[Congressional Record Volume 147, Number 178 (Thursday, December 20, 2001)]
[House]
[Pages H10951-H10952]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
MORATORIUM CALLED FOR ON VETERAN PRESCRIPTION DRUG CO-PAYS
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Strickland) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. STRICKLAND. Mr. Speaker, I may be the last speaker in this
Chamber of this particular session of the House of Representatives. I
rise today to say when it comes to the way we treat our veterans in
this country, talk is cheap, but actions speak louder than words. Why
do I say that?
Mr. Speaker, I have in my hands this afternoon a document from the
Department of Veterans Affairs entitled, ``Implementation of Medication
Co-payment Changes.'' It is a document that details the changes that
will take place in the level of co-payment made available to veterans
who get their prescription medications at the VA hospitals. What we are
proposing is outrageous in my judgment.
Currently, most veterans who go to VA hospitals and receive their
medications as an outpatient pay a $2 co-pay per prescription. On
February 4, according to this document, that co-pay will be increased
from $2 a prescription to $7 a prescription, a whooping 250 percent
increase. An unacceptable increase. Why is this so outrageous? It is
outrageous because this House has recently passed a $15 billion bailout
for the huge airline companies, $15 billion. This House has recently
passed a bill that would have provided $24 billion in tax rebates going
all of the way back to 1986, giving profitable companies a give-back of
all of the taxes they had paid under the alternative minimum tax since
1986, estimated to be a $24 billion give-back. And yet at the same
time, we are in the process of increasing the co-pay for veterans'
medicines from $2 to $7.
[[Page H10952]]
Mr. Speaker, I serve a veterans hospital in southern Ohio, the
Chillicothe VA Hospital. I have been told by administration there that
the average veteran who gets prescription drugs at that facility will
get 10 or more prescriptions per month. If we take a $7 co-pay and
multiply that by 10, it is $70, a sizable amount of money for a veteran
living on a fixed income. These veterans frequently get not 1-month
supply, but a 3-month supply at a time. If we take $70 times 3, it is
$210. Why is it that we talk so eloquently in this House about our
concern for our military, we honor our veterans, and yet when it comes
to taking action, we penalize them at the same time we are willing to
give huge, huge tax cuts to profitable corporations, many of them
multi-national corporations.
A 250 percent increase on our veterans for medicines they need to
stay healthy or maybe even to stay alive, and we are doing it at a time
when we are passing out money up here like drunken sailors. We have
passed so many give-backs and pork barrel spending bills in this
session of this House of Representatives, and yet we are penalizing our
veterans. It is no wonder that veterans across this country have a
right to say when it comes to the actions of this House, talk is cheap,
but actions speak louder than words.
On February 4 when veterans go to our VA facilities to get their
medicines, and they have been used to pay $2 per prescription and they
are asked to pay $7 for that prescription, I hope they rebel. I hope
they let those of us in this Chamber know how they feel about this
outrageous action.
Mr. Speaker, I have introduced a bill to place a 5-year moratorium on
any increase for veterans' prescription drugs. My bill is H.R. 2820. I
currently have 42 cosponsors. I am hopeful that every Member of this
Chamber will choose to cosponsor this legislation, and as soon as we
get back here after the first of the year, we will pass this
legislation so that we will not penalize our veterans and require them
to pay more than they are currently paying for their needed
prescription medications.
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