Empower executive meets with Speaker Johnson on veterans’ behavioral health care

Empower Chief Growth Officer Anthony Conti met with Speaker Mike Johnson in Arizona in August to press for better behavioral health evaluations and care for U.S. veterans with complex conditions. The discussion centered on clinician specialization, flexible capacity and stronger accountability in VA-related care.

Why it matters: - Veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, military sexual trauma, traumatic brain injury and other complex conditions depend on the quality of behavioral health evaluations to determine access to benefits and care. - Empower says federal policy should reward specialized clinical care, stronger oversight and faster access for veterans in rural and underserved areas.

What happened: - In August, Anthony Conti, chief growth officer of Empower, met with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson in Paradise Valley, Ariz. - The discussion focused on how the federal government and clinician-led organizations can work together to improve behavioral health care and evaluation for U.S. veterans. - Conti said the Speaker’s office gave the conversation “real time and real attention.”

The details: - Conti said veterans should be evaluated by clinicians who specialize in their conditions and supported by accessible clinical leadership and resources. - Empower laid out three principles for federal policy: depth in complex evaluations, flexible capacity that can shift by state and specialty, and an accountability loop that reaches the clinician. - The company said veterans in rural and underserved communities should not wait longer than veterans in major metro areas. - Empower said organizations that recruit, credential and clinically support their own providers can adjust coverage by state, specialty and exam type as demand changes. - Conti said examiners and treating providers should be able to raise concerns directly with quality leaders, and the Department of Veterans Affairs should be able to reach the clinical leader responsible for a report. - Empower said the U.S. Government Accountability Office has recommended a direct examiner feedback channel, and Empower supports that recommendation. - Conti said Empower supports evaluations for more than 4,000 veterans a month in all 50 states. - Conti said Empower’s founder, a clinical psychologist, has personally worked with more than 6,000 veterans. - Conti said he hopes to continue the conversation with members and committees on both sides of the aisle. - Conti leads growth, partnerships and government engagement for Empower and lives in Scottsdale, Ariz. - Conti said he has more than 25 years of marketing and commercial leadership experience across healthcare, legal and government platforms. - Empower is headquartered in Phoenix and was founded by licensed psychologist Yisroel Loeb, PhD. - The company operates a national network of licensed psychologists and medical providers that deliver disability evaluations, trauma-informed treatment and care coordination for veterans, injured individuals and injured workers.

Between the lines: - Empower is positioning itself as an example of how clinician-led care can handle complex behavioral health work at national scale. - The policy argument centers on quality control, provider specialization and a clearer chain of accountability inside VA-related evaluation systems. - The emphasis on rural access suggests the company sees geographic coverage as part of the care-quality problem, not just a logistics issue.

What's next: - Conti said Empower plans to keep talking with lawmakers and congressional committees from both parties. - The company will continue to push its three-point framework as federal veterans’ behavioral health policy evolves. - Empower’s public materials point readers to more information.

The bottom line: - Empower is using its meeting with Speaker Johnson to argue that veterans’ behavioral health care should be more specialized, more accountable and easier to access nationwide.