Sen. Daschle Praised for Veterans Health Care Amendment to Defense Bill

6/17/2004

From: David E. Autry of the Disabled American Veterans, 202-314-5219

WASHINGTON, June 17 -- The Disabled American Veterans (DAV) commends Senator Thomas A. Daschle (D-S.D.) for sponsoring an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act that would guarantee dependable, stable, and sustained funding for veterans health care.

Senator Daschle's amendment calls for a fundamental change in the way government funding is provided for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical care system. "This shift in VA health care funding would guarantee adequate resources to care for sick and disabled veterans," said DAV National Commander Alan W. Bowers.

"Skyrocketing medical costs, decades of inadequate, inflation- eroded appropriations, and increasing demand for medical services have severely hampered timely access to quality health care for our nation's sick and disabled veterans," Commander Bowers said. As the President's Task Force to Improve Health Care Delivery for Our Nation's Veterans noted in its final report last year, there is a significant mismatch in VA between demand and available funding. If left unresolved, the report warns, this imbalance will delay veterans' access to care and could threaten the quality of VA health care.

"The amendment offered by Senator Daschle would close the gap between funding and demand for veterans health care and eliminate the year-to-year uncertainty about funding levels that has prevented the VA from being able to adequately plan for and meet the constantly growing needs of veterans seeking treatment," Commander Bowers said.

"It is crucial that guaranteed funding legislation be enacted this year to ensure that all eligible veterans -- including those injured in Operation Iraqi Freedom and the war on terror -- have access to timely, quality health care," said Commander Bowers.

Commander Bowers pointed to a nationwide survey which found that three out of four Americans (75 percent) believe veterans health care should be a "top to high funding priority" in the federal budget. Most Americans (87 percent) also support making veterans health care funding mandatory.

The survey, conducted earlier this year by Princeton Survey Research Associates International, shows that 74 percent of Americans surveyed believe that Congress and the President have a very big responsibility to ensure that veterans receive their health care and other benefits following their military service. Nearly all survey respondents (95 percent) said veterans should not have to wait to receive their benefits.

The 1.2 million-member Disabled American Veterans, a non-profit organization founded in 1920 and chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1932, represents this nation's wartime disabled veterans. It is dedicated to a single purpose: building better lives for our nation's disabled veterans and their families. For more information, visit the organization's Web site http://www.dav.org.