Senators took a quick recess during session for a meet and greet inside the Guam Congress building Wednesday.

Lawmakers welcomed the Veterans Affairs Advisory Committee on U.S. outlying areas and Freely Associated States.

This includes representatives from American Samoa, Puerto Rico, the CNMI, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the FSM, the Marshall Islands, and Palau.

The committee is meeting for its second meeting this week, according to White House Senior Advisor and Director for Puerto Rico and territories Gretchen-Sierra Zorita.

“They have to produce a study of recommendations for the Veterans Administration on how to improve the services for our veterans that fight in the same wars that all other veterans do,” said Zorita.

Some of those concerns she’s seen.

“It’s basically access to healthcare, access to doctors, how do we get them their medications fast, how do we make sure that they have the care they need when they are so far from the US,” Zorita added.

Vice Speaker Tina Muna Barnes and Senator-elect Vince Borja are part of the committee.

On behalf of the 37th Guam Legislature, Barnes presented Zorita with a certificate of recognition.

“...For her unwavering advocacy for the unique needs of the US territories, dedication to advancing Guam’s priorities and commitment to fostering a better territorial collaboration,” said Barnes.

“It is stricter to get those results when you’re a territory or a Freely Associated State so how to get strategies to get to where we need to go, and when we get there, that’s like a real reward. But this was just very special,” said Zorita.

Puerto Rico hosted last year’s meeting.

Puerto Rico representative Alex Ortiz, who is an Army veteran, said that by coming here, they are able to understand more of the issues and concerns of fellow veterans in the Pacific.

“We’ve been able to identify the struggles. I think joining forces and being able to bring from different perspectives from the Caribbean to the Pacific, we are going to be able to get a lot out of this,” said Ortiz.

The Congressionally Mandated Committee, which was established two years ago, reports directly to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

They are to submit a report with recommended improvements to better serve veterans in these underserved areas.

Meantime, the committee also visited the VA Community-based Outpatient Clinic at the Naval Hospital and the Guam Veterans Affairs Office.