Posted on 02/08/2002 10:36:42 AM PST by Native American Female Vet
Proposed deductible for VA health care draws fire from vets' groups, Congress
By Jim Abrams, Associated Press, 2/8/2002 14:01
WASHINGTON (AP) Veterans groups and their congressional allies say they will resist an administration proposal to help finance an increasingly popular VA health care program by asking some vets to pay a $1,500 annual deductible.
''We're deeply troubled by this,'' said Richard Fuller of the Paralyzed Veterans of America. He said it would deter veterans from getting their health care at the VA and put some of the VA's specialized services, in spinal cord injuries, rehabilitation and long-term care, out of the reach of some veterans. The deductible, proposed in President Bush's budget outline for the year starting Oct. 1, is a result of the greater number of participants in the VA's health care program. Congress passed a law in 1996 opening VA medical facilities to nearly all veterans, not just the very poor and those with military disabilities who have traditionally been the core patients.
Since then, the number of veterans enrolled in VA health care has doubled, to 6 million, and one-third are in the new ''priority 7'' category. This class has slightly higher incomes $24,000 if single or $28,000 if married no service-related disabilities and no other qualifications such as Agent Orange or Gulf War Syndrome illnesses, exposure to atomic tests or a Purple Heart.
Under the administration proposal, these veterans or their insurance companies would pay 45 percent of the charges each time they receive medical care until they reach the $1,500 annual ceiling. After that, they would continue to pay minimal copayments for outpatient and inpatient care. There would be no change in care for the VA's core groups, the poor and those with service-related disabilities.
The Veterans Affairs Department said the increased usage, along with higher costs for drugs, health care inflation and new mandates such as emergency, mental health and long-term care, ''have all contributed to a financial challenge and hard budget decisions.''
''We have an explosion in our workload,'' said VA chief financial officer Mark Catlett. In order to keep the system open, those in the higher-income category are going to carry a larger share of the cost, he said.
The administration estimated savings of more than $1 billion from the deductible, predicting reduced costs of $885 million and increased collections of $260 million. Catlett said enrollment would continue to grow but he predicted the $1,500 deductible would cause some 121,000 higher-income veterans to instead turn to other health care services, saving the VA system money.
The administration last fall was prepared to put a freeze on all new ''priority 7'' enrollments as a way of saving money, but decided instead to look at other options, leading to the deductible idea.
Rep. Christopher Smith, R-N.J., chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, agreed that the government has to find a way to adequately fund the system, ''but pricing people out of it with a high deductible isn't a viable way.''
Jim Fischl, director of veterans affairs and rehabilitation at the American Legion, said his group also understands the need for higher-income veterans to pay something toward the cost of their care. But ''we do not like the way the VA is handling it. Fifteen hundred dollars is grossly out of line.''
The chairman of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, Sen. John D. Rockefeller, D-W.Va., is also concerned, said his spokeswoman, Wendy Frankson. The administration has made clear it wants to keep the doors of the VA health care system open, she said, but the deductible ''would clearly do just the opposite.''
She said it could be a hardship even for those veterans who could turn to Medicare because the VA, unlike Medicare, offers prescription drug coverage.
If Congress refuses to go along with the deductible, lawmakers and the White House would have to explore other ways to come up with more money. Those could include seeking reimbursement from Medicare for services provided by the VA, asking higher-income veterans to pay something like a health insurance premium or returning to the idea of terminating new enrollment.
Rep. Smith said the government should be willing to pay the extra money for VA care because it has been shown to be 25 to 30 percent cheaper than the same care provided by Medicare. ''It's a savings that is largely unrecognized.''
On the Net:
Department of Veterans Affairs: http://www.va.gov/
I second that!!!!
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