[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 80 (Wednesday, June 22, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 22, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
               BUYER AMENDMENT TO THE HEALTH SECURITY ACT

  (Mr. BUYER asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, Members should go the Lincoln Memorial, and 
printed on the inside north wall is Abraham Lincoln's Second Inaugural 
Address:

       Let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up 
     the nation's wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the 
     battle, and for his widow, and for his orphan * * *

  One of the most sacred commitments that this Government has is that 
of caring for those who have been wounded in combat defending this 
Nation against its enemies.
  The Clinton administration has abrogated this sacred commitment with 
the submission of H.R. 3600, the Health Security Act.
  This bill has an employer mandate that places the burden of paying 
for our wounded vets not with the Government, where it rightly belongs, 
but with the employers of this Nation. It does so by requiring 
employers to pay 80 percent of the premium for those veterans who 
choose the VA as their health care provider.
  I find this concept unacceptable. To quote Mr. Gorham, of the 
Disabled American Veterans, who testified at the Veterans Affairs 
Committee on March 8, 1994:

       IBM, Kodak, or General Motors do not make veterans. The 
     Federal Government and its policies make veterans and 
     therefore the Federal Government has the responsibility to 
     continue to fund the cost of service-connected disabilities.

  In that same hearing, my colleague from New Jersey, Chris Smith, went 
on to question each of the veteran service organization representatives 
present on this idea of responsibility for the service-connected 
disabled. Each and every one, to include the American Legion, Paralyzed 
Veterans of America, AMVETS, Vietnam Veterans of America, Blinded 
Veterans of America, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars concurred that 
this obligation should not be borne by employers.
  CBO states that H.R. 3600 will save $7.9 billion by shifting the cost 
of veterans care off to employers. The Montgomery-Rowland amendment 
modifications will cost $4.5 billion, reducing the net savings of H.R. 
3600 to $3.3 billion. My amendment will cost $4.1 billion, causing the 
veterans portion of H.R. 3600 to cost $790 million. I will offer an 
amendment for our Government to discharge its responsibility to the 
veterans of this Nation.
  Whether we call our troops peacekeepers, peace enforcers, or just 
plain combat soldiers one fact remains--American lives will be at risk 
from hostile fire. If wounded serving this Nation, they deserve to be 
cared for by this Nation.

                          ____________________