Tester Secures More Than $600,000 for Montana State Veterans Homes in Columbia Falls & Glendive

Chairman announces funding to help State Veterans Homes combat the COVID pandemic and protect veterans

Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester today announced he has secured $616,110 in funding for two State Veterans Homes in Montana: $403,062.80 for the Montana Veterans’ Home in Columbia Falls, and $213,047.48 for the Eastern Montana Veterans’ Home in Glendive.

“Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, folks living in long-term care facilities-like those in the Glendive and Columbia Falls Veterans Homes-have been some of the most vulnerable, and it’s critical that we get these providers the resources they need to protect the Montana veterans living there,” said Tester. “Since the beginning of this pandemic, I’ve been fighting to secure funding to help these veterans homes prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, and I’m proud to have helped get this money out the door to ensure we’re keeping those who bravely served our country safe.”

Tester fought to secure these funds as part of the 2020 end of year COVID-19 relief package that passed in December to help ensure that Montana veterans-and the staff who provide their care-have better access to lifesaving supplies during the pandemic. This funding will help state veterans homes in Columbia Falls and Glendive keep their residents safe as they continue responding to coronavirus, especially because veterans homes and other long-term care facilities across the country have been hit particularly hard by the COVID-19 crisis.

As Chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Tester has been working tirelessly to ensure that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has the resources it needs to keep our nation’s veterans safe throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. His bipartisan SAVE LIVES Act, which expands COVID-19 vaccine eligibility to veterans and their families under VA, was recently signed into law, and he has continually announced vaccine distributions across Montana, with hundreds of vaccines expected to be administered to eligible veterans in other cities in the coming weeks. Last month, he also successfully secured billions in the COVID relief package to vaccinate, support and protect veterans in Montana and across the country.