Battle Lines Drawn Over VA Benefits / Dems dig in, demand more for vets

military community ^ | December 28, 2004 | Larry Scott

[Former Military Chick]

Senators send letters to the White House every day. But not letters that portend what may be one of the biggest fights on Capital Hill in the coming year.

Three Democratic Senators have politely, but bluntly, blasted the Bush Administration's funding of the VA. More importantly, they have drawn the battle lines that may decide the future of veteran's healthcare and other benefits for years to come.

In the letter, dated December 16, 2004, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, Committee on Veterans Affairs Ranking Member Daniel Akaka, and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Barbara Mikulski urged President Bush to rethink the VA budgetary process and support programs for veteran's healthcare including special programs to ease the transition difficulties for troops returning from Iraq.

The six-point letter says nothing most veterans don't know. The VA budget is in shambles. Veterans are being locked out. The waiting lists for surgeries and necessary diagnostic procedures mean months of delays for many veterans. Here are the six points in simplified form. I urge you to read the entire letter.

Fully fund and reopen the VA healthcare system for all veterans. Due to chronic under-funding of the VA hundreds of thousands of veterans are being denied the care they were promised and deserve. The VA health-care budget is short billions of dollars. Many veterans shut out of the system have no health insurance. It is a serious mistake to cut the VA budget at a time when we are creating a whole new generation of veterans. This is unfair to those who have bravely served our nation.

Create a seamless transition from active duty to veteran status. Many soldiers are being denied timely access to healthcare benefits and services when they transition. The archaic nature of the system leads to mistakes, backlogs, lost records and long waiting times. The VA and DoD must develop an electronic records system so that those who have served our country are not mired in bureaucracy.

Eliminate claims backlogs and reduce claims processing times. The backlog of VA claims continues to grow, yet the VA continues to reduce claims processing staff.

Increase education benefits. The GI bill meets only about 50 percent of higher education costs for a public college or university.

Increase burial benefits. Burial benefits for the families of our wounded or disabled veterans have not kept up with inflation and rising funeral costs.

Protect, expand and guard against any reduction in long-term care and mental health services. One in every six soldiers returning from Iraq suffers from post-traumatic stress disorders. That's the short version for you. In detail, the letter paints a devastatingly bleak picture for all areas of veteran's benefits in the next few years.

Vice President Dick Cheney has trumpeted the Bush Administration's philosophy that "deficits don't matter" and many Americans bought into that. Earlier this month, President Bush had a post-election epiphany. Speaking at the White House Economic Summit, Bush said, "We recognize we have an issue with both short-term deficits and the long-term deficits of unfunded liabilities to the entitlement programs."(emphasis mine) Strange that we never heard this before November 2nd. As you know, VA benefits come under the heading of "entitlement programs." Translation of above: More cuts are coming to a VA near you!

It should be noted that VA budgets have increased every year for as long as I can remember. The increase in the past eight years has been over 50 percent. This figure is thrown around by those who claim our veterans are being served properly by the VA. What they don't mention is that the number of veterans seeking healthcare in the past eight years has gone up 150 percent! The figures don't add up. VA funding, plain and simple, has not kept up with the demand for benefits by qualified veterans.

The paltry Fiscal Year 2005 VA Budget Submissions authored by outgoing VA Secretary Anthony J. Principi and his staff is the stuff of outrage. And, the actual funding came in shy of that by about $1.4 billion. Add to this a scheduled $1 billion cut for next year. But, this didn't surprise me as I have been writing about this for months in other opinion pieces for Military.com. It's time for this to stop!

This entire VA under-funding fiasco is a slap in the face to ALL veterans. The veterans in the VA system are waiting months for treatment, surgeries and critical diagnostic procedures. The veterans about to go into the system after service in Iraq, Afghanistan and other countries will get no better.

The proposals offered by Senators Reid, Akaka and Mikulski offer real hope for veterans. Now it's time to turn hope into reality. This can only be done with bipartisan support for these proposals followed by concerted action to turn these six "must-haves" into legislation that will pass in both the Senate and House.

We must urge our Senators to work with Reid, Akaka and Mikulski. And you can help. Find your Senator here. Copy the following and insert it into an email to your Senator using a proper heading and your signature:

Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, Committee on Veterans Affairs Ranking Member Daniel Akaka, and Veterans Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee Ranking Member Barbara Mikulski have recently written a letter to President Bush urging full funding for the VA and improvements in many programs for veterans.

The six-point letter details needed changes at all levels of the VA and offers viable solutions to a host of problems currently confronting veterans seeking VA benefits.

I strongly urge you to work with Senators Reid, Akaka and Mikulski to make their proposals a reality and prove to all veterans that America really cares for those who served when called.

[Future Snake Eater]

Awww, isn't that cute? The RATS are trying to act pro-military...

[zzen01]

Just because a site says "Military Community" does not mean that it is pro military.

[U S Army EOD]

I think the driving pressure on the administration will be trying to keep the volunteer army intact. A lot of people are going to be watching Vet benefits, especially the people who are considering possibly becoming Vets.

For one, I have seen by benefits drastically increase over the pass year, the biggest increase coming with the signing of the con-current pay bill. This doubled my income.

[digger48]

If all this were true, wouldn't some RINO's and most other Republican Senators also be signed on to this.

