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House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health Rep. Jerry Moran, Chairman Official Statement Hearing
on the State of the VA Health Care System April 3, 2001 I
am pleased that we are holding this hearing today to consider the
current state of the veterans health care system.
This is our first hearing of the 107th Congress. This
is an appropriate topic for the Subcommittee, given that: ·
We have a new Administration and a new VA Secretary, Tony
Principi. ·
We have a new Under Secretary for Health, having been confirmed
by the Senate just in September 2000.
Dr. Garthwaite, certainly is no stranger to the Committee, but
we welcome him in his new capacity. ·
We have a new Chairman and a new Ranking Member, my friend and
colleague, the Gentleman from California, Mr. Filner.
There
is no doubt that the VA health care system is an important resource.
More than that, however, its very existence as a system of
benefits – and the envy of many nations -- came from a collective
decision that Americans made about 14 decades ago.
They wanted to bind up war wounds, restore human dignity,
provide comfort and protection to the war weary – to compensate, in
a small way, the citizens among us who inherited the honor, but awful
duty, of purchasing freedom with military arms.
This
commitment carried down from our Civil War, through two World Wars, a
cold war, Korea, Viet Nam, the Persian Gulf, and much in between –
and, as likely, with events unknown, some still ahead of us.
It’s
very easy in an age of cynicism to cast aside truth and view veterans
as just another special interest group among many.
I certainly do not see it that way, and neither does any Member
of this Committee, or of the whole Congress, regardless of party
loyalty. When
the time for war confronts our country, I’ve never read where anyone
would ask, “Would those who want to fight and die for the rest of us
please step forward?” Veterans
are not a special interest. They
are general interest. If
a son, daughter, brother or sister, father or mother did their duty
when called, then I believe Congress must do its duty to be sure that
VA provides for their needs. It’s
a sacred trust that begins right here in this historic Committee room. I
am a new Chairman. I
welcome the opportunity given me by the Committee to be more involved
in VA’s health care system, to help steer its course – the right
course for veterans who need health care, and to make it a better
system for those who served when the Nation needed them.
We
sometimes get diverted with the idea that VA exists primarily for
technically service-disabled veterans and, that, in absence of a
service connected condition in any case, somehow the debt is not as
worthy, or the need to be responsive not so great.
To anyone disposed to this view, I invite you read any of the
excellent histories or historic novels of war.
They tell the story better than any hearing, about why the
Nation needs a health care system for veterans, and why VA provides
specialized services to veterans -- such as spinal cord and blind
rehabilitation, mental health services and restorative care -- why it
should be a humane provider and place of comfort to veterans who need
long-term care, and to their families.
Veterans, even so-called “nonservice- connected” veterans,
will need VA now or later, and this is why we’re here -- to help
keep the promise that VA will be there for them when that time comes. The
VA health care system has been completing a “journey of change”
over the past five years. It
has: ·
restructured headquarters and field operations; ·
delegated substantial management authority to regional
officials, who have themselves lifted authority from VA medical
centers; ·
cut the workforce by nearly 30,000 personnel; ·
adapted the managed care model into VA clinical and financial
practices; ·
activated over 350 new primary care clinics with 100
more to be opened very soon; and, ·
opened enrollment to VA care to nearly two million new
veterans. And
Congress played a role: while
approving the basic design of reform in 1995, Congress passed key
legislation to encourage more change in VA, including simplified
eligibility in Public Law 104-262, and among other Acts, passed a
variety of program reforms in Public Laws 106-117 and 106-419.
Importantly,
Congress has invested three billion new dollars in VA health care in
fiscal years 2000 and 2001. Again
this year, Congress is poised to appropriate another increase. The House has approved a significant new budget for VA health
care, based on this Committee’s recommendations. This is good news. On
the other hand, with over 180,000 health care employees and staff now
operating with an annual budget of $21 billion, deployed in hundreds
of sites, there are still innumerable challenges, for example: ·
long waiting times despite VA standards that call for no more
than a 30-day wait for care; ·
issues related to quality of care; ·
concerns about the future --- many veterans worry aloud whether
their health care needs are going to be met in old age, and if so,
how; ·
another looming VA nursing shortage; ·
dissatisfaction in the specialized programs area; and, ·
disagreements on whether VA is meeting capacity requirements.
Despite
the good news, such items do not make up an insignificant list of
challenges. With
testimony and our continuing discussions with witnesses and veterans,
I believe the Subcommittee can better appreciate the true state of VA
health care, and what Congress can do to move the system forward,
despite the challenges and uncertainty ahead. My
colleagues and I want to ensure that veterans receive the health care
they earned by serving the Nation.
But we also agree that VA needs to continue changing with the
times, better managing services it provides -- for quality,
convenience and efficiency. Perhaps
this is an impossible task, but I believe we can make progress and
hopefully get it done. Veterans bring a unique experience and expectation to VA in seeking and expecting care. It seems to me that Congress needs to find both the accountability and the common ground from many sources to fashion the best possible system for veterans care. We’ll be working together to achieve this goal. Back to Witness List |