[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 141 (Wednesday, October 8, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H9325-H9327]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
PERMANENT AUTHORITY FOR EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN MEMBERS OF THE ARMED
FORCES FROM PAYING SUBSISTENCE CHARGES WHILE HOSPITALIZED
Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 2998) to amend title 10, United States Code, to exempt
certain members of the Armed Forces from the requirement to pay
subsistence charges while hospitalized, as amended.
The Clerk read as follows:
H.R. 2998
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. PERMANENT AUTHORITY FOR EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN
MEMBERS OF THE UNIFORMED SERVICES FROM
REQUIREMENT TO PAY SUBSISTENCE CHARGES WHILE
HOSPITALIZED.
Subsection (c) of section 1075 of title 10, United States
Code (as added by section 8146(a)(2) of the Department of
Defense Appropriations Act, 2004 (Public Law 108-87)), is
repealed.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
York (Mr. McHugh) and the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Snyder) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh).
General Leave
Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks
on H.R. 2998, the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New York?
There was no objection.
Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
(Mr. McHugh asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. McHugh. Mr. Speaker, we are here today through the attention,
diligence, and concern of a single individual, the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Young). The very effective and very dedicated chairman of
the Committee on Appropriations has brought this, I think, very not
just unnecessary but distasteful provision in our laws to our
attention, and we are here today under the gentleman's leadership to
reverse that.
This is a great example of what we do not know can hurt us, a
provision that I do not believe that many Members were aware even
existed; but again through the gentleman's attention and devotion, we
are about to resolve and correct it.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2998, a bill introduced
by the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, Mr. Young, to exempt
service members receiving medical treatment in military hospitals for
combat wounds from being charged for the cost of their meals while
hospitalized.
I would like to commend the gentleman from Florida for bringing this
bill to the attention of the House. I think it is important that my
colleagues understand the personal side of this story because it is so
characteristic of Chairman Young.
The need for this legislation became apparent to the Chairman during
a visit that he and his lovely wife Beverly made to Walter Reed Army
Medical Center and Bethesda Naval Hospital to provide comfort and
support to the personnel wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan, and their
families. While visiting with one of the wounded, he was made aware of
a legal requirement for hospitalized service members to repay their
basic allowance for subsistence to compensate the government for the
meals they received.
What Chairman Young immediately recognized was that the authors of
the law requiring this payment did not contemplate that service members
wounded in combat would be subjected to the same requirement right
along with the member who had received routine treatment. He understood
that America would not want its combat wounded to be confronted with a
food bill when they departed the hospital.
It is the Chairman's nature to look after the welfare of our fighting
men and women and to correct injustice when he encounters it. In
looking out for the troops, he was also looking out for each member of
this House. He knew that the right thing to do was to ensure that those
wounded in combat or combat-like activities must not be bothered with a
bill for their meals. For that, all the members of the House owe the
Chairman a debt of gratitude.
The Chairman first took out his check book and personally paid the
bill for the service member who had brought this issue to his
attention. He then took action to include a provision in the Defense
Appropriations Bill for Fiscal Year 2004 to ensure that an immediate
fix was put into place. I am proud to say that today we will follow
Chairman Young's leadership and make that temporary fix a permanent
change to the law.
Again, I commend Chairman Young for this bill and thank him for his
diligence in protecting the interests of our service members.
I urge my colleagues to vote yes on H.R. 2998.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr.
Young), the author and the motivator behind this very worthy piece of
legislation.
(Mr. Young of Florida asked and was given permission to revise and
extend his remarks.)
Mr. YOUNG of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding
me this time, and I appreciate the gentleman for bringing this very
important bill to the floor, especially under suspension of the rules.
The gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) is a very dedicated
supporter of our military and is an important member of the Committee
on Armed Services. And as chairman of the subcommittee, he does an
important job. I know of no one who is more committed to the members of
our military than the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) and the
gentleman from California (Chairman Hunter).
What we are talking about today has to do with soldiers wounded on
the battlefield in a military hospital recovering from those wounds who
are charged $8.10 a day for the food they consume while they are in the
hospital recovering from wounds received on the battlefield. When I
learned about that, I have to tell Members, I could not believe it. So
I did a little research, and my research told me this is true. This is
the case; this is in the law.
I spoke to the administrators and commanders of the military
hospitals at Walter Reed Army Hospital, at the National Naval Medical
Center at Bethesda, at the Hospital at Landstuhl, Germany, and they all
said, yes, we have to do this, it is in the law, but it is more trouble
than it is worth. They said they are actually embarrassed when they
have to hand a soldier, when he left their hospital a bill for the food
that he or she consumed while in that hospital recovering from wounds
received on the battlefield. That is not right. That is outrageous.
