THE NEXT STEP IN PRIVATIZING THE VA IS HERE: PROJECT HERO --

PUSHED BY REP. STEVE BUYER

This is a lesson in political manipulation.

Give your program a compelling name:  Project Hero.

Tell people that it will not do what it is really designed to do:  Privatize VA healthcare.

Then, sit back and watch people buy into it.

We all know that veterans who live in rural areas need access to VA healthcare.

So, instead of building VA clinics and staffing them with VA doctors and nurses...the VA, with the help and blessing of House Vets' Chair Rep. Steve Buyer, is privatizing the system by providing healthcare from private doctors at private hospitals.

Rural vets won't complain...because they will have healthcare close to home.

Service organizations are not complaining because their rural members have healthcare close to home.

But...this is exactly what happened to military retirees.

As military hospitals closed...retirees were shuffled into private healthcare systems.

And, now they are stuck in TRICARE, a HMO that costs them plenty in fees.

The VA will soon say that the private, contracted healthcare they are providing is costing too much...and start asking for fees to pay for this.

If they built VA clinics, they couldn't do this (or at least it would be harder to do).

Stay tuned...we will see more and more of this...and in a very few years you may have to cough up annual fees for VACARE...the all new and improved HMO for veterans.

We have two pieces on this...a news story...and a press release from the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.  They both bear close scrutiny.

News story here... http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2006/04/01/local/doc442dd9f4c80f9677302147.txt

News story below:

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New program would allow vets local routine care

By the Lincoln Journal Star

Veterans living in rural Nebraska could receive primary health care services in their local areas under a pilot program of the Department of Veterans Affairs modeled after a 2003 bill sponsored by Rep. Tom Osborne.

Osborne, Nebraska?s 3rd District congressman, testified this week before the House Veterans Affairs Committee in support of the VA?s Project Hero plan.

?In rural areas like Nebraska?s 3rd District, many veterans live hundreds of miles from the nearest VA medical facility,? Osborne said.

?But in many cases, they have no choice but to travel these distances for routine care.?

Under the Project Hero program, Osborne said Thursday, veterans could go to their local hospital and be reimbursed for the care.

?This would allow veterans to get their primary health care at a local facility,? Osborne explained. ?A veteran in O?Neill could get his blood pressure checked or medication adjusted instead of going to Grand Island for the care.?

Many veterans who are dependent on VA health care go without preventive care because of the difficulty in traveling long distances, Osborne said.

Project Hero implements many of the same goals in the legislation he sponsored three years ago, said the congressman.

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House Vets' Committee press release here... http://www.vawatchdog.org/housecvanews/housecvanews03-29-06-2.htm

Please note this statement from Rep. Steve Buyer:  "This initiative is not intended to undermine our affiliations, or lead to expanded outsourcing or the replacement of existing VA facilities."

Notice the use of the word "existing"...he didn't say anything about building new clinics...which the VA could easily do.

Also, if this is a non-issue like Buyer claims, why is he even bringing it up? 

Also of note:  Testifying was the CEO of Humana Military Healthcare Services, a private provider who stands to make billions on this deal over the coming years.

Press release below:

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Committee learns details of VA Project HERO

Washington, DC ? Veterans, especially those living in rural areas, may benefit from a demonstration project to be conducted by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) as heard today by the House Committee on Veterans? Affairs. The oversight hearing was held for members to learn about Project Healthcare Effectiveness through Resource Optimization (HERO), a series of demonstration projects seeking to improve and enhance health care for veterans.

The initiative is VA?s response to direction from Congress that required the department to examine and implement health care management strategies that have proven valuable in the broader public and private sectors. Currently, VA may use private health care providers outside VA when its own facilities cannot provide suitable care.

Rep. Tom Osborne (R-Neb.), emphasizing the importance of efficient, high-quality contract care, told the committee of difficulties faced by veterans seeking VA care among his constituency.

?At each stop I make in my district, veterans express to me their concern about traveling hours for medical care,? Osborne said. ?Many travel one to two hours to receive primary medical care, while some veterans who live in western Nebraska must travel at least four days round-trip to have testing done in Omaha at the VA hospital.?

?This hearing is timely, so that the committee can acquire the most current information on Project HERO and gives us an opportunity to discuss, very publicly, what its realistic goals and objectives are,? Buyer said. ?Moreover, it will provide everyone here an opportunity to share with VA what parameters should be set in order to get the best results, enhancing VA health care benefits for America?s veterans.?

In addition to testimony from VA, the committee heard from representatives of The American Legion and the Independent Budget. Also testifying were the CEO of Humana Military Healthcare Services, which provides health care to military retires using the TRICARE system, and Rep. Osborne.

?I am always interested in hearing about new and innovative ways to enhance health care access for our nation?s veterans, while at the same time making prudent use of the taxpayers? dollars,? said Subcommittee on Health Chairman Henry Brown (R-S.C.), who said that testimony should allay some fears among veterans? groups that VA seeks through the project to outsource care on a large scale.

In their legislation that prompted Project HERO, Congress stated that health care purchased for veterans from private sector providers must be secured in a cost effective manner, in a way that complements the larger Veterans Health Administration (VHA) system of care, and sustains VA?s strong system of affiliations with medical universities nationwide.

As stated by VA, Project HERO?s objectives are to:

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Increase the efficiency of VHA processes associated with purchasing care from outside sources,
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Reduce the growth of costs associated with purchased care,
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Implement management systems and processes that foster quality and patient safety, and make contracted providers virtual, high-quality extensions of VHA,
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Control administrative costs and limit administrative growth,
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Increase net collections of medical care revenues where applicable, and
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Increase enrollee satisfaction with VHA services.

The department plans to conduct Project HERO demonstrations at four Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs) by the end of this year: VISN 8, VA Sunshine Healthcare Network; VISN 16, South Central VA Health Care Network; VISN 20, Northwest Network; and VISN 23, VA Midwest Health Care Network. Participation at each site would be entirely voluntary for veterans.

?We must be open to the possibilities, but cognizant of the importance of preserving the quality associated with VA health care,? Buyer said. ?This initiative is not intended to undermine our affiliations, or lead to expanded outsourcing or the replacement of existing VA facilities. It should instead help us learn how to improve some of the contracted care we now provide, and the way we provide it.?

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Larry Scott

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