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FILNER AND AKAKA TO INTRODUCE ADVANCE FUNDING

BILLS FOR VA HEALTHCARE -- Pundit on budget

gimmick: "Great! Now the VA will know a year

in advance how little they are going to get."

Story below: 

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by Larry Scott

The concept of advance funding (advance appropriation) is not new.  And, it's not good.

In the case of VA healthcare, this is what happens when the veterans' service organizations (VSOs) roll-over and give up the fight for mandatory funding for VA healthcare.  More on mandatory funding here...
http://www.yourvabenefits.org/sesse
arch.php?q=mandatory+funding&op=ph

Almost everyone, once upon a time, was in favor of making VA healthcare part of the mandatory budget... the VSOs... Filner... Akaka... Obama... and the list goes on.  Now, everyone is taking the lead of President Obama, and flip-flopping.  More on that here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/09/n
f09/nffeb09/nf020709-1.htm

And, the VSOs, once the most vocal proponents of mandatory funding, are now willing to take the crumbs handed them by the politicians.  Here is more information on advance appropriation...
http://www.yourvabenefits.org/sessear
ch.php?q=advance+appropriation&op=ph

One Washington pundit (wise-guy) told me, "Great! Now the VA will know a year in advance how little they are going to get."

All this budget gimmick is going to do is confuse the VA healthcare funding issue.  For a quick look at some of the problems surrounding the concept... here is an article...
http://www.newamerica.net/publicati
ons/policy/advance_appropriations

This will not solve one funding problem at the VA.  And, even if they know a year in advance, they still don't know how to budget properly, according to a recent report from the Rand Corporation.  So, what good is it going to do anyone?  Rand report here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/09/
nf09/nffeb09/nf021209-2.htm

But, the Chairs of both Vets' Committees are going forward with their effort to get advance funding.  Below is a press release from Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA), House Vets' Chair.  And, be sure to look who will be with him... and remember... these are the folks who rolled-over and are now going to keep veterans from getting mandatory funding for VA healthcare.

Press release here...
http://www.vawatchdog.org/09
/hcva09/hcva021109-1.htm 

Press release below:

Congressional Leaders, Veterans Orgs and Former VA Official to Hold Press Conference Supporting Advanced Funding of Veteran's Health Care

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Thursday, February 12, 2009, Senator Daniel K. Akaka (D-HI) and Rep. Bob Filner (D-CA), Chairmen of the Senate and House Veterans’ Affairs Committees, will be joined by Congressional colleagues, veterans groups and a former top VA official supporting legislation that would permit advance funding for veterans health care, allowing VA to make strategic long term decisions such as hiring medical personnel and funding IT upgrades.

Akaka and Filner will introduce identical versions of the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act of 2009 tomorrow. The bill would secure timely and predictable funding for the veterans’ health care system through the advance appropriations process, which is already used for other programs, providing funding one-year in advance of the regular appropriations process. Six top veterans’ organizations unanimously called for advance funding at a recent Senate hearing . Last year, Akaka and Filner both introduced advance appropriations legislation, receiving bipartisan support in Congress.

WHO:

Senator Daniel K. Akaka, Chairman, Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee

Rep. Bob Filner, Chairman, House Veterans’ Affairs Committee

Senator Mark Begich (D-Alaska)

Rep. Phil Hare (D-Illinois)

Joe Violante, National Legislative Director, Disabled American Veterans

Paul Reickhoff, Executive Director, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America

J. David Cox, National Secretary-Treasurer, American Federation of Government Employees

Hershel Gober, former Deputy and Acting Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs

WHAT: Press Conference

WHEN: Tomorrow, Thursday, February 12, 2009, 2 p.m.

WHERE: 418 Russell Senate Office Building

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posted by Larry Scott
Founder and Editor
VA Watchdog dot Org
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