FOR RELEASE: September 14, 2001

EVANS URGES VA:  “PREPARE TODAY TO SUPPORT CONFLICT”

Full VA Preparation to Backup Military Health Care 
Facilities Needed Now 

Washington, DC – As Congress moves toward authorizing President Bush to use force to eliminate the threat of terrorism, Congressman Lane Evans (D-IL) has called for the Department of Veterans’ Affairs to immediately prepare its health care system to readily provide backup medical care for the nation’s military forces.  By law, VA is the principal medical care backup for military health care.   Evans explained that Public Law 97-174 calls for the Department of Veterans’ Affairs medical care program to provide contingency back-up to the DoD during war or national emergency.  “Such a time is clearly upon us,” Evans noted. 

After the slow response of the VA to fill this fourth mission during the Gulf War, the VA and DoD drafted and agreed to a common contingency plan, The Department of Veterans Affairs and Department of Defense Contingency Hospital System Plan.  This document prescribes the actions to be taken by each agency to enhance the joint-care system.  “They should be acting today to accomplish plan actions NOW, not next week,” says Evans. 

During the Persian Gulf War, VA was too slow preparing to fulfill its responsibilities to provide medical care to U.S. military forces even with six months of preparation, Evans said.  Top Defense Department officials have said the U.S. will wage a campaign to eradicate the threat of terrorism against America and its allies.  The American people should not expect force used by the United States to be a surgical action, but be prepared for a prolonged effort with the possibility of American casualties.  “The simple truth,” Evans said, “is that VA doesn’t have six months to be ready to supplement medical care to our military forces.  VA needs to be prepared now to fulfill this critically important role.”   

During the Gulf War, VA managers did not take into account the large number of VA employees who were members of the Guard or Reserve components and recalled to active duty during the action.  VA had difficulty counting the number and type of VA medical facility beds available to threat potential casualties, as a result of this obligation and generally poor coordination with the DoD, VA employees were late in assuming responsibility at DoD medical facilities.  Evans notes, “This time, the sharing of responsibilities for providing medical care to any casualties sustained by U.S. forces must be fully coordinated – everyone will know their new responsibilities.”  Evans is a strong supporter of DoD/VA sharing at the local level and has a record of encouraging reciprocal credentialing and privileges. 

Under law VA’s other obligations are (1) providing medical care and non-medical benefits to eligible veterans, their survivors and dependents, (2) conduct and support medical care research, and (3) providing opportunities for medical care training to health care professionals.

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