# Helping Heroes Act (S. 701) - Plain Language Summary

## What This Bill Does

The Helping Heroes Act requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to create a new "Veteran Family Resource Program" designed to support the overall health and well-being of veterans and their families. Rather than focusing only on individual veterans, this program takes a broader approach by addressing family-level challenges—such as housing, financial stability, childcare, and other social needs—that affect a veteran's health. The program will connect veterans and their families to both VA benefits and community resources to help them thrive.

## Who Benefits

This bill directly benefits veterans and their families, including spouses, children, caregivers, and survivors. The program is designed to be inclusive, allowing veterans to define their own family structure. The bill also affects VA medical centers and staff, who will need to implement and support the new program.

## Key Provisions

- **Family Coordinators**: The VA must hire at least one "family coordinator" in each of its 18 regional service networks within five years. These coordinators will serve as go-to experts who understand VA benefits and local community resources.

- **Main Functions**: Family coordinators will assess family needs, help veterans navigate available resources, and maintain lists of both VA and non-VA services available in their areas.

- **Accountability**: The VA must establish metrics to measure success (such as participant satisfaction and health improvements) and report to Congress within two years on how many people the program serves and what outcomes it achieves.

- **Flexibility**: The VA can expand the program to additional medical centers as it sees fit.

Helping Heroes Act

Murray, Patty

Helping Heroes ActThis bill requires the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to establish the Veteran Family Resource Program to address social determinants of health challenges experienced in veterans’ family units and ensure veterans and their families have access to services and resources to support wellness within the family units.In implementing the program, the VA must (1) appoint at least one family coordinator in each Veterans Integrated Service Network (regional VA health care administrative areas), and (2) ensure adequate staffing and resources to ensure family coordinators are able to carry out their duties and functions. Under the bill, a family coordinator’s function is generally to serve at a VA medical center as a point person regarding VA and community resources for veterans, their families, and caregivers and survivors of veterans.The VA may expand the program to additional medical centers as appropriate.Not later than one year after the date of enactment of this bill, and not less frequently than once every five years after, the VA must survey disabled veterans and their families to identify and better understand their needs.