Military families now have a solid cadre of supporters on the Senate side of Capitol Hill to correspond with the support they receive from the House. In mid-August, Sens. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., and Richard Burr, R-S.C., joined with 18 colleagues to form the Senate Military Family Caucus. The new group will work closely with the year-old Congressional Military Family Caucus in the House, to focus on key issues such as child care, education, and employment. The group has already had an effect, convincing Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki to stop allowing private insurers from profiting on benefits paid to families of service members who die in the line of duty, the Military Officers Association reported Aug. 24.
