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FORMER HOUSE VETS' CHAIR, REP. CHRIS SMITH, WARNS

OF CRISIS FOR VETERANS' CARE -- "Unless we fix the

funding process for VA health care, all efforts to

improve its delivery will continue to be impeded."

 

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ)

 

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Story below:

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Smith warns of crisis for veterans' care

TIMES OF TRENTON

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith yesterday renewed his call to overhaul funding for veterans health care, warning a Senate committee to act or face an impending crisis.

In testimony before the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, Smith, R-Hamilton, told members that only by revamping the way health benefits are funded can the country avoid future scandals like the one that rocked Walter Reed Army Medical Center in March, when veterans were found to be living in squalid conditions and suffering substandard outpatient care.

"Unless we fix the funding process for VA health care, all efforts to improve its delivery will continue to be impeded, and worse, we risk new Walter Reed-like problems at VA facilities in the future," Smith told the committee.

Smith, former chairman of the House's Veterans Affairs Commit tee, said it is time the Department of Veterans Affairs to provided "sufficient, timely and predictable funding."

Smith was joined at the hearing by several veterans service groups, who echoed his call for funding overhaul.

Joseph A. Violante, legislative director of the Disabled American Veterans, told the committee that veterans deserve to know they will be treated fairly when they return home.

"The VA health-care system must be protected for millions of veterans who depend on it now as their only health-care resource and will do so for many decades," he said.

At issue, Smith said, is not the funding level for the coming year, but the mechanism by which the program is funded.

Smith and others have advocated for a mandatory funding level that is not subject to political maneuvering.

In one scenario, the funding would be based on a for mula that would provide a fixed amount per each of the seven million enrolled veterans.

The formula would increase each year, but the funding could not be cut by the administration.

A second proposal would create a three-person panel of actuarial experts who would determine the funding needed to sustain veterans' health care each year.

The number would be concrete and untouchable by Congress or the administration. Funding would be approved long before Oct. 1, when the fiscal year begins, ensuring that VA facilities are not left short by delays in appropriations.

Smith has introduced a bill to create the panel, but it has not picked up steam.

"I am hoping we can find a systemic fix," he said. "Our method of delivering this is flawed."

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Larry Scott  --