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WHITE HOUSE PROPOSES INADEQUATE VA BUDGET FOR
2008 AND WANTS HIGHER CO-PAYS AND ENROLLMENT
FEES -- Meager increase will leave VA
underfunded and
understaffed for yet another year and take more
money out of veterans' pockets.
Smoke and mirrors...plain and simple!
VA Secretary Jim Nicholson is calling
this a "landmark budget." An increase of just one dollar would
make it a "landmark," so we must ignore everything Nicholson says about
this budget.
Once again the White House and the VA are
asking for prescription co-pay and enrollment fee increases.
We must remember, this budget is based on
the VA being able to collect those increases.
That won't happen! Congress has
voted down the increases before and they will, most likely, do it again.
That means this budget will be reduced by
the amount of the non-collected increases expected by the VA.
This budget leaves the VA right in the
middle of the financial crisis it faces today.
The VA is critically underfunded and
understaffed and this budget will only serve to make matters
worse...delayed healthcare...denied healthcare...longer waiting lists.
We have three stories. First is a
quick look at the VA budget. And, following that are two VA press
releases that sing the praises of the budget.
Note the mention of a 77% increase since
the beginning of the current administration. It's easy to use a
big number to try to make people believe you are doing your job
correctly. But, the number means nothing because that 77% hasn't
kept up with demand at the VA. It's just more political "spin"
that leaves veterans with a VA system that is not doing the job.
Also notice that Nicholson does NOT
mention the co-pay and enrollment fee increases in his press releases.
Just a slight omission, I'm sure!
First story here...
http://www.detnews.com/apps/
pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070205/NATION/
702050421/1020/NATION
Story below:
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Department of Veteran Affairs
Spending: $84.4 billion
Percentage change from 2007: +13.3 percent
Mandatory Spending: $44.9 billion
Highlights:
# Percentage increase in overall spending is the largest for a federal
agency.
# Proposes higher health care enrollment fees for veterans whose incomes
are above certain levels and who have no illnesses or injuries that
resulted from their military service. Congress has previously rejected
similar proposals.
# For the same veterans, seeks to increase copayments on prescription
drugs. Similar plans have been rejected by Congress.
# Raises spending on medical care from $29.3 billion to $34.2 billion.
About $3 billion would go to mental health care as veterans returning
from Iraq and Afghanistan report increased symptoms of stress or other
mental disorders.
# Anticipates VA will provide medical care to nearly 263,000 Iraq and
Afghanistan veterans in 2008.
# Devotes $1.9 billion to information technology, an increase after last
year's budget was cut to $1.1 billion. Of that, $70.1 million would be
spent on data security.
Much of the VA's spending increase would meet growing costs of treating
combat-injured troops and other health care for veterans returning from
Iraq and Afghanistan, a need that Democrats say repeatedly has not been
met by the Bush administration.
The department also is boosting information technology spending, much of
it on data security, following last May's theft of a VA data analyst's
laptop containing sensitive information on 26.5 million veterans. The
laptop was later recovered intact, but VA Secretary Jim Nicholson has
since pledged to make the agency a "gold standard" in IT.
"This landmark budget will allow us to expand the three core missions of
the VA -- those being to provide world-class health care; broad, fair
and timely benefits; and dignified burials in shrine-like settings for
our nation's veterans," Nicholson said.
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First VA press release here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/vap07/vap020507-1.htm
Press release below:
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VA Requests $87 Billion for Veterans in
Landmark FY ’08 Budget
February 5, 2007
Nicholson: “Right Resources for Right People” Working for Veterans
WASHINGTON – Continuing to honor the nation’s commitment to meet the
needs of America’s veterans, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson
announced today that President Bush will seek a landmark budget of
nearly $87 billion in fiscal year 2008 for the Department of Veterans
Affairs (VA), with health care and disability compensation for veterans
receiving the majority of the spending.
The FY '08 proposal represents an increase of $37.8 billion, or 77
percent, from the budget in effect when the President took office.
“This landmark budget will allow us to expand the three core missions of
the VA -- those being to provide world-class health care; broad, fair
and timely benefits; and dignified burials in shrine-like settings for
our nation’s veterans,” Nicholson said. “This budget also allows us to
continue our progress toward becoming a national leader in information
technology and data security.
“With the right resources in the hands of the right people, anything and
everything is possible when it comes to caring for America’s veterans,”
Nicholson said. “At VA, we already have the right people -- 235,000
dedicated employees. With the President’s proposed landmark budget, we
will have the right resources.”
Under the new budget, VA will begin a new initiative to provide priority
in processing claims for disability compensation from veterans of the
Global War on Terror. Secretary Nicholson also announced plans to create
a special Advisory Committee on OIF/OEF Veterans and Families, which
will advise him on the full spectrum of issues affecting VA and the
veterans and families of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring
Freedom.
The FY ’08 budget proposal calls for $42 billion in discretionary
funding -- mostly for health care -- which is the largest amount ever
requested by a President. It also would provide $45 billion in mandatory
funding, mostly for compensation, pension, educational assistance, home
loan guaranties and other benefit programs.
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Second VA press release here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/07/vap07/vap020507-2.htm
Press release below:
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FY ’08 Landmark VA Budget Request Highlights
February 5, 2007
The President’s landmark FY ’08 budget request for $86.75 billion for
the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) honors the nation’s commitment
to America’s veterans. Most of the budget is targeted for the
Department’s health care system and disability compensation programs.
* This budget proposal represents a 77 percent increase from the overall
budget in effect when the President took office in FY ’01 and more than
an 83 percent increase in health care spending.
