IV
106TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. CON. RES. 226
Expressing the sense of Congress concerning funding for health care services
for veterans.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
NOVEMBER 10, 1999
Mr. ROTHMAN submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was
referred to the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Expressing the sense of Congress concerning funding for
health care services for veterans.
Whereas veterans throughout the United States in the De-
partment of Veterans Affairs health care priority group
designated as ‘‘priority group 7’’ have received notices
from the Department of Veterans Affairs that, due to
funding shortfalls, the Veterans Health Administration
may be unable to provide those veterans with health care
services in the future;
Whereas the income threshold for designation as a priority
group 7 veteran (that is, having an annual income of over
$22,351 for a single person and assets of over $50,000)
is not so high that an individual in that priority group
could be considered to be otherwise capable of paying the
full cost of needed health care services;
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Whereas the Nation must remain committed to providing
first-rate health care services to veterans who joined the
Armed Forces with the understanding that their future
health needs would be met by a grateful Nation;
Whereas leaders of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the
United States, American Legion, AMVETS, Disabled
American Veterans, Paralyzed Veterans of America, Jew-
ish War Veterans of America, Catholic War Veterans,
and other distinguished veterans service organizations
have expressed deep concern over the serious funding
shortages that are compromising the level and quality of
health care being delivered to the Nation’s veterans by
the Veterans Health Administration;
Whereas veterans have held over 130 rallies across the
United States to demonstrate their concern in the dete-
rioration of the Veterans Health Administration’s health
care system;
Whereas the level of funding for the health care system of the
Department of Veterans Affairs has been inadequate to
meet the pressing medical needs of America’s veterans;
and
Whereas, as one example of the funding shortfalls affecting
the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system,
the Veterans Integrated Service Network Number 3
(VISN3), which serves veterans in New Jersey and New
York, experienced a budget shortfall of $61,000,000 for
fiscal year 1999 alone: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring),
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This resolution may be cited as the ‘‘Veterans Health
Fairness Resolution’’.
SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL STATEMENTS ON HEALTH CARE
SERVICES FOR VETERANS.
Congress—
(1) affirms its fundamental belief that all vet-
erans enrolled in the national enrollment system of
the Department of Veterans Affairs, including those
in the priority group designated as ‘‘priority group
7’’, have earned the right to secure, quality health
care services from the Veterans Health Administra-
tion of the Department of Veterans Affairs; and
(2) urges the Secretary of Veterans Affairs not
to deny health care services to veterans in the pri-
ority group designated as ‘‘priority group 7’’ and as-
serts that veterans in that priority group should
have their enrollment renewed every year.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS CONCERNING PRESIDENT’S
BUDGET FOR VA HEALTH CARE.
(a) It is the sense of Congress that the President’s
budget for VA health care for fiscal year 2001 and fiscal
years thereafter should include the amounts needed to en-
sure that all veterans, including veterans in priority group
7, are able to benefit from the broad array of VA health
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care services, including preventive care, primary care, and
inpatient and outpatient services.
(b) In subsection (a), the term ‘‘VA health care’’
means health care delivered by the Veterans Health Ad-
ministration of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
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