http://www.armytime
January 01, 2007
VA forced to shift money to cover health costs
By Rick
<mailto:rmaze@atpco.
Maze
Staff writer
The Department of Veterans Affairs is shifting money from construction and
maintenance to cover the cost of providing health care to deal with a budget
crisis caused by Congress.
The first notice of a shift - $250 million being transferred from the
medical services account to medical care - was sent to Congress on Dec. 19
by Secretary of Veterans Affairs R. James Nicholson, whose letter leaves
open the possibility that more funds could shift.
VA spokesman Matt Burns said the Bush administration had requested a $2.8
billion increase for veterans' health care funding in 2007, an amount that
would have covered improved mental health and long-term care services and
cover the costs of treating returning war veterans.
Not getting the full $2.8 billion "could impede our ability to provide
enhanced services in a timely manner," Burns said in a statement, adding
that VA plans to work with the White House and Congress to secure the
required funding.
Representatives of major veterans' groups said they expect short-term pain
to be felt in the form of delays in repairs and maintenance of facilities
and new construction.
Over the longer term, if the flat budgets continue beyond mid-February, VA
also could run short of supplies and be forced to freeze hiring. That would
be particularly harmful to efforts to reduce the backlog of benefits claims
because it would prevent the start of a planned expansion of claims workers,
Peter Gayton of the American Legion said.
No surprises
Even while expressing their dismay, veterans' advocates say they're not
surprised.
"We have been through this before," said David Autry of Disabled American
Veterans. "VA is perpetually underfunded, and this is going to further
stress the system."
Autry said when VA has had money shortages in the past, the agency has
skimped on construction and maintenance to preserve funding for health care
and benefits, but this has not always gone as planned. In the past, he said,
a lack of maintenance has led to the closure of operating rooms when air
conditioning stopped working, for example.
The current problem, caused by failure to pass a permanent fiscal 2007
funding bill for VA or for any federal agencies other than the departments
of Defense and Homeland Security, is that a temporary spending bill approved
by Congress does not allow for budget growth.
Congress has given VA permission to transfer up to $684 million to its
Veterans Health Administration, leaving it to VA to decide where the extra
money will come from.
"While there is a great need to finance the dwindling health care accounts,
it is unfortunate that VA will need to raid other important accounts to help
sick and disabled veterans," said Joseph Chenelly, spokesman for AmVets. "We
are extremely concerned."
Chenelly said it is AmVets' understanding that VA faces a deficit of about
$250 million per month without a new budget.
"How are they expected to make up the shortfall for an entire year?" he
asked.
Dennis Cullman, legislative director for the Veterans of Foreign Wars, said
there has been talk in Congress about providing the $3 billion increase in
the VA budget before the fiscal year is out, but this is no sure thing.
"We just have a bad feeling they are not going to be able to put $3 billion
in," he said.
The DAV's Autry said the short-term funding problem has long-term
implications.
"It is hard for them to look to the future when they don't know what they
have now to spend," he said.