Testimony of
JAMES D. STATON
Executive Director, Air Force
Sergeants Association
March 7, 2000
Joint House-Senate Veterans' Affairs
Hearing
FY 2001 VETERANS' PRIORITIES
Mr. Chairmen and distinguished committee
members, thank you for this opportunity to present what the Air Force Sergeants
Association (AFSA) and those it represents believe should be among your Fiscal Year 2001
priorities for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Your committees have always served
in a singularly nonpartisan way to act as the conscience of this nation in ensuring that
our veterans are viewed as a vital national resource rather than a financial burden. Our
decisions in this regard as a nation should not be based on the bottom line, but on what
is right. Building on the great successes you achieved last year, we ask you to continue
the momentum in caring for those who serve.
As each of you have often indicated, we owe our servicemen and women an immeasurable debt
of gratitude. In order to preserve the day-to-day peace and prosperity of the citizens of
this nation, those who serve in the military turn their mortal beings over to the dictates
of their country -- prepared to die, if need be. Their terms of service are always
arduous, and the job they do for all of us is fantastic. We owe them perhaps more than any
other segment of our society. These committees among all segments of our national
leadership hold the key to protecting and honoring these warriors who are driven by no
more than selflessly contributing to the preservation of freedom and liberty.
Today, I wish to comment on some of the concerns we receive from our members in phone
calls and during field visits. AFSA and its 150,000 members represent those who are
currently serving, those veterans who have reached retirement, and those who have simply
separated.
AFSA maintains that if this nation is indeed grateful for having been protected, it owes
those who have served to safeguard it. After all, these men and women faced unlimited
liability, forming a covenant with the nation to sacrifice their lives, if necessary, to
protect its interests. We owe them a solid educational program to return them to the
status of a productive citizen, we owe them short- and long-term health care to deal with
any physical condition that resulted from the period of their lives they dedicated their
mortal beings to the service of this nation, we owe them other programs such as home loans
to enhance their lives. For those veterans who served for a long period of time and
reached military retirement, we must ensure that they too be provided the full range of
veterans benefits.
This nation's response for service should be based on certain principles that this
association urges these committees to use as a guide during your deliberations. These
imperatives provide an underlying foundation upon which we feel the decisions of these
committees should be based.
GUIDING PRINCIPLES
1. PROVIDE A SOLID TRANSITION BACK INTO SOCIETY. Clearly, a debt is owed
those who serve. The United States of America owes its veterans dignified, transitional,
recovery assistance. . . not based on rank or status, but simply because they served in
the most lethal of professions. In effect, they signed their physical and spiritual beings
over to this nation.
2. ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT MOST VETERANS ARE ENLISTED. Any decisions
on veterans' benefits must factor in a realization that most veterans are enlisted
veterans. These veterans served with lower pay, generally reentered the civilian populace
with non-transferrable military skills, probably had relatively little civilian education,
and served in skills that are less marketable. Certainly, "a vet is a vet," but
enlisted veterans bring a different economic equation to the table; we must factor in that
situation as we make important decisions about veterans' futures.
3. DECIDE BASED ON RIGHT -- NOT COST. This nation's commitment cannot waver
simply because of the large number of veterans. Congress and (in turn) the VA must never
make determinations simply because "the money is just not there" or because
there are now "to many" veterans. Our national will and the correlative response
should be based on doing what is right.
4. REMEMBER RESERVISTS. Our enlisted guardsmen and reservists are full-time
players. They are part of the total force. Any differences between reserve component
members and the full-time force, in terms of VA programs or availability of services, need
to be systematically erased. Their commitment is no less real. Their subjection to
unlimited liability is just as absolute. Their love of country is just as intense. We urge
you to act to bring our guardsmen and reservists in as full beneficiaries.
5. HONESTLY COMMIT TO TREAT THE MALADIES OF WAR. It is important that
the commitment of our troops to combat or high-risk situations also involves an absolute
commitment to care for any malady that may have resulted from that service. Many
veterans call and write to this association about our government's denial, waffling, then
reluctant recognition of illnesses caused by conditions during the Persian Gulf conflict.
Many point out that our government agencies responsible to our veterans acted in the same
manner following the Vietnam Conflict in reference to Agent Orange. We ask you to
reinforce a commitment to unconditional care after service.
This statement will focus on three general areas: Education, Health Care, and general
issues that we hope you will consider as you deliberate the budget and policies that
should be part of the program offered to our veterans for the upcoming fiscal year.
