...for as long as it takes
House/Senate Agreement Brings Increase Over President's VA Budget to $1.7 Billion
WASHINGTON, D.C. - The good news for veterans' health care continued Wednesday when the House-Senate Conference hiked an already 'unprecedented' House increase to $1.7 billion over the President's recommendation for fiscal year 2000
"I want to commend the House-Senate conferees for recognizing the danger to veterans' health care posed by the Clinton/Gore cuts," said Chairman Bob Stump (R-AZ) of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs. "Coming just three weeks after the unprecedented House increase of $1.1 billion, this is even greater news for America's veterans."
When the House passed its increase March 26, Chairman Stump said the only bittersweet note was the lack of bipartisanship which could have led to an even greater increase. He expressed hope at the time that the increase might be hiked in the House-Senate Conference. He got his wish Wednesday.
Stump also sits on the House Armed Services Committee. He applauded the budget agreement's $9.9 billion increase over fiscal year 1999 defense spending "to make sure tomorrow's veterans have the best training and equipment."
Stump said the Conference increase made it less likely that layoffs to VA health care personnel and closure of needed programs and facilities, so recently threatened by the Clinton/Gore cuts, would be necessary.
The entire veterans' community rejected the Clinton/Gore VA budget. Nearly all parties agreed that budget would seriously threaten the quality of VA health care and wouldn't even keep pace with inflation.
The VA budget must now go through the appropriations' spending process along with other federal programs.
"I hope members of Congress can all work together to protect this budget for veterans from competing spending interests favored by the Clinton/Gore Administration," Stump said.
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