[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 42 (Tuesday, March 7, 1995)]
[House]
[Page H2727]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                          VETERANS RESCISSIONS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 4, 1995, the gentleman from Puerto Rico [Mr. Romero-Barcelo] is 
recognized during morning business for 3 minutes.
  Mr. ROMERO-BARCELO. Madam Speaker, last Thursday, the House 
Appropriations Committee voted to cut six Veterans' Administration 
ambulatory clinic projects totalling $156 million and $50 million in 
medical equipment purchases which already face an $800 million backlog.
  One of these projects happens to be the San Juan Veterans' Affairs 
Medical Center Outpatient Clinic addition, a project designed to 
address a 15-year problem of severe overcrowding at the facility. 
Considered as a VA priority for many years. The area currently used for 
ambulatory care at the San Juan VA Medical Center provides only 40 
percent of the space required according to VA standards. Therefore, 
temporary measures such as converting storage space and corridors into 
clinical and examination rooms have been the mode of addressing these 
chronic space deficiencies for many years. Currently, some outpatient 
clinics and medical interviews are being performed in the hallways and 
nursing stations of the facility and exit corridors have been converted 
into additional waiting areas, potentially comprising the health and 
safety of both patients and visitors.
  After a 15-year struggle by Puerto Rican veterans, Congress finally 
appropriated the necessary funding--34.8 million--to finalize the 
construction of the vitally needed outpatient clinic at the San Juan Va 
Medical Center last year. The project had already been authorized and 
$4 million had been appropriated for its design a year earlier. Puerto 
Rico's 145,000 veterans, particularly the sick and disabled, celebrated 
this long-awaited achievement, construction of which is scheduled to 
begin this year, only to see the House Appropriations Committee decide 
to take away all the funds a few months later.
  However, the fact that strikes me the most is that these proposed 
cuts will be particularly devastating to the VA medical system because 
the targeted facilities are all ambulatory outpatient care facilities. 
The rescissions come at a time when the VA is involved in the effort of 
shifting from hospital inpatient care to outpatient and non 
institutional care settings, which is in keeping with the new general 
trend in providing medical care throughout the Nation. The purpose is 
not to put patients in the hospitals, but to keep them out of 
hospitals.
  In the words of Veterans Affairs' Committee Chairman Bob Stump--and I 
will quote from his February 28, 1995, letter to Appropriations 
Committee Chairman Bob Livingston--

       The particular projects selected for rescissions by the 
     subcommittee--VA/HUD Appropriations--are unfortunately the 
     type of projects the Veterans' Affairs Committee has been 
     encouraging the VA to pursue. It is my strong belief, shared 
     by veterans and their service organizations, that giving 
     greater priority to ambulatory care projects is clearly the 
     right approach to improve service to veterans.

  Mr. Stump went on to conclude--and I once again quote--that ``in 
striking contrast to the needs the VA faces, these cuts move VA in the 
wrong direction.''
  The Department of Veterans Affairs has consistently ranked the six 
targeted ambulatory projects as the ones with their highest priorities. 
They are an integral part of the Department's effort to move away from 
costly inpatient care and provide more accessible, cost effective and 
efficient outpatient care. Ultimately, all these projects will save the 
VA medical system and, therefore, the American taxpayer, millions of 
dollars.
  However, by proposing the rescission of these six projects, the 
Republicans are sending a very clear message: The health of our 
Nation's veterans is not a priority
  Madam Speaker, we owe a great debt to our veterans. A reduction in 
hard earned medical services to deserving veterans is not the way to 
pay for a tax cut for the wealthy and the most wealthy, influential 
corporations.
  I urge my colleagues from both sides of the aisle to support 
restoring this vital funding when this ill-conceived rescissions 
package is brought to the floor next week. While it is a small reward 
for the sacrifices our deserving veterans have made, it is the very 
least we can do.


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