The Mid-Atlantic Regional Group
Blinded Veterans Association
Legislative News
December 16, 2009
For all BVA contacts, and key supporters, congress passed a large federal appropriations bill last week to cover the budgets for FY 2010 for several federal agencies. With the passage of VA Advanced Appropriations in early November, we faced unusual situation of having the FY 2011 VA funding already done, but the current fiscal years VA budget had not been approved by congress until last week.
Good news, the increased health care appropriations promised for FY 2010 were in the final bill that passed and below is press release from Chairman Daniel Akaka on Senate Veterans Affairs Committee regarding the passage of the bill.
AKAKA PRAISES STRONG VA FUNDING IN APPROPRIATIONS BILL
VA receives advance funding, $15.3 billion budget boost
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii) applauded the veterans provisions included in the Consolidated Appropriations Act which was passed by the Senate on Sunday and sent to the President’s desk. Senator Akaka noted that the bill includes a multi-billion-dollar increase in the annual budget of the Department of Veterans Affairs and, for the first time, advance funding for the subsequent fiscal year as authorized by the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act.
“Caring for veterans is a cost of war, and must be treated as such,” said Senator Akaka. “This bill recognizes our sacred obligation to those who have served. It substantially increases VA’s budget and provides the first appropriation for advance funding of veterans’ health care, which will provide veterans’ hospitals and clinics with the timely and predictable funding they need.”
H.R. 3288, The Consolidated Appropriations Act, includes $109.6 billion in funding for VA in fiscal year 2010, $15.3 billion above the previous year. The bill also provides $48.2 billion in advance appropriations for VA health care in fiscal year 2011.
President Obama signed the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act into law on October 22, 2009: LINK.
December 14, 2009
Below is summary of Key Provisions Included in this Bill for funding the VA this year:
Department of Veterans Affairs: $109.6 billion, $15.3 billion above 2009 and $747 million above the request. The funding includes $56.6 billion for mandatory veterans benefit programs and $53 billion for discretionary funding. Total discretionary funding is $5.4 billion above 2009. In addition, the bill provides $48.2 billion in advance appropriations for veterans medical care programs for fiscal year 2011.
Veterans Health Administration (VHA): $45.1 billion, matching the request and $4.1billion above 2009, for veterans medical care. The Veterans Health Administration estimates that it will treat more than 6.1 million patients in 2010, including more than 419,000 veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan (56,000 more than 2009).
Rural Health: $250 million as requested to continue the Rural Health Initiative and an additional $30 million to increase the number of Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) in rural areas for veterans who do not have ready access to VA hospitals. More than 3.2 million (41%) of enrolled veterans live in rural or highly rural areas.
Mental Health: $4.6 billion, matching the request and $300 million above 2009, for mental health care to treat the psychological wounds of returning combat veterans, including post-traumatic stress disorder. Includes an additional $1 million to provide education debt relief as a hiring incentive for mental health professionals.
Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) Veterans: $2.1 billion,
matching the request and $463 million above 2009, to meet the healthcare needs of veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. The VA estimates that the number of OEF/OIF veterans in the VA healthcare system in 2010 will have increased by 61 percent since 2008.
Women Veterans Programs: $183 million, matching the request, to meet the unique needs of women veterans.
Long Term Care: $5.9 billion, matching the request, for both institutional and home-based programs for aging veterans as well as severely wounded OEF/OIF veterans.
Assistance for Homeless Vets: $3.2 billion, matching the request and $421 million above 2009, for healthcare and support services for homeless veterans; including $26 million for a Presidential Initiative to combat homelessness, $150 million for the homeless grants and per diem program, $20 million for supportive services for low income veterans and families, and $21 million to hire additional personnel for the HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing Program.
Medical and Prosthetic Research: $581 million, $71 million above 2009, for research in a number of areas including mental health, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, burn injury, polytrauma injuries, and sensory loss; including a $48 million increase for research to address the critical needs of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom veterans
Medical Facilities: $4.9 billion, $166 million above the President’s Request and $170 million below 2009. Includes a $130 million increase for non-recurring maintenance at existing facilities, $30 million for additional Community Based Outpatient Clinics in rural areas, and $5 million for additional contracting personnel.
VA Construction Programs: $1.9 billion, $103 million above the request and $232 million above 2009, including:
Major Construction: $1.2 billion for VA facilities, including hospitals and clinics, to enable the Department to implement the recommendations made by the Capitol Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) Commission, which was established to look at facilities and determine their construction needs.
Minor Construction: $703 million, $39 million below 2009, $103 million above the President’s budget request, including $50 million for the renovation of vacant buildings on VA campuses to be used as housing with supportive services for homeless veterans. The VA estimates that on any given night, 131,000 veterans are homeless. This program will strengthen the VA’s goal of eliminating homelessness among veterans by providing housing and counseling services in settings that are in close proximity for VA hospitals.
State Extended Care Facilities: $100 million, $15 million above the request and $75 million below 2009, for grants to states for construction and renovation of extended care veterans’ facilities. States must provide 35% of the cost, while the Department pays the other 65%.
BVA will keep everyone updated on other key pieces of legislation moving through congress this session.
Tom Zampieri
Director Government Relations
Blinded Veterans Association
Washington, DC
End of Document