Empower CEO presses Congress on veteran disability exams

Empower founder and CEO Yisroel Loeb met in August with Rep. Abe Hamadeh and Veterans' Affairs Committee staff in Washington to push for tighter oversight of disability examinations. Loeb says faster reviews, better examiner feedback channels and Senate action on a training bill could improve the quality and consistency of exams that drive veterans' disability ratings.

Why it matters: - Disability exams can determine a veteran's benefits and access to care, making quality and consistency critical. - Loeb argued that the most complex cases need deeper clinical oversight, not just higher volume. - Congress could shape how quickly problems are caught and how contracted examiners raise concerns.

What happened: - In August, Yisroel Loeb, PhD, founder and CEO of Empower, met in Washington, D.C., with Rep. Abe Hamadeh and professional staff from the House and Senate Veterans' Affairs Committees. - The meetings focused on improving the medical and mental health examinations used to assign veterans' disability ratings. - Loeb also met with staff tied to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs and its Subcommittee on Health.

The details: - Loeb said he has personally worked with more than 6,000 veterans through the compensation and pension evaluation process. - Loeb urged Congress to restore the two-year review cycle for the VA's Special Focused Reviews of examinations for traumatic brain injury, military sexual trauma and Gulf War Illness. - The VA extended that review cycle from two years to three in September 2025, citing resource constraints. - Loeb asked lawmakers to back a direct feedback channel for contracted examiners so they can raise clinical and process concerns directly with the Department, not only through vendors. - The Government Accountability Office has recommended that the VA create that kind of channel. - Loeb also called for Senate action on H.R. 2201, the Improving VA Training for Military Sexual Trauma Claims Act. - The House passed H.R. 2201 by voice vote in May 2025, and the bill has been pending before the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs since then.

Between the lines: - The pitch reflects a broader argument that exam quality depends on specialized clinicians, named clinical leadership and direct accountability. - Loeb framed the issue as a clinical depth problem rather than a staffing-volume problem. - Empower is using the meeting to position its own operating model as a benchmark for how veteran disability exams could be managed. - Rep. Hamadeh's Army Reserve background and Arizona's large veteran population likely made the conversation especially relevant to the district.

What's next: - Loeb said Empower plans to keep pressing Congress and committee staff on exam oversight and training. - The next policy inflection point is whether the Senate advances H.R. 2201. - Congress could also revisit the VA's review cycle and examiner reporting structure if lawmakers act on the concerns raised in the meetings.

The bottom line: - Empower wants Congress to tighten oversight of veteran disability exams so the most complex cases are reviewed sooner and by better-supported clinicians.