[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 54 (Wednesday, March 28, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E672]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             IN SUPPORT OF THE VETERANS' CARE ADVOCATE ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. PETER WELCH

                               of vermont

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, March 28, 2007

  Mr. WELCH of Vermont. Madam Speaker, today I am introducing 
legislation that will ensure that recovering veterans returning from 
Iraq and Afghanistan have access to a strong patient advocate should 
they encounter bureaucratic road blocks to their recovery.
  This legislation is in response to the appalling stories that have 
recently come to light regarding substandard outpatient care at Walter 
Reed Army Medical Center. On March 5, I participated in an oversight 
hearing at Walter Reed of the Subcommittee on National Security and 
Foreign Affairs where we heard from recovering soldiers coping with 
filthy outpatient living conditions and a needlessly cumbersome 
bureaucracy.
  One of the conclusions I reached from this hearing is that veterans 
are, in some cases, on their own once they leave the excellent 
Department of Defense inpatient health care system. These men and women 
are being forced to navigate an onerous bureaucracy and manage their 
own outpatient care--even after traumatic brain injuries. This is an 
unacceptable betrayal of the men and women who have so bravely answered 
the call to duty.
  The legislation I am introducing today, The Veterans' Care Advocate 
Act, would create an ombudsman in each military medical facility to 
assist in the care and overall well-being of recovering service 
members. The ombudsman will help patients overcome bureaucratic 
entanglements and ensure they receive the care they need. If the system 
breaks down, the ombudsman will go to bat on their behalf and cut 
through the bureaucracy.
  Numerous accounts at Walter Reed describe patients not understanding 
where to obtain services and assistance and not knowing what services 
are available to them. The ombudsman will provide a forum for service 
members and their families to formally appeal to or seek review from 
the Department of Defense, receive information about services, and 
obtain help with paperwork.
  My bill would also require the Secretary of Defense to effectively 
advertise the services of the ombudsman so that service members and 
their families know who to turn to for help with the bureaucracy. 
Finally, this bill would require regular reports to Congress on the 
status of the ombudsman program, including a description of the number 
and location of ombudsman positions established, a description of the 
services being provided by the ombudsman, an analysis of the 
effectiveness and timeliness of the services provided, and the adequacy 
of Federal resources for the ombudsman to carry out its entire mission.
  Madam Speaker, I strongly believe that the cost of the war must 
include the care of the warrior. The Veterans' Care Advocate Act is 
just one step of many that will be required to ensure that recovering 
soldiers receive the care they were promised and the care they deserve.

  Later today, as part of the Wounded Warrior Assistance Act, I will 
offer an amendment that will improve the medical care case manager and 
service member advocate provisions in the legislation. The underlying 
legislation creates two new positions as part of the team of doctors, 
nurses and staff caring for recovering soldiers: a medical care case 
manager and a service member advocate.
  First, the medical care case manager will assist in understanding the 
service member's medical status and conduct a review, at a minimum of 
once a week, of the soldier's medical status to ensure that he or she 
is receiving the necessary medical care. Second, the service member 
advocate assists the service member in cutting through the bureaucratic 
red tape and looking out for the service member's overall welfare and 
quality of life.
  My amendment requires that the Secretary of Defense conduct outreach 
to all service members and their families, advising them that the 
medical care case manager and service member advocate positions are 
there to help. The Secretary must also describe the nature of their 
services and how they can be contacted. The purpose of my amendment is 
to help assure that recovering members of our military are made aware 
of the resources available to them.
  Furthermore, the amendment ensures that the medical case manager and 
service member advocate have the resources they need to expeditiously 
carry out the responsibilities and duties of their position.
  I am pleased that the Wounded Warriors bill takes a number of 
important steps to improve the management of medical care, personnel 
actions, and quality of life issues for our soldiers. Combined with the 
hospital-based ombudsman created by my bill, the creation of these two 
positions will help ensure that our soldiers get the quality care they 
deserve.

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