EDUCATION
As the Congressional Commission on Servicemembers and Veterans Transition Assistance
(established by PL 104-275), also known as the "Principi Commission," concluded
in December 1998, education is the key to successful transition. While this incredibly
comprehensive report summarized the changes needed to make the Montgomery G.I. Bill a
viable tool for readjustment by providing a benefit that will pay for the cost of
education, Congress and the Administration have done little to implement the historic
findings of the commission. As such, action is overdue to show the members serving this
nation that it cares for the incredible sacrifices they make.
MAKE THE BENEFIT A LEGITIMATE, VALUABLE ONE. If this nation is going to have
a program that sincerely intends to satisfy the purpose of the program, it certainly
should mirror civilian industry by providing a real educational program and not a token,
non-sufficient one. At a minimum, the value of the Montgomery G.I. Bill must be increased
to reflect the costs of education. Reflected in such a benefit must be the costs of
tuition, books, and fees. AFSA urges you to tie the value of the benefit to a standard
established by the actual cost of education such as that spelled out each year by the
Chronicle of Higher Education Almanac which reports average annual college costs for a
commuter, non-resident student. For example, instead of the current benefit of nine
monthly $536 stipends for four years (36 months total); a realistic benefit, according to
the Chronicle would have been $945 per month in 1998-1999 and about $1000 per month in
2000-2001.
PROVIDE AN OPEN WINDOW FOR ALL INTO THE MONTGOMERY G.I. BILL. Those
who entered the service after December 31, 1976, and before July 1, 1985, were offered the
Veterans Educational Assistance Program (VEAP). Within that program, the military member
contributes up to $2,700 which the government matches with up to $5,400. However, there
are approximately 55,000 members who came into the service between 1977 and 1985 who chose
not to participate in VEAP because it was considered a relatively poor benefit in relation
to the actual cost of classes. These G.I.s are now retiring (20-plus years of service)
without any educational benefit.
So too, since 1985, the Montgomery G.I. Bill has been offered to new airmen entering the
Air Force. If an airman chooses to participate, this program requires a $1,200 payroll
deduction, $100 during each of the member's first 12 months of service. For that $1,200,
the member receives an educational benefit of $536 per month for 36 months -- clearly a
much more valuable benefit than VEAP. However, the airman's enrollment decision must be
made at basic military training; it is a one-time, irrevocable decision. At that critical
juncture, many choose not to participate because they can't afford to do so due to their
already-relatively low pay. During the pressure of basic training (and at a time of lowest
pay) is not the appropriate time that airmen, many of whom have families to support,
should have to make such an important decision. We should let them elect to participate at
any time during their careers.
An open window to enroll in the MGIB at this time would correct a clear injustice that
many of this nation's veterans continue to suffer. The 1997 VA Authorization Act created
an open window for some VEAP participants to convert to the MGIB. However, 110,000
(DoD-wide) VEAP participants were excluded from converting to the MGIB because government
counselors gave them faulty information. We have received dozens of phone calls and
letters decrying the fact that these military members followed the rules; but were
excluded because the government decided to change the rules at the last minute. Under
VEAP, there is a 2-for-1 matching. If you have money in your VEAP account, it is
non-interest bearing. Accordingly, education counselors in all services advised VEAP
participants not to put money into their VEAP accounts until they were ready to use the
benefit. Unfortunately, when the 1997 VEAP-MGIB window opened, the law allowed only those
with money currently in their accounts to convert to MGIB. Tens of thousands of VEAP
participants were excluded from the conversion because they followed the guidance of
government counselors. In basic fairness, short of a universal open window, we need to
reopen the opportunity for those who were illegitimately excluded from the earlier
opportunity to convert to the MGIB.
The veterans' educational benefit can be an excellent recruiting tool and a valuable
transitional device. The Montgomery G.I. Bill has succumbed to educational inflation it is
simply no longer a strong educational incentive. It has been reported that this lack of
value has led to where less than 50 percent of veterans enrolled in the MGIB even bother
to use it. As such, we urge these committees to reestablish the educational benefit a
legitimate, valuable program. Take the recommendations of the Principi Commission to heart
to guide your decisions. Finally, we strongly urge an open window for all current non-MGIB
enrolles an opportunity to get into the program.
MEDICAL CARE
Without question, the health care system administered by the veterans administration
impacts, in one way or another, those who served. As we look at the VA medical system as
it applies to our members, I wish to briefly touch on some issues that have been reflected
in the many phone calls we have received from the field. Of course, we tend to hear most
loudly and frequently from those who are not happy with the adjudication of their claims
or the treatment they have received. I am not going to go into isolated problems, because
anecdotal information is just that. Rather, I want to briefly touch, instead, on some
specific health-related situations that need to be addressed.
PROVIDE A FULL CONTINUUM OF CARE. There must be mandated access to VA
health care for all veterans. All honorably discharged veterans must have the full
continuum of care mandated by law.
