[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 189 (Tuesday, December 11, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H15261-H15265]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1545
PROVIDING FOR CONCURRENCE BY HOUSE WITH AMENDMENTS IN SENATE AMENDMENT
TO H.R. 797, DR. JAMES ALLEN VETERAN VISION EQUITY ACT OF 2007
Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the
resolution (H. Res. 855) providing for the concurrence by the House in
the Senate amendment to H.R. 797, with amendments.
The Clerk read the title of the resolution.
The text of the resolution is as follows:
H. Res. 855
Resolved, That upon the adoption of this resolution the
bill (H.R. 797) entitled ``An Act to amend title 38, United
States Code, to improve compensation benefits for veterans in
certain cases of impairment of vision involving both eyes, to
provide for the use of the National Directory of New Hires
for income verification purposes, to extend the authority of
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to provide an educational
assistance allowance for qualifying work study activities,
and to authorize the provision of bronze representations of
the letter `V' for the graves of eligible individuals buried
in private cemeteries in lieu of Government-provided
headstones or markers.'', with the Senate amendment thereto,
shall be considered to have been taken from the Speaker's
table to the end that the Senate amendment thereto be, and
the same is hereby, agreed to with the following amendments:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Dr. James
Allen Veteran Vision Equity Act of 2007''.
(b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act
is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
TITLE I--LOW-VISION BENEFITS MATTERS
Sec. 101. Modification of rate of visual impairment for payment of
disability compensation.
Sec. 102. Improvement in compensation for veterans in certain cases of
impairment of vision involving both eyes.
TITLE II--MATTERS RELATING TO BURIAL AND MEMORIAL AFFAIRS
Sec. 201. Provision of medallion or other device for privately-
purchased grave markers.
Sec. 202. Improvement in provision of assistance to States relating to
the interment of veterans in cemeteries other than
national cemeteries.
Sec. 203. Modification of authorities on provision of Government
headstones and markers for burials of veterans at private
cemeteries.
TITLE III--OTHER MATTERS
Sec. 301. Use of national directory of new hires for income
verification purposes for certain veterans benefits.
Sec. 302. Extension of authority of Secretary of Veterans Affairs to
provide an educational assistance allowance to persons
performing qualifying work-study activities.
TITLE I--LOW-VISION BENEFITS MATTERS
SEC. 101. MODIFICATION OF RATE OF VISUAL IMPAIRMENT FOR
PAYMENT OF DISABILITY COMPENSATION.
Section 1114(o) of title 38, United States Code, is amended
by striking ``5/200'' and inserting ``20/200''.
SEC. 102. IMPROVEMENT IN COMPENSATION FOR VETERANS IN CERTAIN
CASES OF IMPAIRMENT OF VISION INVOLVING BOTH
EYES.
Section 1160(a)(1) of title 38, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) by striking ``blindness'' both places it appears and
inserting ``impairment of vision'';
(2) by striking ``misconduct;'' and inserting ``misconduct
and--''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new subparagraphs:
``(A) the impairment of vision in each eye is rated at a
visual acuity of 20/200 or less; or
``(B) the peripheral field of vision for each eye is 20
degrees or less;''.
TITLE II--MATTERS RELATING TO BURIAL AND MEMORIAL AFFAIRS
SEC. 201. PROVISION OF MEDALLION OR OTHER DEVICE FOR
PRIVATELY-PURCHASED GRAVE MARKERS.
Section 2306(d) of title 38, United States Code, is amended
by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(5) In lieu of furnishing a headstone or marker under
this subsection, the Secretary may furnish, upon request, a
medallion or other device of a design determined by the
Secretary to signify the deceased's status as a veteran, to
be attached to a headstone or marker furnished at private
expense.''.
SEC. 202. IMPROVEMENT IN PROVISION OF ASSISTANCE TO STATES
RELATING TO THE INTERMENT OF VETERANS IN
CEMETERIES OTHER THAN NATIONAL CEMETERIES.
(a) Repeal of Time Limitation for State Filing for
Reimbursement for Interment Costs.--
(1) In general.--The second sentence of section
3.1604(d)(2) of title 38, Code of Federal Regulations, shall
have no further force or effect as it pertains to unclaimed
remains of a deceased veteran.
(2) Retroactive application.--Paragraph (1) shall take
effect as of October 1, 2006 and apply with respect to
interments and inurnments occurring on or after that date.
(b) Grants for Operation and Maintenance of State Veterans'
Cemeteries.--
(1) In general.--Subsection (a) of section 2408 of title
38, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(a)(1) Subject to subsection (b), the Secretary may make
a grant to any State for the following purposes:
``(A) Establishing, expanding, or improving a veterans'
cemetery owned by the State.
``(B) Operating and maintaining such a cemetery.
``(2) A grant under paragraph (1) may be made only upon
submission of an application to the Secretary in such form
and manner, and containing such information, as the Secretary
may require.''.
(2) Limitation on amounts awarded.--Subsection (e) of such
section is amended--
(A) by inserting ``(1)'' before ``Amounts''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(2) In any fiscal year, the aggregate amount of grants
awarded under this section for the purposes specified in
subsection (a)(1)(B) may not exceed $5,000,000.''.
