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THE PARTNERSHIP FOR VETERANS HEALTH CARE BUDGET REFORM |
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As lawmakers rush out of town to campaign for the fall elections, they will be leaving America's sick and disabled veterans and the nation's largest health care system in a state of limbo, as they have for the last five years. With only days until the start of the new fiscal year, once again the veterans health care system faces uncertainty about funding levels because Congress has failed to deliver a timely appropriations bill for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). In fact, some in Congress are proposing to keep funding at the current inadequate level through a device known as a continuing resolution. This will compromise the VA's ability to provide health care services and force the VA to deny more veterans access to care or charge veterans more for the care they receive. Veterans will continue to face lengthy delays for medical appointments, the possibility of increased co-payments, and the denial, for many eligible veterans, of access to care. Congress must enact legislation immediately that will guarantee a reliable, predictable funding stream for veterans health care. Guaranteed full funding will enable the VA to efficiently and effectively plan for and provide the necessary care for our nation's sick and disabled veterans. The President's Task Force to Improve Health Care Delivery for Our Nation's Veterans suggested mandatory funding for VA health care as a solution to the significant mismatch between demand for VA services and available funding. Mandatory funding for veterans health care also is supported by an overwhelming majority of Americans, according to a nationwide survey conducted earlier this year by Princeton Survey Research Associates International. Congress is failing America's sick and disabled veterans by not passing an adequate budget in a timely manner. During a time of war, when Americans are being seriously injured every day, it is unconscionable that VA funding is not a priority for Congress. The Partnership for Veterans Health Care Budget Reform includes The American Legion, AMVETS, Blinded Veterans Association, Disabled American Veterans, Jewish War Veterans of the USA, Military Order of the Purple Heart of the U.S.A., Paralyzed Veterans of America, Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, and Vietnam Veterans of America. |
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