So I introduced H.R. 2998 to repeal that law. Actually, while we were
moving the defense appropriations bill, I was able to include that bill
in the defense appropriations bill which was signed into law on
September 30.
{time} 1415
So immediately the problem was fixed but was only fixed for a year
because appropriations bills only last for a year. So I asked the
gentleman from California (Chairman Hunter) and the gentleman from New
York (Chairman McHugh) if they would report this bill to the floor so
that we could have a vote on it. I asked for a vote because so many of
our colleagues, when they learned of this, were just as outraged as I
was, and they asked that we have a vote. So we will ask for a vote on
this bill because so many of our Members want to vote for this bill.
Nearly 300 of our colleagues, Mr. Speaker, have co-sponsored this
legislation.
This is something that really needs to be fixed. It was fixed for 1
year, but this fix makes it permanent. This repealed the law
permanently, and we will not be embarrassed again by handing a soldier
who is leaving in a wheelchair with both legs amputated or an arm
amputated or vision totally destroyed or handicapped for life and we
are not going to insult them by asking them to pay $8.10 a day for the
food that they consumed while in that military hospital.
I thank the gentleman very much for bringing this very important bill
to the floor.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 2998, legislation I
introduced to permanently
[[Page H9326]]
repeal an outrageous law that requires our combat wounded military to
pay for their food while hospitalized recovering from their wounds.
I want to thank my friend and colleague, the Chairman of the House
Armed Services Committee, Mr. Hunter, and the Chairman of the Total
Force Subcommittee, Mr. McHugh, and all the members of the Committee
for their support of my legislation and their willingness to expedite
its consideration by the House. There are no greater friends to our
troops in the field then Chairmen Hunter and McHugh and the members of
their Committees.
This is a law that has been on the books since 1958 for hospitalized
officers and since 1981 for enlisted personnel. I only learned about it
late this summer from my wife Beverly, who spends considerable time
visiting with injured soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen, and Coast
Guardsmen at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center and the National Naval
Medical Center in Bethesda. A family member of a Marine reservist who
had to have a part of his foot amputated brought it to her attention.
This law is a serious affront to those injured in battle. Upon being
discharged from the hospital, our enlisted personnel and officers are
actually served with a bill to pay for their ``subsistence'' while in
the hospital. The current daily rate for these charges is $8.10. For
those who pass through more than one hospital on their way to recovery,
they are served with multiple bills.
We learned about this from our visits with Staff Sergeant William L.
Murwin, who spent 26 days in the hospital recovering from injuries
incurred in Iraq. Sergeant Murwin is a reservist in the Marine Corps
who was injured when a 10-year-old Iraqi dropped a grenade in the
HUMVEE he was driving. As a result of the explosion, Sergeant Murwin is
a partial amputee, having lost a large part of his foot.
Upon his discharge July 18th to return home to Nevada and his job as
a sheriff's deputy, Sergeant Murwin was handed a bill from the hospital
for $210.60 to pay for his food and subsistence. Beverly and I paid
this bill for Sergeant Murwin because we consider it an injustice to
ask those who have served us so courageously in Afghanistan and Iraq to
pay for their food while hospitalized.
Legislation I introduced on September 4th, and which is cosponsored
by 256 of my colleagues, amends current law to prohibit service members
injured in combat or training from being billed for the food while
hospitalized. It has been endorsed by a wide range of veterans service
organizations including The Air Force Sergeants Association, AMVETS,
the Association of the United States Army, The Enlisted Association of
the National Guard, The Fleet Reserve Association, The Military
Officers Association of America, The Military Order of the Purple
Heart, The Naval Reserve Association, and The Reserve Officers
Association of the United States, among others.
Upon learning about these hospital charges, I researched the issue
and found that Congress initiated the system of charging for
subsistence costs for officers who were hospitalized in 1958 under
Public Law 85-861. The 97th Congress amended this law in 1981 with
Public Law 97-22 to include enlisted service members. Although I can
find no one who claims responsibility for this legislation, I have
found in the five weeks since introducing my legislation overwhelming
support for its immediate repeal.
To end this injustice to our injured troops, I included my
legislation in the conference report on the Fiscal Year 2004 Defense
Appropriations Bill, which the House and Senate approved last month and
President Bush signed into law on September 30th. Being that it was
included in an appropriations bill, that provision only extends through
Fiscal Year 2004. The legislation we consider today will make the
repeal permanent.
Mr. Speaker, this is a long overdue correction to our statutes. No
one wants to see these men and women have to write a check for their
hospital stay, least of all the staff of our Nation's military
hospitals. I have personally talked with the senior staff at our major
military hospitals both here and in Germany and they all support this
legislation and say that not only is the collection of these checks an
insult to our troops but it is more of an administrative burden than it
is worth.
