FOR RELEASE:  July 26, 2002

President Urged to Designate Emergency Spending for Veterans’ Health Care System
Evans Attests to Thousands of Veterans Awaiting Services

Washington, DC - Today, Lane Evans, the senior Democrat on the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, urged President Bush to sign a bill making supplemental appropriations for the year ending September 30, 2002, and to designate the $417 million Congress agreed to appropriate for veterans’ health care as emergency spending.  (see letter)

Citing data from the Department of Veterans Affairs collected at his request, Evans attested to significant waiting times for health care services throughout the system.  Bush requested funds to allow VA to treat newly enrolled higher income veterans without conditions related to their military service.  He did not request $275 million Congress appropriated to address the needs of higher priority veterans—those with service-connected conditions and low incomes—being served by the system.   

By law, the President must request all of the funds within the emergency supplemental spending bill to be required due to an “emergency”.  If the President fails to designate the full Congressional request as emergency spending, VA will sacrifice the $275 million provided by Congress.     

“It is now incumbent on you, Mr. President, to designate the entire amount of $417 million as emergency spending…There are compelling reasons for you to do so immediately,” stated Evans.    

Evans cited a July 1, 2002, VA survey conducted at his request to identify veterans who were waiting for care.  “Secretary Principi advised me that as of July 1, 2002, more than 300,000 veterans were awaiting their first appointment for health care or had waited longer than six months for follow up care,” wrote Evans. 

Evans also indicated that he believed those numbers did not tell the whole story because they failed to reflect the thousands of veterans who are also waiting to enroll in the Veterans Health Administration.  “I am advised by one VA medical center alone that, as of March 14, 2002, there were more than a thousand veterans waiting to enroll.”  He also expressed concerns that veterans with conditions related to their military service were among the waiting.  

“I am sure you share my concerns about the problems VA is experiencing in meeting veterans’ demands for services in their health care system.  VA will have little recourse to address these waiting times without your prompt action allowing additional funding,” concluded Evans.

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