We heard this throughout the campaign, but is there ANY truth in this?

[Former Military Chick]

I beg your pardon, I did not say it was pro anything.

[Cold Heat]

I am a current VA patient.

I see no overcrowding except on certain areas like x-ray, and the only shortage I see is a lack of doctors.

New clinics have been planned and money allocated all over the country to take some of the outpatient load from the primary care hospitals and it looks like increases in demand are being planned for.

Just my observations.

[Former Military Chick]

As someone who was the daughter of a service member, served in the military and now married to one of our bravest, I have been in the system from birth and perhaps at my death.

When I go to pick up med's at the on post pharmacy I see those who have served years back, and are now enjoying their benefits, enjoying is a harsh term, some get the run around, some have to wait days some well they give up.

My husband, myself and my father, were not expected to be ill, thus the benny's were there for the family members but with the change of TRI CARE some of our finest are being short changed. I frankly do not know how to make it better and even worse I have no desire to ever agree with the Maryland Senator, but I do know one thing, we need to do better by our troops.

We need them to receive a better wage, better long term benefits in order to entice folks to serve, if we fail, I fear that we will see a decline in the all volunteer military. imho

Oh, and I am thrilled for those who get out of the military what they feel they deserve but not all vets are as lucky.

[mdittmar]

The volunteer military is here to stay,because free market forces are at work and the September 11th call to arms of the next "Greatest Generation".

This hypocritical act by the dems means we have won this war on providing our military what they deserve.

[YOUGOTIT]

The VA budget has increased under the Republican Congress and President Bush at a greater percent that under any Democrat Administration or Congress, since the end of WW II. As a life member of the DAV I can tell you that I have never seen such increases in veteran benefits. This is another political piece of crap with the demo rats who are on the one hand saying there is no money and on the other saying increase benefits. I an all for taking care of all veterans but some of the things they are trying to do are outside the realm of good reason. Some of the complaints I have read are from retired colonels and generals, no way they should have any complaint about their benefits.

[Former Military Chick]

I am glad to hear that, really I am. I know they were building a new facility in OK, near Ft Sill. I have no doubt it will help take the burden off folks driving to Oklahoma City. Still, if you do not live near a facility things can get a little dicey. imho

Thank you for your service.

[U S Army EOD]

The money and the facilities are in place, the problem is how it is administered in the VA. However, in the past year I have seen the VA slowly but surely cleaning this up.

I wouldn't even try to estimate how much has been spent on me in the past several years. PTSD problems plus over 10 heart operations. If it wasn't for the VA, I would have been dead five years ago. It just gets better and better. Right now I plan to help it out by joining some of these Veteran Outreach programs for our troops coming back from the Middle East. Veterans helping Veterans.

[KeyWest]

None from me- retired 06. VA benefits have increased under Bush, but mainly from the house pubs.

I got a nice letter from my dem house member who said there was no money because of tax cuts to the rich. Meanwhile, the pubs passed the legislation.

This is just granstanding by the hypocritical dems.

[Brilliant]

We can increase the benefits for Vets, and pay for it by cutting the pay and the budget for Congress. A win-win.

[U S Army EOD]

I don't know if you ever saw or read the book, "Starship Troopers". You bascially had to be a Vet to EARN your citizenship. Science fiction but not a bag idea.

[bad company]

I'm a vet and the only change I've seen since GWB took over is that they are really getting hard a$$ed about making your regular appointments. They are trying to get vets in for preventive maintenance checkups now. Almost without exception I go to the VA for any kind of care, even though I have civilian health insurance. My health insurance has designated doctors they say I must use but they have always paid off the VA. The bureaucrats suck but the Doctors and Nurses are the greatest.

[mlc9852]

I work for an attorney who is a vet and he was severely injured in the Navy. He goes to the VA hospital quite often and never has mentioned having to wait. He gets an appointment quicker than you can with a private doctor here. And they call him the day before to remind him of the appointment. Maybe some are just better than others. But I personally don't think we can ever do enough for our military. If the dems want to look good on this and our military benefits, then who cares?

[gogipper]

If we want to support vets we should also ensure that every military vote counts even in elections where Democrats trail by just a few votes!!!!

[Txsleuth]

I have seen these dems work their stuff on the Senate floor and you can bet your butt that there would be something else in any veteran's benefits bill that would be brought up by a Dem. They have tried it over and over.

This last year they tried slipping in another 26 week extension for unemployment benefits for people that had them since 9/11! Didn't work---thankfully. Then, they tried to slip in a new minimum wage increase into a bill to "help our poor veterans".

They are using the veterans to get other stuff, because if not, then why was the military so neglected during Clinton's reign---they were the majority, they could have made millionaires out of veterans, but they didn't, did they?

[silverleaf]

These 'rats have been in the Congress for decades and NOW they're, like, all concerned about spending more on vets? And where pray tell, is the funding to come from?

Nah- this Reid/Mikulski democrat scum is using vets as a political ploy to try to embarrass the President and GOP. If Bush can't or won't bust the budget for this particular agency, the 'rats will point out how Bush prefered to cut taxes over spending on vets.

Regardless of the fact that an important thing that Pres Bush owes all vets is a strong and healthy economy to come home to.