DAV pushes veterans health care in Washington

By Rhiannon Varmette

WASHINGTON--Hundreds of members of the Disabled American Veterans were here Tuesday as DAV national commander and Maine resident Edward Heath told members of Congress that the Veterans Affairs Department's medical system suffers from a steadily increasing shortage of resources.

Testifying at a joint hearing of the Senate and House Veterans' Affairs Committees, Heath stressed that many veterans, some severely disabled, are forced to wait a year or longer for medical attention and that the problem is only worsening as more veterans enter the VA system.

With more than six million veterans now in the VA system, Heath said around 200,000 wait six months or longer for medical treatment.

He said veterans' benefits are particularly important today, as one generation overflows into the VA system and the next is being deployed for a potential war.

"Today, another generation has been put in harm's way," Heath said. "Because we ask a great sacrifice of these men and women, our government must be prepared to care for them when they need it most."

He added, "A young man or woman injured in the war on terror will need the services of VA well into 2050, long after the guns fall silent and the memories of this war have faded from the minds of most Americans."

Heath pointed out that the number of veterans using the VA system jumped from 2.7 million in 1995 to 4.5 million in 2002, while during the same time period VA health care employee levels dropped from 205,000 to 183,700.

"Each year, the VA is forced to do more with less," Heath said.

President Bush's budget for fiscal year 2004 is asking for $2.1 billion more for VA health care, including new fees and higher co-payments, according to David Autry, deputy national director of communication for the DAV. But at least another $2 billion is needed beyond that, Autry said.

Rep. Mike Michaud, a member of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, said in a statement released after the hearing that he supports making veterans' health care a mandatory component of the budget.

"Veterans have earned the right to VA health care as a continuing cost of national defense and security," Michaud, a Democrat, said. "We must keep the promise made by this country to the men and women who gave so much to keep our nation free."

Sen. Olympia Snowe, a longtime acquaintance of Heath, introduced him at the hearing and expressed concern about unprecedented waiting times for VA health care caused by budget shortfalls and rising medical costs.

"As one who has been on the 'front lines' for those who put themselves in harm's way in service to our nation, Ed knows as well as anyone that these are not abstract policy matters," Snowe, a Republican, said.

"They are genuine concerns in the everyday lives of our veterans," she added. "Our responsibility is to never forget their sacrifice nor deny the responsibility we now share for their health and well-being."

Snowe said that veterans account for 16 percent of Maine's population over the age of 18, placing Maine behind only Alaska in the percentage of veterans in the state.

About a dozen DAV members from Maine attended the hearing, along with members from across the country.

Published in The Bangor Daily News, in Maine.