SUPPORT VA SUBVENTION. VA-Medicare subvention is very promising, and we offer
full support for this effort. The VA has an infra-structural network to handle this, so we
anticipate the effort will be successful. Under this plan, Medicare would reimburse the VA
for care it provides to non-disabled Medicare-eligible veterans at VA medical facilities.
Just as in the case of DoD Medicare subvention, this is an opportunity to ensure that
those who served are not lumped in with all those who never chose to do so.
WISELY SUPPORT VA-DOD SHARING ARRANGEMENTS. The enlisted force is
pleased with the possibility of VA-DoD sharing arrangements involving network inclusion
in the DoD health care program, and especially, the practice of consolidating physicals at
the time of separation. This decision represents a good, common sense approach that should
eliminate problems of inconsistency, save time, and take care of our veterans in a more
timely manner. Our only caveat would be that DoD beneficiary participation in VA
facilities must never endanger the scope or availability of care for our traditional VA
patients, nor should any VA-DoD sharing arrangement jeopardize access and/or treatment of
DoD health services beneficiaries.
FOCUS ON THE WELFARE OF THE VETERAN. While the VA's drive to save money by
reducing its expenses is commendable, we caution the VA that these reductions must not be
the overriding target. The end goal must be full care and treatment of veterans.
Participation in other avenues of revenue generation tends to cause focus on a bottom
line. The only bottom line in this system should be the welfare of the veteran.
EXPAND HEALTH CARE OPPORTUNITIES. The VA image in the minds of many is that
it is there to serve only paupers. This image and the underlying reality must be upgraded.
The VA system must act as a health care system for all veterans. In this sense, AFSA
believes there needs to be a full national commitment toward expanded health care
opportunities for veterans.
PROVIDE LONG-TERM CARE. The VA must be fully funded to provide for long-term care
including nursing home care; care for chronically mentally ill veterans; and home care
aid, support and services. While landmark legislation passed last year took us a great
deal closer to this end, it will only come about if adequate, earmarked, consistent
funding is identified.
CARE FOR WOMEN VETERANS. Another dimension of this nation's veterans'
demographics that has significantly increased in recent years is the number of women who
serve. The VA must be funded to provide the resources and legal authority to care for
women to include obstetric services and after-birth care for the mother and child.
GENERAL ISSUES
A WRITTEN GUARANTEE. Many veterans are frustrated and disappointed because
promises that were made during their careers are simply not being kept. They feel that the
covenant between the nation and the veteran was one-sided, with honor on the side of the
veteran. We urge these committees to support a guarantee in writing of benefits to which
veterans are legally entitled by virtue of their service. To refuse to do so is to say
that this nation is not prepared to be honest with its servicemembers.
SPEEDIER PROCESSING. We applaud the Veterans Administration for progress made
toward the reduction in the time required to process claims and adjudicate appeals. We
urge you to do all that you can to push the VA to continue this progress.
HOMELESS VETS. Because of the ravages of war, the unique nature of military service, and
numerous other reasons, many veterans are homeless. We ask these committees to remember
that these people, by and large, paid a tremendous price by serving their nation. It is
important that we expend an extra effort to assist this group of citizens; we must be
concerned with their welfare.
LEGITIMATE, SINCERE VETERANS PREFERENCE. Over the last few years you have
made great strides toward making "Veterans' Preference" a reality. We urge these
committees to continue to support any improvement that will put "teeth" into
such programs so that those who have served have a leg up when transitioning back into the
civilian workforce.
ELIMINATE HOME LOAN FEES. The best way to attract new veterans to use this valuable
benefit is to eliminate fees and make the program as attractive a possible. However, if
other home loan programs are made available, liberal qualification criteria and the
"no down payment" feature should be maintained for all sources.
MAKE THE RESERVE HOME LOAN PERMANENT. For our reserve component members, the Selected
Reserve Home Loan Program was extended once again last year. Congress should permanently
extend this program. Those members who serve in the guard and reserve deserve full,
year-round benefits. The concept of "weekend warriors" is certainly an unfair,
inaccurate misnomer. Our nation owes them a great deal, the least of which is provision of
a full benefits package for their service. We ask these committees to endorse making the
program permanent.
In conclusion, I thank you for this opportunity to present the views of the Air Force
enlisted community. AFSA believes that the work your committees do is among the most
important done on the Hill. Your job is not only to protect and reward those who served;
it is to demonstrate to those currently serving and who someday will serve that this
nation is committed to honor those who give a portion of their lives to their nation.
After all, the nation's peace and current prosperity is in no small measure due to their
noble efforts. On behalf of all AFSA members, we appreciate your efforts and, as always,
are ready to support you in matters of mutual concern.
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