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Veterans Benefits

Unfortunately, President Bush continued to make it clear that veterans are not his priority when he introduced his fiscal year 2006 budget. Under this budget, veterans health care costs would increase, some veterans would be excluded from even being able to enroll in the plan, and 3,000 nurses and other veterans medical personnel would be eliminated.

For the third straight year, the President proposed doubling prescription drug co-pay from $7 to $15 and charging a yearly $250 enrollment fee to veterans who do not have service connected disabilities and who have incomes above VA means tested levels. These new fees would affect 2.2 million veterans nationwide. The budget also continues to exclude some veterans from enrolling in VA health care, even while 30,000 veterans are waiting over 6 months to see a VA doctor. According to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, the budget falls $762 million short what is needed to just maintain current health services. Most veterans organizations say this figure is actually closer to $3.5 billion!

The President's budget also slashes an estimated $293 million in federal support to state veterans homes, such as the Jacobetti Home for Veterans. As a result, up to 80 percent of the Veterans in Jacobetti and other state homes nationwide may no longer qualify for federal funding support. Loss of federal support jeopardizes the residential long term care that Jacobetti provides to its disabled veterans. The budget cuts funding for vets health care by $14 billion over the next 5 years. It also includes instruction to cut spending on mandatory veterans programs such as disability compensation by $798 million.

Rest assured, I do not support the President’s budget cuts and I will continue to work to increase veterans’ health care funding. I am also working to change the way veterans' health care is funded in Congress.

With over 10,000 soldiers wounded in Iraq alone, the President's budget fails to provide any "extra" money to take care of these new veterans!

With thousands of our men and women serving overseas, and over $275 billion spent on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, cuts to our veterans health care are no way to honor those who serve our nation. In the 109th Congress, I am a co-sponsor of H.R. 2318, the Assured Funding for Veterans Health Care Act. Currently, the veterans' health care budget falls under a discretionary account. That means, each year, Congress is allowed to fund, or blatantly underfund, veterans' health care on a whim.

H.R. 2318 prevents the President and Congress from tampering with veterans’ services like they are a disposable commodity. The bill shifts veterans' health care from discretionary to mandatory funding. That way, veterans are guaranteed the adequate health care services they deserve. The Assured Funding for Veterans Health Care Act is currently under review in the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Please know, I will continue to push for its passage.