Chairman Moran Leads Committee Hearing on Strengthening Support Services for Veterans with Spinal Cord Injury & Disorder

Chairman Moran Leads Committee Hearing on Strengthening Support Services for Veterans with Spinal Cord Injury & Disorder Thursday, September 18, 2025 WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) - chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs - yesterday led a committee hearing with witnesses from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), from the Paralyzed Veterans of America, a caregiver working with the Elizabeth Dole Foundation, veteran advocates and veterans themselves about how VA can improve services for veterans living with spinal cord injury and disorder (SCI-D) and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). "For many, a new and different journey begins the moment veterans return home or receive their life-changing diagnosis, one marked by physical and emotional hurdles that require specialized care, innovative technology, and a dedicated support system," said Sen. Moran. "VA's Spinal Cord Injury and Disorder system of care is a critical lifeline for these veterans, making certain that they receive quality care when needed." The witnesses for the first panel of the hearing were Shelly Hoover - a Navy veteran who has been living with ALS since 2013 and testified using Tobii Dynavox Speech Generation Device with eye gazing technology; Mandi Bailey - an ALS advocate, who lost her Army veteran stepfather to ALS; Mary Ward - a spouse and caregiver to her Marine corps veteran husband, who has been living with ALS for 15 years and Robert Thomas - an Army veteran and the National President for Paralyzed Veterans of America, which is the only veteran service organization dedicated to the veteran SCI-D community. Sen. Moran's questioning can be found here & here. Click HERE to Watch Sen. Moran Opening Remarks # # # https://www.veterans.senate.gov/2025/9/chairman-moran-leads-committee-hearing-on-strengthening-support-services-for-veterans-with-spinal-cord-injury-disorder Sign up for Email updates