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M E M O R A N D U M MANDATORY VA HEALTH CARE FUNDING |
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Due to perennially inadequate health care budgets, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care system can no longer meet the needs of our nation’s service-connected disabled veterans and other enrolled veterans. National Commander George H. Steese, National Adjutant Arthur H. Wilson, and I met with President George W. Bush on June 18, 2002, to discuss the growing VA health care crisis and the inability of our nation’s service-connected disabled veterans to receive health care in a timely manner. We shared our concern about the current funding shortfall for VA health care with President Bush and urged him to consider a proposal to make VA health care funding mandatory to ensure the viability of the VA health care system for current and future sick and disabled veterans. Detailed information about our proposal is enclosed. Please feel free to share this information with your local DAV chapters and local veterans. We appreciate your continued support. __________________ DAVID W. GORMAN Executive Director, Washington Headquarters DWG:lmb Enclosure Make VA Health Care Funding Mandatory The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) firmly believes that service-connected disabled veterans have earned the right to Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical care through their extraordinary sacrifices and service to this nation. However, veterans’ health care remains a discretionary program, and each year funding levels must be determined through an annual appropriations bill. Year after year, DAV, along with the other Independent Budget organizations, has fought for sufficient funding for VA health care and a budget that is reflective of the rising cost of health care and increasing need for medical services. Despite our continued efforts, the cumulative effects of insufficient health care funding have now resulted in the rationing of medical care. Due to perennially inadequate health care budgets, the VA health care system can no longer meet the needs of our nation’s service-connected disabled veterans. In order to ensure the viability of the VA health care system for current and future service-connected disabled veterans, it is imperative that our government provide an adequate health care budget to enable VA to serve the needs of disabled veterans nationwide. In order to ensure that these needs are met, it is imperative that the funding for the VA health care system be made a mandatory account, and that all service-connected disabled veterans, and all other enrolled veterans, be able to access the system in a timely manner. VA reports that it has now reached capacity at many health care facilities around the country. DAV is especially concerned about how this has hampered timely access to quality health care for our nation’s service-connected veterans, including those most severely disabled. Service-connected veterans, for whom the system was designed, have no priority for care. We believe making VA health care funding mandatory is a reasonable solution to address this problem and meet the growing backlog for care. We have often stated that through their extraordinary sacrifices and contributions, veterans have earned the right to free health care as a continuing cost of national defense. The Health Care Eligibility Reform Act of 1996 authorized eligible veterans access to VA health care and brought us closer to meeting our moral obligation as a nation to care for veterans and generously provide them the benefits and health care they rightfully deserve. Within the law, title 38, United States Code, section 1710(a), provides that the Secretary “shall” furnish hospital care and medical services, but only to the extent Congress has provided money to cover the costs of the care. Thus, the funding under the Federal budget for this program is “discretionary” meaning that it is within the discretion of Congress to determine how much money it will allocate each year for veterans’ medical care. Because the level of funding to cover the costs of treating veterans is not guaranteed, VA is forced to ration medical care. Each year, within existing resources, VA must first determine which groups, priority groups 1 through 7, will be eligible for medical care. These seven priorities govern who is eligible for treatment within limited resources, but not the order in which veterans are given medical appointments. DAV has two resolutions that address this issue. One urges the VA to ensure timely and adequate health care services be provided to wartime service-connected disabled veterans, and the second supports legislation to provide that service-connected veterans will be given priority for VA medical care unless compelling medical reasons indicate otherwise. We believe the way to achieve these goals is through a change in law that would shift VA medical care from a discretionary to a mandatory funding program. The DAV seeks to make veterans’ medical care funding mandatory. Under budget law, a mandatory program is one that requires provision of benefits to all who meet the eligibility requirements of the law. These are called “mandatory” programs because the authorizing law mandates funding sufficient to cover the expenses of the program, and funding is not subject to varying discretionary appropriations in the budget each year. Funding for service-connected disability compensation is mandatory. If veterans’ health care were a mandatory program, sufficient funding to treat all veterans who fell under its mandatory provisions would be guaranteed for so long as the authorizing law remained in effect. Veterans would not have to fight for sufficient funding in the budget process every year as they now do. Making veterans’ health care funding mandatory would also eliminate the year-to-year uncertainty about funding levels that have prevented the VA from being able to adequately plan for and meet the constantly growing number of veterans seeking treatment. We believe it is disingenuous for our government to promise health care to veterans, especially service-connected disabled veterans, and then to make it unattainable because of inadequate funding. Rationed health care is no way to honor America’s obligation to the brave men and women who have so honorably served our nation and continue to carry the physical and mental scars of th at service. DAV National Commander George H. Steese, Jr. discussed the issue of making veterans’ health care funding mandatory during his February presentation before a joint session of the House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees. The proposal will require a legislative change in the way VA health care is funded. DAV’s proposal would simply shift funding for VA health care from a discretionary to mandatory program so that all eligible veterans enrolled in the VA health care system have timely access to VA medical programs and services currently provided under title 38, United States Code. Mandatory health care funding was also discussed when Commander Steese, National Adjutant Arthur H. Wilson, and Executive Director, Washington Headquarters, David W. Gorman met with President George W. Bush on June 18, 2002. DAV has initially received broad support for this proposal. Several of the other veterans’ service organizations support the concept of mandatory funding for VA health care. Although the VA has not taken an official position on the issue, the Under Secretary for Health said the DAV’s proposal to make VA health care funding mandatory instead of discretionary “is a very reasonable approach” to solving the annual funding problems with the appropriations process. Key congressional members have also expressed support of the concept. We are currently working with congressional staff to further develop this initiative, and we are very hopeful that legislation will soon be introduced. We believe making veterans’ medical care funding mandatory, rather than subject to annual discretionary appropriations, will eliminate the year-to-year uncertainty about funding levels that has prevented VA from being able to adequately plan for, and meet the growing needs of veterans seeking treatment. It will also stop the severe rationing of health care that is typical of today’s veterans’ health care system and will allow service-connected disabled veterans timely access to VA health care. We do not propose changing the existing eligibility criteria for priority groups 1 through 7 or the medical benefits as defined in current law. Only the way the funds are provided for VA health care would change under DAV’s proposal. Having a sufficient number of veterans in the health care system is critical to maintaining the viability of the veterans’ health care system and sustaining it into the future. By including all veterans currently eligible and enrolled for care in the mandatory health care funding proposal, we protect the system and the specialized programs VA has developed to improve the health and well-being of our nation’s service-connected disabled veterans. |
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