley, Georgia, and was killed in action as part of a Dustoff crew in 1964.
“I see one of my most solemn duties in the U.S. Senate as serving Georgia’s veterans and their families. This bipartisan bill, which we’ve now passed through the Senate, will honor these Vietnam veterans for their heroic service,” Sen. Ossoff said.
This is the latest step in Sen. Ossoff’s push to honor Georgia’s veterans and strengthen access to VA benefits they’ve earned.
Last month, Sen. Ossoff launched a push to pass the bipartisan GUARD VA Benefits Act of 2023, legislation he co-sponsored to protect Georgia veterans from predatory claim sharks seeking to take advantage of veterans applying for benefits they’ve earned.
In February, Sens. Ossoff, Susan Collins (R-ME), and John Thune (R-SD) introduced the Rural Veterans Transportation to Care Act to help more veterans in rural areas get transportation to VA health facilities and access the health care benefits they’ve earned.
In January, thanks to Sen. Ossoff’s bipartisan Access for Veterans to Records Act becoming law, the National Archives cleared a backlog of more than 400,000 records requests, enabling Georgia veterans to more quickly access their records and claim their benefits.
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