(3) Conforming amendments.--Such section is further
amended--
(A) in subsection (b)--
(i) by striking ``Grants under this section'' and inserting
``A grant under this section for
[[Page H15262]]
a purpose described in subsection (a)(1)(A)''; and
(ii) by striking ``a grant under this section'' each place
it appears and inserting ``such a grant'';
(B) in subsection (d), by striking ``to assist such State
in establishing, expanding, or improving a veterans'
cemetery''; and
(C) in subsection (f)(1), by inserting ``, or in operating
and maintaining such cemeteries,'' after ``veterans'
cemeteries''.
(4) Regulations.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs
shall prescribe regulations to carry out the amendments made
by this subsection.
SEC. 203. MODIFICATION OF AUTHORITIES ON PROVISION OF
GOVERNMENT HEADSTONES AND MARKERS FOR BURIALS
OF VETERANS AT PRIVATE CEMETERIES.
(a) Repeal of Expiration of Authority.--Subsection (d) of
section 2306 of title 38, United States Code, as amended by
section 201, is further amended--
(1) by striking paragraph (3); and
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (4) and (5), as added by
that section, as paragraphs (3) and (4), respectively.
(b) Retroactive Effective Date.--Notwithstanding subsection
(d) of section 502 of the Veterans Education and Benefits
Expansion Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-103; 115 Stat. 995; 38
U.S.C. 2306 note) or any other provision of law, the
amendments made by that section and by subsections (a), (b),
(c), (d), and (f) of section 402 of the Veterans Benefits,
Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 (Public
Law 109-461; 120 Stat. 3429) shall take effect as of November
1, 1990, and shall apply with respect to headstones and
markers for the graves of individuals dying on or after that
date.
TITLE III--OTHER MATTERS
SEC. 301. USE OF NATIONAL DIRECTORY OF NEW HIRES FOR INCOME
VERIFICATION PURPOSES FOR CERTAIN VETERANS
BENEFITS.
(a) Authority for Information Comparisons and Disclosures
of Information to Assist in Administration of Certain
Veterans Benefits.--Section 453(j) of the Social Security Act
(42 U.S.C. 653(j)) is amended by adding at the end the
following new paragraph:
``(11) Information comparisons and disclosures to assist in
administration of certain veterans benefits.--
``(A) Furnishing of information by secretary of veterans
affairs.--Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, the
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall furnish to the Secretary,
on such periodic basis as determined by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs in consultation with the Secretary,
information in the custody of the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs for comparison with information in the National
Directory of New Hires, in order to obtain information in
such Directory with respect to individuals who are applying
for or receiving--
``(i) needs-based pension benefits provided under chapter
15 of title 38, United States Code, or under any other law
administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs;
``(ii) parents' dependency and indemnity compensation
provided under section 1315 of title 38, United States Code;
``(iii) health care services furnished under subsections
(a)(2)(G), (a)(3), or (b) of section 1710 of title 38, United
States Code; or
``(iv) compensation paid under chapter 11 of title 38,
United States Code, at the 100 percent rate based solely on
unemployability and without regard to the fact that the
disability or disabilities are not rated as 100 percent
disabling under the rating schedule.
``(B) Requirement to seek minimum information.--The
Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall seek information pursuant
to this paragraph only to the extent necessary to verify the
employment and income of individuals described in
subparagraph (A).
``(C) Duties of the secretary.--
``(i) Information disclosure.--The Secretary, in
cooperation with the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, shall
compare information in the National Directory of New Hires
with information provided by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs with respect to individuals described in subparagraph
(A), and shall disclose information in such Directory
regarding such individuals to the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs, in accordance with this paragraph, for the purposes
specified in this paragraph.
``(ii) Condition on disclosure.--The Secretary shall make
disclosures in accordance with clause (i) only to the extent
that the Secretary determines that such disclosures do not
interfere with the effective operation of the program under
this part.
``(D) Use of information by secretary of veterans
affairs.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs may use
information resulting from a data match pursuant to this
paragraph only--
``(i) for the purposes specified in subparagraph (B); and
``(ii) after removal of personal identifiers, to conduct
analyses of the employment and income reporting of
individuals described in subparagraph (A).
``(E) Reimbursement of hhs costs.--The Secretary of
Veterans Affairs shall reimburse the Secretary, in accordance
with subsection (k)(3), for the costs incurred by the
Secretary in furnishing the information requested under this
paragraph.
``(F) Consent.--The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall not
seek, use, or disclose information under this paragraph
relating to an individual without the prior written consent
of such individual (or of a person legally authorized to
consent on behalf of such individual).
``(G) Expiration of authority.--The authority under this
paragraph shall expire on September 30, 2011.''.
