March 18, 2009

Republicans Denounce Obama Plan to Bill Insurance Companies for Combat Injuries

For more information, contact: Brian Lawrence, (202) 225-1649

Washington, D.C. – Today, Republican members of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and House Republican leaders sent the following joint letter to President Obama denouncing the Administration’s plan to bill veterans’ private insurance for care related to service-connected injuries.

“We are writing to express our profound disappointment over news reports that your Administration is considering a proposal to breach a solemn obligation to our nation's veterans who have courageously fought for our freedom.  If true, the proposal under consideration would permit the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to ignore its core responsibility to provide health care services to our men and women who have a service related disability.  We recognize much work needs to be done to improve access to health care services for veterans; however, turning our backs on our veterans by shifting the burden to private health care insurers for their disability-related health care is the wrong policy course.

In his second inaugural address, President Abraham Lincoln uttered the immortal words, “To care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow and his orphan.” These words are engraved at the entrance of the VA in Washington D.C. They remind us of the Department’s mission on behalf of a grateful nation for the men and women who have served in military uniform, particularly for those who have become disabled as a result of their service. Since colonial times, our forbearers have recognized this moral responsibility of civil government.

We adamantly oppose any attempt to shift this responsibility through an unfunded mandate on private insurers. We intend to protect and honor the service of our highest priority veterans by appropriating the resources necessary for their care.

We hope you will not go forward with this ill-conceived plan and will assure our service-disabled veterans that your Administration is committed to meeting its obligations to them.”

Committee Republicans have clearly expressed their opposition to the Administration’s proposal in previous press statements, legislative hearings, and in their Budget Views and Estimates filed with the House Budget Committee on March 13, 2009.

For more news from House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Republicans, please go to:

http://republicans.veterans.house.gov/ 

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