[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 26 (Wednesday, February 12, 2003)]
[House]
[Page H421]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            VETERANS ISSUES

  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 rise this evening to talk about the 
shocking and shabby treatment that this administration is directing 
toward our Nation's veterans. I would like to share some of the reasons 
I would make such a statement.
  Approximately a year ago this administration decided they were going 
to raise the copay on prescription drugs that veterans would have to 
pay from $2 to $7 a prescription. So if a veteran goes to a VA hospital 
today, they are likely to see this poster up on the bulletin board, 
``Did you know the medication copayment has changed from $2 to $7?''
  I thought that was outrageous, and I introduced legislation in the 
last Congress to reduce that copayment back to $2, but in the 
President's most recent budget, he does not just want to charge 
veterans $7 a prescription, he wants to increase that to $15 per 
prescription. Think about that. In less than 2 years, the copayment 
will have gone from $2 to $7 to $15 a prescription.
  Many of the veterans in Ohio get 10 or more prescriptions a month. If 
we multiply $15 times 10, that is $150 a month, and then veterans 
frequently get 3 months supply at a time. That is $150 times 3, for 
many veterans who are living on fixed income. It is shameful. It is 
shabby treatment.
  Now, what else have they tried to do to veterans? Well, about a year 
ago they put out a memo from the VA headquarters saying that all of the 
health care providers were forbidden from marketing services that 
veterans are entitled to receive. In other words, the health care 
providers can no longer participate in community health fairs. They can 
no longer send out newsletters describing their services to veterans. 
They can no longer go to an American Legion post, for example, and sign 
up veterans for health care services. It is a gag order.
  I call it the ``if they do not ask, we will not tell'' policy. If the 
veteran does not ask what they are entitled to receive, the VA will not 
tell them what they are entitled to receive. Furthermore, they will 
prohibit their health care providers from simply giving out that 
information.
  Then, a few weeks ago, the VA decided to have a new category of 
veterans; priority 8, they called them. They said if you are a veteran 
and you are honorably discharged and you have served this country, but 
you make $26,000-$27,000 a year, you can no longer enroll in the VA 
health care system. Sorry, veteran, you paid the price, you have served 
the country, you have been honorably discharged, but we do not want to 
have anything to do with you because you make too much money. You make 
$26,000-$27,000 a year.
  It gets worse. In the President's most recent budget, they are 
proposing that veterans who make as little as $24,000 a year, and they 
are referring to them as high-income veterans, would be required to pay 
a $250 annual enrollment fee just to participate in the VA health care 
system.
  Here is what they are doing. They are saying, we are not going to 
tell veterans what you are entitled to receive, but if you happen to 
find out about our services, we are going to increase your copay from 
$2 to $15 a prescription. And then if you make $24,000 a year, which 
does not sound like a lot of money to me, not compared to those of us 
who make about $150,000 a year, but if you make $24,000 a year, we want 
to force you to pay a $250-per-year enrollment fee. And we want to 
increase the cost of going to a VA outpatient clinic from $15 to $20.
  I think Members get the point. It is as if this administration has 
declared war on our Nation's veterans.
  It is a shameful situation, and I urge this Congress to look at this 
veterans budget and to reevaluate what we are trying to do; and what we 
are suggesting needs to be done.

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