We all agree that we should be honoring and thanking those in uniform
for their service to the cause of peace and freedom, not billing them
for their food. And we should be doing all we can to help them recover
from their injuries, not ask them to write a check to the U.S.
Government upon their discharge from the hospital to begin their period
of convalescence.
It is my hope that my colleagues in the House will join in supporting
this legislation today as a fitting tribute to all those who serve so
valiantly and unfortunately have returned home injured, missing limbs,
and in many cases being permanently disabled. It is the least we can do
for our Nation's keepers of peace and defenders of freedom.
Mr. SNYDER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member of the Total Force
Subcommittee, who is always a gentleman and very cooperative.
I have a prepared statement that I will enter in its entirety into
the Record, but I wanted everyone for the record to know and to reflect
on the reality, and the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Young) is far too
modest and far too much of a gentleman to point it out. He said it came
to his attention. It did come to his attention.
What he did not mention, and I am not surprised that he did not
mention, is that this gentleman, I think in part because he is a Member
of Congress but I know mostly because he is such a deep, concerned and
caring individual, in tandem with his lovely wife, Beverly, who is also
deeply concerned and has headed up a program that is concerned about
our veterans and about our men and women in uniform, have for years now
paid visits to those brave men and women who have been wounded in
service to this country. In fact, I learned about some of the wounded
from the 10th Mountain Division, a division that I proudly represent
from northern New York, who were in treatment at Walter Reed from the
gentleman from Florida's (Chairman Young) visitation there.
For years he and his wife have quietly gone there, giving aid and
comfort to individuals just to let them know that others care. And how
it came to his attention is that, number one, in visiting with one of
these young heroes, he heard about their being wounded and then heard
about the bill that this young hero was presented with.
What he also did not happen to mention either was the fact that the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Young) was so offended and outraged, as
well he might have been, that he and his wife wrote a check out of
their personal funds for several hundred dollars to pay for that young
man's bill for the food that he received while he was trying to recover
from what was a partial amputation from his battlefield wounds.
This is a reflection of this man, who all of us have the honor and
opportunity to serve with him understand so clearly is a caring,
concerned individual and the kind of individual, as his partner is as
well, Beverly, whom we are proud to call a colleague and honored and
deeply appreciative of the fact that we can call him friend.
So this was not just something that came in a letter. It was not just
something on a chance visit that he happened to hear about. This was a
continuing pilgrimage by the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Young) and his
wife, Beverly, to visit our wounded as they have done repeatedly year
in and year out, not for pride or glory, not to put out press releases,
but because they care. I think it is important for the record to show
that, what an honorable man this individual is and how he and his wife
brought this incredibly wrong provision to our attention.
I again thank the gentleman from Arkansas for that opportunity for me
to say at this moment those comments in respect and admiration of the
sponsor of this legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SNYDER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I, too, salute the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Young) for his
work on this bill.
I was recently, several weeks ago, out at Bethesda Hospital visiting
some of our wounded there but also some young Marines who got malaria
while they were in Sierra Leone. I worked in Sierra Leone in the past
myself as a doctor years ago and have an interest in malaria. I ran
into the gentleman from Florida's (Chairman Young) wife out there
during her good work in the halls of Bethesda Hospital, so I know he
and she are both very much in touch with our men and women in the
military who end up in the hospital.
I think the point has been well made that what may look good on paper
in terms of accounting, that if we have military people getting a
subsistent amount of money each month to help cover room and board and
if they are in a place where they are getting free
[[Page H9327]]
room and board, then let us do a deduction because they are getting
that free room and board for that time where they are in a government
facility. It makes no sense, though, in terms of public policy, when
that facility is a hospital; and we all know that when we have someone
in a hospital. We all know that when we have someone in a hospital, the
family incurs additional expenses from phone calls and travel and
transportation and running to the pharmacy to pick up shampoo that they
forgot and all those kinds of things; and for these folks in the future
that we are going to prevent this from happening to, they do not need
that kind of hassle.
So I applaud the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Young) for bringing
this bill forward today.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Kansas (Mr.
Moore).
Mr. MOORE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr.
Snyder) for yielding me this time.
I rise today also to express my deepest gratitude to our military
personnel, but I am frustrated by the way our government and our
country treats our military personnel, as was pointed out by the
gentleman from Florida (Chairman Young) and the extraordinary work that
he and his wife have done, and I want to thank him and commend him for
the great bill that he has here on the House floor.