* The budget continues the President's
commitment for VA to work closely with the Department of Defense to
ensure that service members returning from Iraq and Afghanistan and
their families receive timely, high-quality services and benefits.
* VA will continue to provide world-class
health care to an estimated 5.8 million patients, including 263,000
veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.
* The FY ’08 budget proposal includes $750
million for capital improvements to its health care facilities, bringing
the total to $3.7 billion during the last five years. The FY ’08
proposal includes funding for major construction projects in Denver; Las
Vegas; Lee County, Fla.; Orlando, Fla.; Pittsburgh; and Syracuse, N.Y.
* The FY ’08 budget request calls for nearly $3
billion in mental health services to continue improvements in access to
a full continuum of care for veterans with mental health problems,
including comprehensive treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder
(PTSD).
* Funding for extended care services will reach
$4.6 billion in FY ’08, of which 90 percent will be for institutional
long-term care and 10 percent for non-institutional care.
* The FY ’08 budget proposal includes nearly
$192 million in construction funding to support VA’s burial program.
Resources are included to establish six new national cemeteries in
Bakersfield, Calif.; Birmingham, Ala.; Columbia-Greenville, S.C.;
Jacksonville, Fla.; Sarasota, Fla.; and southeastern Pennsylvania. This
budget also includes funds for a gravesite development project at Fort
Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio and $32 million in grants
for the construction of state veterans cemeteries.
Ensuring a Seamless Transition
The President’s FY ’08 budget request provides the resources necessary
to fulfill a commitment making as smooth and seamless as possible the
transition of service members from the active duty military to civilian
life.
Secretary Nicholson announced plans to create a special Advisory
Committee on OIF/OEF Veterans and Families. The panel, with membership
including veterans, spouses and parents of the latest generation of
combat veterans, will report directly to the VA Secretary. The committee
will focus on the concerns of all men and women with active military
service in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom, but
will pay particular attention to severely disabled veterans and their
families.
VA has placed workers at key military hospitals where severely injured
service members from Iraq and Afghanistan are frequently sent for care.
These include counselors who help service members obtain VA benefits as
well as social workers who facilitate health care coordination and
discharge planning as service members transition from military to VA
health care.
World-Class Health Care
The President’s FY ’08 budget proposal requests $36.6 billion for VA’s
health care program. This is more than 83 percent higher than the FY '01
budget in place at the beginning of the administration.
With these resources, VA will be able to treat an estimated 5.8 million
patients. In 2008, about 75 percent of all veteran patients are expected
to be those who count on VA the most (Priority 1-6 veterans).
The President’s budget request also includes $750 million to continue
the recommendations of a 2004 report designed to modernize VA's health
care system. This historic transformation means that VA will be able to
provide greater access to high-quality care well into the future. For
example, the FY ’08 budget includes funding to complete construction of
a new $600 million VA medical center in Las Vegas.
VA’s health care system continues to be the nation’s leader in
delivering safe, accessible, and high-quality care that sets the
national benchmark for excellence in health care. Last year, Harvard
University recognized VA’s computerized patient records system by
awarding the Department the prestigious “Innovations in American
Government Award.” VA’s electronic health records have been an important
element in making VA health care the benchmark for nearly 300 measures
of disease prevention and treatment in the country.
In addition, for the seventh consecutive year, VA has set the public and
private sector standard for health care satisfaction on the American
Customer Satisfaction Index conducted by the National Quality Research
Center at the University of Michigan. Patients included in the study
gave VA health care higher marks than those received by private-sector
facilities for medical services provided in both inpatient and
outpatient settings.
Responding Financially to Disabled Veterans
The President’s budget proposal for FY ’08 will enable VA to address the
large growth in the number of claims for compensation and pension
benefits, while at the same time increasing the processing accuracy of
these most challenging and increasingly complex compensation claims. The
Department expects to improve the timeliness of processing these claims
to 145 days in FY ’08 while raising the accuracy of adjudicated claims
to 90 percent.
The budget includes funds for disability payments to more than 3.7
million veterans and surviving family members in FY '08, or more than 5
percent above the number at the end of FY '06.
Key program improvements will affect both the education, and vocational
rehabilitation and employment programs. The timeliness of processing
original education claims will significantly improve during the next two
years, falling from 40 days in FY ’06 to a projected 25 days in FY ’08.
In addition, VA expects to increase to 75 percent the share of disabled
veterans successfully completing the vocational rehabilitation and
employment program.
Cemeteries are National Shrines
With the resources requested in the FY ’08 budget, VA will expand access
to national and state veterans cemeteries. The Department will increase
the percentage of veterans served by a burial option in a national or
state veterans cemetery within 75 miles of their residence to 84.6
percent.
The FY ’08 budget proposal calls for nearly $167 million in operations
and maintenance funding for national cemeteries. These resources will
ensure VA continues to meet the burial needs of veterans and maintain
its national cemeteries as shrines dedicated to preserving the nation’s
history and honoring veterans’ service and sacrifice.
Becoming “Gold Standard” in IT Security
VA’s FY ‘08 request provides $70.1 million for cyber security to support
the Department’s objective to become “the gold standard” in IT security.
This ongoing initiative involves the development, deployment and
maintenance of a set of controls to better secure VA’s IT systems.
In addition, VA’s budget request contains $34.1 million for a new
state-of-the-art human resource management system. It will result in an
electronic employee record and the capability to produce critical
management information in a fraction of the time it now takes using
paper-based systems.
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Larry Scott --
