[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 35 (Thursday, March 15, 2001)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2384-S2385]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             VETERANS EDUCATION AND HEALTH CARE PRIORITIES

  Mr. JOHNSON. Mr. President, as I travel my state of South Dakota and 
meet with veterans, I am reminded of the very core of what the Founding 
Fathers meant when they talked about America's citizen soldiers who 
serve as the bulwark of defending our democracy and freedom. The 
sacrifices of the men and women who served this nation in time of war 
are a dramatic story that we need to tell to future generations.
  We need to remind younger generations of the sacrifice of the quiet 
heroes who have served our nation in the military service. We need to 
remind them that freedom isn't really free. Throughout our nation's 
proud history, people have made profound sacrifices to preserve liberty 
and democracy.
  I have had the privilege this past year of honoring the South 
Dakotans who so bravely defended the seeds of democracy in the foreign 
soil of Korea and remember those who fought and died for democracy. In 
ceremonies across my state, I have had the honor of presenting the 
Korean War Service Medals as a long-overdue expression of gratitude 
from the American public and the South Korean government. It may have 
taken 50 years for us to properly recognize these veterans for their 
sacrifices in Korea. But there is no time limit on their patriotism or 
our country's gratitude.
  Unfortunately, it has also taken too long for our government to fully 
honor the commitment made to our veterans for educational benefits and 
lifetime health care.
  I am pleased to report that Congress has finally begun to honor 
additional commitments made to veterans nationwide. We all know the 
history: for decades, men and women who joined the military were 
promised educational benefits and lifetime health care coverage for 
themselves and their families. Many of the veterans we honor today were 
told, in effect, ``If you disrupt your family, if you work for low pay, 
if you endanger your life and limb, our nation will in turn guarantee 
an opportunity for an education and lifetime health benefits.''
  Those promises have too often not been kept, not only to our veterans 
but also our military retirees, and that is threatening our national 
security. Veterans are our nation's most effective recruiters. However, 
inadequate education benefits and poor health care options make it 
difficult for these men and women to encourage the younger generation 
to serve in today's voluntary service. We are blessed to have 
unprecedented federal budget surpluses, and the only question is 
whether veterans health care and educational benefits should be a 
priority instead of an afterthought.
  Veterans from around the nation have been calling on Congress to 
provide the VA with adequate funding to meet the health care needs for 
all veterans. Without additional funding, VA facilities will be unable 
to deliver the necessary health care services to our veterans 
population.
  For a number of years, I have worked with veterans to increase flat-
line appropriations for veterans' health care. Thanks to the grass 
roots efforts of veterans, we were successful two years ago in getting 
a historic $1.7 billion increase for VA medical care. We fought last 
year for another $1.4 billion increase. While these increases will help 
relieve some of the VA's budgetary constraints, I believe that more 
needs to be done to make up for those years of budgetary neglect, as 
well as to keep pace with rising costs of health care.
  Another priority for me this year will be to continue to improve 
educational benefits for veterans. The Montgomery GI Bill has been one 
of the most effective tools in recruiting and retaining the best and 
the brightest in the military. It has also been a critical component in 
the transition of veterans to civilian life. Unfortunately, the current 
GI Bill fails to keep pace with the rising costs of higher education. 
On the first day of this legislative year, I joined Senator Susan 
Collins in introducing legislation to bring the GI Bill in the 21st 
Century by creating a benchmark level of education benefits that 
automatically covers inflation to meet the increasing costs of higher 
education. Our concept is a very simple one: at the very least, GI Bill 
benefits should be equal to the average cost of a commuter student 
attending a four-year university. Currently, less than one-half of the 
men and women who contribute $1200 of their pay to qualify for the GI 
Bill actually use these benefits.
  The Veterans' Higher Education Opportunities Act--S. 131--has broad 
bipartisan support and the support of an unprecedented partnership of 
veterans groups and higher education organizations.
  My bipartisan ``Keep Our Promises to America's Military Retirees 
Act'' called for the government to fulfill its obligation of lifetime 
health care for military retirees and their dependents. While I am 
pleased that last year's enactment of the TRICARE-for-Life program 
begins to address problems with military retiree health care, there is 
more work that needs to be done.
  In fact, a recent federal court of appeals ruling finally supported 
what we have been saying all along: that the government has not lived 
up to its contract with millions of military retirees who were told 
they would receive lifetime health care in return for 20 years of 
service in the military. That is why I am once again working with 
Senator

[[Page S2385]]

Olympia Snowe and Senator Jeff Bingaman to finish the job we started 
last year and fulfill our country's commitment. Honoring our commitment 
to active duty personnel, military retirees, and veterans is of special 
importance to me for a number of reasons. My oldest son, Brooks, 
currently serves in the Army and tells me firsthand how broken promises 
impact the morale of active duty personnel and their families.
  Finally, an issue that needs to be addressed this year is concurrent 
receipt. I find it indefensible that our government forces men and 
women who fought for our country and are disabled as a result of it to 
choose between retirement pay and disability compensation. This nickel-
and-diming of our country's heroes must stop, and I recently joined 
Senator Harry Reid in introducing the Retired Pay Restoration Act of 
2001, S. 170. I am hopeful that we will be able to continue on the 
progress made last year on Concurrent Receipt and finally make this 
long-overdue correction for 437,000 disabled veterans nationwide.
  Veterans are our country's heroes, and their selfless actions will 
inspire generations of Americans yet to come. Our country must honor 
its commitments to veterans, not only because it's the right thing to 
do, but also because it's the smart thing to do. I consider myself 
fortunate to live in our democracy, and I am filled with a sense of 
patriotism each day as I travel to work and see the United States 
Capitol come into view. In this city that is filled with monuments to 
the heroism of our Founding Fathers and the men and women who have 
served to protect our freedoms, I pledge that I will continue to fight 
to make veterans issues a priority in Congress.

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