White House Wants More Vet Care

[stevedeshazer]

July 13, 2005

WASHINGTON - The White House is poised to ask Congress for $300 million more for veterans health care less than two weeks after assuring lawmakers that $975 million in additional money would be enough for this budget year, a Republican lawmaker said Tuesday.

Sen. Larry Craig, R-Idaho, chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, said the latest request would arrive on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, and he expressed frustration at what he saw as the Veterans Affairs Departments' apparent inability to produce solid budget estimates.

"The numbers keep going up," Craig said. "It is getting old."

His House counterpart, Rep. Steve Buyer, R-Ind., added, "It is stunning to me how (the VA) can have three different opinions in a matter of ... weeks."

more: http://www.military.com/NewsContent/0,13319,FL_vets_071305,00.html

[Fovea]

1. That's ok, the DoD can't come up with real

casualty numbers, so who's surprized when the Veterans Administration
has problems with numbers for health care figures for made up casualty numbers?

[maddezmom]

2. White House To Ask for $300M Boost for Veterans' Health Funding

14 Jul 2005

Bush administration officials are expected to ask Congress on Wednesday for $300 million for veterans' health care -- in addition to the $975 million already requested -- to cover the "larger-than-anticipated" budget deficit for fiscal year 2005, Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and Larry Craig (R-Idaho) said Tuesday,... CQ Today reports. In addition, the administration's supplemental request for FY 2006 could be $1.7 billion, Craig said. Hutchison said she expected the request to be "$1.6 billion or so" (Starks, CQ Today, 7/12). Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary James Nicholson and other department officials in June testified before Congress that the budget deficit could reach at least $1 billion in FY 2005 and at least $2.6 billion in FY 2006. The House in June voted 419-0 to pass a fiscal year 2005 supplemental appropriations bill (HR 3130) that would provide the VA with $975 million -- the amount initially requested by the Bush administration for FY 2005. The Senate on the previous day voted 96-0 to add $1.5 billion in emergency funds for VA health care programs to the FY 2006 Interior Department appropriations bill (HR 2361) (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 7/1).

Recent Action
The Senate on Tuesday "sent another strong signal to the House" by unanimously adopting the $1.5 billion amendment as part of the FY 2006 Homeland Security appropriations bill (HR 2360). Hutchison said that as a result of the administration's request, she expects the Senate to call up the House-approved measure this week and amend it to provide a total of $1.27 billion in additional health care funds for FY 2005. The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, which Hutchison chairs, is scheduled to consider the FY 2006 appropriations measure July 19, followed by full committee consideration July 21 (CQ Today, 7/12).


Restrictions on Long-Term Care?
Some nursing home operators have become increasingly concerned that a proposal to impose restrictions on veterans' eligibility for long-term care might "find new support" in light of the VA budget shortfall, the AP/South Florida Sun-Sentinel reports. President Bush has proposed limiting VA long-term care services to veterans who were injured or disabled as a result of active duty, who have severe disabilities, who require care after hospitalization, or who require hospice or respite care. Nicholson in February told a Senate committee that the plan could reduce spending by $496 million. According to Bob Shaw, legislative director of the National Association of State Veterans Homes, the proposal could deny long-term care services to about 14,000 veterans who now receive care in nursing homes. Shaw said, "We're concerned that the VA budget, as the VA presents it, even if they get $1.5 billion or $975 million, is probably still vastly understating what their need is" (Gamboa, AP/South Florida Sun-Sentinel, 7/13).

more:http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=27387