No factory worker or teacher is required to pay for any part of the
recovery should they be injured on the job. However, if a serviceman is
injured while defending our country in combat, in service to our
country, they are forced to pay a part of their hospital stay, as
reflected in the gentleman from Florida's (Chairman Young) bill, and
this should be corrected immediately. I am glad to see broad bipartisan
support for this legislation, and I hope that our House passes this as
quickly as possible.
I also want to bring one more, I think, concern to the attention of
the people and our Congress, and that is what I introduced, House
Resolution 387, a bipartisan House resolution to support our military
personnel by covering their travel costs to return our troops home to
their families and loved ones. People who have been in Afghanistan and
Iraq and who have 2 weeks R&R, rest and recuperation, to visit with
their families and loved ones are brought to the ports, to the borders
of our country, and then from there, Mr. Speaker, they are forced, if
they want to go on home, to pay their own way. I think this should be
corrected, and we have 98 co-sponsors on this House resolution which
would aim to correct this.
Our current policy leaves troops stranded or forced to pay their way
for connecting flights, and I think we can and should correct this. Our
government should pay all travel and transportation costs, and we
should honor our troops who defend and protect us by seeing this is
done.
Mr. SNYDER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to a gentleman from the
great State of Nevada (Mr. Porter), who has the opportunity to
represent the hero that I mentioned that the gentleman from Florida
(Chairman Young) and his wife encountered, a brave young man now
struggling with his recovery.
Mr. PORTER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from New York for
yielding me this time, and I thank the gentleman Florida (Mr. Young)
for introducing this legislation.
Staff Sergeant Murwin, whose plight inspired the gentleman from
Florida (Chairman Young) to introduce this bill, is a fellow Nevadan
and wounded combat veteran. His courage in serving his country and
looking out for the interests of his fellow combat wounded veterans is
commendable. I must say it is absolutely shameful that Sergeant Murwin
and soldiers like him were forced to pay for the privilege of trying to
recover while their lives were in turmoil or in a hospital.
A few months ago, I joined with other Members of Congress as we
visited Walter Reed Army Hospital and Bethesda Naval Hospital and had a
chance to see firsthand the honor, the pride, and the pain of our
fellow men and women in uniform. These men and women had limbs missing.
One gentleman was run over by a tank. But, also, one young man had a
flag attached to his lapel, a tattered small American flag that he wore
to remember his fellow soldiers that were still at war.
Mr. Speaker, these men and women have given enough in the name of
freedom and democracy. It is shameful that they were forced to pay on
top of all that they had given of their lives. I am glad today that we
have righted something that was very, very wrong.
Mr. SNYDER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from
Wisconsin (Mr. Kleczka).
Mr. KLECZKA. Mr. Speaker, I also rise in strong support of the
legislation. To charge these veterans for meals I think is quite
absurd; and I want to congratulate the gentleman from Florida (Mr.
Young), the chairman of the Committee on Appropriations for bringing
this product forward. But I have to point out to my colleagues that we
are not finishing the job today with this bill, and I would hope the
chairman would help us in bringing to the floor before we adjourn
another piece of legislation to correct an inequity. That is, when we
bring our Iraqi veterans home for leave, we dump them in Baltimore.
I was flying out of National Airport about a week ago, and two
veterans were there waiting for a plane. So I went to talk to them, and
one was a regular Army personnel and the other was an Air Guard
personnel, and I questioned them. I said, ``Are you flying home on
leave?''
They said, ``Yes.''
I said, ``Did they fly you into National and you are taking your
connection flight?''
They said, ``No, we took a bus up from Baltimore so, on our own dime,
we could fly home for a short period of time to be reunited with the
families.''
I think if we have billions of dollars to rebuild Iraq, to provide
for zip codes there and garbage trucks and uniforms for their army, I
think we can have the American taxpayers send these young men and women
back home to the loving arms of their families in their hometowns, not
in Baltimore.
So, hopefully, we can have that product come before us before we
adjourn and make sure these folks are flown right home so they can
spend their time with their families and not waiting for buses and
other airplanes on their own dime.
Mr. SNYDER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I once again want to thank the gentleman from Florida (Chairman
Young) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) for their work on
this bill. I look forward to seeing this become a permanent portion of
the law and deal with this problem once and for all.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Once again, let me thank the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Snyder), my
partner on the Total Force Subcommittee, for his leadership and
assistance but most of all again the gentleman from Florida (Chairman
Young) for his leadership, his insight, and his continuing concern.
This is something that we need to fix; and, fortunately, because of
the efforts of the gentleman from Florida (Chairman Young), we have the
opportunity to do it today. I certainly urge all of our colleagues to
join us in supporting this very worthy measure.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Simpson). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from New York (Mr. McHugh) that the House
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 2998, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds of
those present have voted in the affirmative.
Mr. McHUGH. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX and the
Chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be
postponed.
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