As Chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, I will do everything I can to make sure Congress follows through.
Do everything I can to make sure Congress follows through on funding to modernize the John Cochran Veterans Hospital in St. Louis.
Occurrences
The bills before us are focused on updating and reauthorizing key V.A. programs, so we can restore accountability, transparency, consistency, and results across the Department.
Evidence
The enrolled Senate text authorizes a FY2026 St. Louis VA major medical facility project consisting of a new bed tower, clinical expansion, consolidated administrative building and warehouse, utility plant, and parking garages, up to $1,762,668,000, and states it was passed by the Senate on December 17, 2025.
VA says the John Cochran Major Program is a major construction program to address aging infrastructure and improve the medical center, with smaller onsite work underway and larger construction scheduled to start in 2026; the Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will design and build the project.
VA’s FY2026 Q2 NRM awards list multiple John Cochran projects in St. Louis, including correcting campus steam system failures, fall protection hazards, mail room issues, EHRM support services, elevator repairs, HVAC/refrigeration deficiencies, research laboratory space, hot water generators, electrical distribution, site prep for imaging equipment, roadway/site repairs, water main repair, and boiler controls.
Bost said the funding will help modernize facilities at the St. Louis VAMC and that he was working to improve the experience for everyone who relies on the medical center; the bill authorizes up to $1.76 billion for upgrades.
Bost said the Department of Veterans Affairs would fund an additional $800 million in infrastructure upgrades that year, including improvements to the John Cochran and Jefferson Barracks facilities in St. Louis.
Assessments
The promise was to do everything possible to ensure Congress followed through on funding to modernize the John Cochran Veterans Hospital. Evidence shows substantial progress during Bost's current term: VA identified and funded multiple John Cochran modernization and repair projects in FY2026, VA confirmed the broader John Cochran Major Program was active with larger construction slated to begin in 2026, and Bost publicly pushed legislation authorizing up to about $1.76 billion for the St. Louis VA modernization. However, the record provided does not show the full promised outcome of Congress completely following through with final funding for the entire major modernization project. The Senate authorization and agency project activity are strong but fall short of clear proof that the full modernization funding package was fully enacted and delivered. Because Bost materially advanced the effort and some funding/work is underway, this merits partial credit rather than never.