VFW Washington Weekly - July 13, 2007
Friday, July 13, 2007 at 02:13 PM
by dist1
In This Issue:1. Wounded Warriors Legislation Approved
2. VFW Testifies on Contracting and Veteran-owned Businesses
3. House Holds Hearing on Women/Minority Veterans
4. Health Bill Passes Subcommittee
5. Senate VA Committee Clears 5 Bills
1. Wounded Warriors Legislation Approved
VFW-supported legislation that would provide improvements in the care and services to servicemembers as they transition from DOD to VA was approved by the Senate (94-0) as a part of their defense authorization bill late last night. The amendment incorporates several bills introduced by the Veterans Affairs and Armed Services Committees. The bill addresses care for veterans with traumatic brain injuries, as well as expands VA health care access for separated servicemembers from two years to five years after discharge. It also orders a review of all recent disability discharges where a service member received a lump-sum severance payment instead of the lifetime disability retired pay that would come from being rated with a disability of 30 percent or more, and calls for a review of DOD’s entire disability ratings system, to include the use of VA standards to make disability determinations.
2. VFW Testifies on Contracting and Veteran-Owned Businesses
Yesterday, VFW testified before the House VA Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, with respect to federal procurement and the 3-percent set aside for Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses. The current law, PL 106-50, established a 3-percent goal for all contract and subcontract awards for each fiscal year. Most federal agencies have not complied. The subcommittee heard testimony on how to encourage agencies to comply and what can be done to enforce the contracting regulations. To read the VFW testimony, go to:
http://veterans.house.gov
3. House Holds Hearing on Women/Minority Veterans
The House VA Subcommittees on Health and Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs held a joint hearing on issues facing women and minority veterans. The subcommittees heard from several panels on areas that need improvement regarding VA treatment and care to that population of veterans. The effects of traumatic brain injuries and psychological wounds facing OIF/OEF veterans were one of the highlights of the hearing. For more on the hearing, go to the HVAC website at: http://veterans.house.gov
4. Health Bill Passes Subcommittee
The House VA Subcommittee on Health approved HR 2874 by voice vote after amending the bill. Included are VFW-backed provisions that would provide $25 million in homeless housing grants, $2 million for therapy for returning service members, and $3 million annually for transportation assistance for rural veterans seeking VA care. The bill now moves to the full House VA Committee.
5. Senate VA Committee Clears 5 Bills
The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee cleared five VFW-supported bills during a Senate mark-up. The bills now move to the full Senate for a vote. Three of them should clear easily within a week, while the other two may require some debate.
- One of the controversial bills (S. 1233) would open enrollment to new Category 8 veterans who have been prevented from enrolling since January 2003. Opponents of the measure argue that there is not sufficient funding to pay for the numbers of veterans who would have access to the VA. The VFW supports opening the system up, but we do have concerns about funding. VFW, as part of the Independent Budget, has asked for an additional $1.3 billion to fund their care.
- The other controversial bill (S. 1315) is a large omnibus benefits bill that would improve and expand VA insurance programs, adaptive housing grants and automobile assistance, among other enhancements. Critics, however, expressed concern that the benefits awarded to Filipino veterans would be too generous with respect to the lower cost-of-living in the Philippines.
- The three other VFW-supported bills should pass easily. S. 423 would provide an annual cost-of-living adjustment for veterans’ benefits; S. 1163 would provide benefits to veterans with partial sight in their second eye; and S. 479 would expand programs to deal with suicide prevention and other mental health problems among veterans.
