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Nov. 10 (UPI) -- The United States marks Veterans Day on Friday with ceremonies, parades and various memorials planned throughout weekend. President Joe Biden planned to announce increased healthcare benefits to veterans, including $163 billion in 2023 to help more than 6 million veterans and survivors while the government processes nearly 2 million disability claims, the White House said.
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He will also announce new policies that would help protect veterans from scams and fraud, as well as a slew of new federal efforts to increase public support.
Biden issued a Veterans Day proclamation on Tuesday in which he pledged his continued support to current and former U.S. service members.
"This Veterans Day, we honor the generations of women and men who have served and sacrificed -- not for a person, a place, or a president -- but for an idea unlike any other: the idea of the United States of America," Biden wrote. "For nearly 250 years, our veterans have defended the values that make us strong so that our nation could stand as a citadel of liberty, a beacon of freedom and a wellspring of possibilities."
Veterans Day falls on Nov. 11 every year and originated as Armistice Day to commemorate the end of World War I in 1918.
The first Veterans Day was celebrated in 1954, when President Dwight D. Eisenhower changed the name of the holiday to honor U.S. veterans of all wars, which by that time included World War II and the Korean War.
This year, the holiday officially falls on Saturday, however Friday was a federal holiday, with citizens across the country taking time to recognize and appreciate the contributions of veterans, and many businesses offering special deals to them, like free meals or product and services discounts.
Thousands are expected to visit Arlington National Cemetery throughout the weekend for ceremonies to honor veterans for their service and sacrifice, while paying respect to those who died in past wars.
A ceremonial wreath-laying will take place at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Saturday before an honorary observance at the Memorial Amphitheater on cemetery grounds that is free and open to the public.
Transportation will be provided from the cemetery's welcome center to the amphitheater beginning at 8:30 a.m. and will run until the seats fill up.
The cemetery will be open all day to visitors, with free parking, but officials encouraged crowds to utilize public transit.
On Capitol Hill, a bipartisan group of senators led by Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., and Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., passed a resolution to designate Sunday as National Warrior Call Day, which encourages Americans to call and check in with veterans in their communities to strengthen support for veteran suicide prevention and mental health.
Biden said it is the nation's "sacred obligation to care for our nation's veterans and their families. Simply put, we owe them a debt we can never fully repay."
In his proclamation, Biden called on the nation to observe 2 minutes of silence to recognize the nation's veterans and encouraged all government agencies to display the stars and stripes throughout the weekend's events.
"This Veterans Day, may we honor the incredible faith that our veterans hold, not just in our country but in all of us," Biden said. "They are the solid-steel backbone of our nation, and we must endeavor to continue being worthy of their sacrifices by working toward a more perfect union and protecting the freedoms that they have fought to defend."
The federal actions taken on behalf of veterans include a $1 billion investment from the Veterans Administration to curtail homelessness; improved equity for women's health needs, including childcare; and extensive care for veterans who suffer from toxic exposure.
In June the Biden administration announced more than $3 billion in new investments to help homeless veterans find jobs, legal aid and other support services in their communities.