(b) Amendments to Veterans Affairs Authority.--
(1) In general.--Chapter 53 of title 38, United States
Code, is amended by inserting after section 5317 the
following new section:
``Sec. 5317A. Use of income information from other agencies:
independent verification required before termination or
reduction of certain benefits and services
``(a) Independent Verification Required.--The Secretary may
terminate, deny, suspend, or reduce any benefit or service
specified in section 5317(c), with respect to an individual
under age 65 who is an applicant for or recipient of such a
benefit or service, by reason of information obtained from
the Secretary of Health and Human Services under section
453(j)(11) of the Social Security Act, only if the Secretary
takes appropriate steps to verify independently information
relating to the individual's employment and income from
employment.
``(b) Opportunity to Contest Findings.--The Secretary shall
inform each individual for whom the Secretary terminates,
denies, suspends, or reduces any benefit or service under
subsection (a) of the findings made by the Secretary under
such subsection on the basis of verified information and
shall provide to the individual an opportunity to contest
such findings in the same manner as applies to other
information and findings relating to eligibility for the
benefit or service involved.
``(c) Source of Funds for Reimbursement to Secretary of
Health and Human Services.--The Secretary shall pay the
expense of reimbursing the Secretary of Health and Human
Services in accordance with section 453(j)(11)(E) of the
Social Security Act, for the cost incurred by the Secretary
of Health and Human Services in furnishing information
requested by the Secretary under section 453(j)(11) of such
Act, from amounts available to the Department for the payment
of compensation and pensions.
``(d) Expiration of Authority.--The authority under this
section shall expire on September 30, 2011.''.
(2) Clerical amendment.--The table of sections at the
beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the
item relating to section 5317 the following new item:
``5317A. Use of income information from other agencies: independent
verification required before termination or reduction of
certain benefits and services.''.
SEC. 302. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY OF SECRETARY OF VETERANS
AFFAIRS TO PROVIDE AN EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE
ALLOWANCE TO PERSONS PERFORMING QUALIFYING
WORK-STUDY ACTIVITIES.
Section 3485(a)(4) of title 38, United States Code, is
amended by striking ``June 30, 2007'' each place it appears
and inserting ``June 30, 2010''.
Amend the title so as to read: ``An Act to amend title 38,
United States Code, to improve low-vision benefits matters,
matters relating to burial and memorial affairs, and other
matters under the laws administered by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
California (Mr. Filner) and the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Lamborn)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from California.
Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Dr. James Allen
Veteran Vision Equity Act of 2007.
I was glad to be able to work with my colleagues on the Committee on
Veterans' Affairs, on both sides of the aisle and in both Houses, to
get here. I want to thank Mr. Rangel and his staff for their guidance
on the provision that fell under the jurisdiction of the Ways and Means
Committee.
I especially want to thank our colleague from Madison, Wisconsin,
Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, who led the effort for this, who got it to
the floor today and who will explain it in whatever detail she thinks
is important.
I note that this bill was previously introduced in the last Congress;
however, it never became law. I am glad this Congress has the
opportunity to do more for our blind and vision impaired veterans.
The Dr. James Allen Veteran Vision Equity Act of 2007, named after a
noted physician and ocular pioneer who worked for over 35 years in the
VA, would allow veterans who receive veterans' disability compensation
for impairment of vision in one eye to be eligible to receive
additional disability compensation for impairment of vision in the eye
that is not service-connected, where the impairment in each eye is to a
visual acuity of 20/200 or less or of a peripheral field of 20 degrees
or less (the definition of ``legal blindness'' adopted by all 50 states
and the Social Security Administration.)
[[Page H15263]]
H.R. 797 also directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the
Secretary of Health and Human Services to match and compare VA needs-
based pension benefits data, parents' dependency and indemnity
compensation data, health-care services data, and unemployability
compensation data with the National Directory of New Hires maintained
by DHHS, for the purpose of determining eligibility for such benefits
and services.
It would also authorize $5 million for establishing, improving and
expanding for the operation and maintenance of state-owned veterans'
cemeteries. Additionally, the bill will repeal the time limitation for
States to file for reimbursement costs for interring unclaimed
veterans' remains, making it retroactive to October 1, 2006.
Finally, this measure extends the authorization of the veterans work
study program until 2010.
This bill affects an estimated 5 percent of the 13,109 veterans who
have service-connected blindness or loss of vision in one eye. As of
September 17, 2007, 1,129 service members have sustained serious eye
wounds in combat according to the Defense Armed Forces Institute of
Surgical Pathology (any of which may later lead to blindness).
Also, it is reported that many of the over 4,400 traumatic brain-
injured OIF/OEF servicemembers will likely suffer from serious vision-
related complications and at least 57 percent of all eye injuries of
this war are caused by lED explosions.
Walter Reed Army Medical Center alone has treated close to 540
Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom service members for
visual injuries and over 230 of our soldiers unfortunately have
sustained legal blindness in one eye.
It is worth noting, that in 2002, Congress passed and the President
signed Public Law 107-330, which included a provision to correct a
similar deficiency in the Paired Organ law for hearing loss. In 2006,
the Committee on Veterans' Affairs held a legislative hearing and
received favorable testimony on H.R. 2963, a bill similar to H.R. 797.
In that hearing, the VA supported H.R. 2963.
This is important and meaningful legislation for our men and women in
uniform--who have fought and are fighting for our country.
I urge my colleagues to support passage of this resolution and urge
swift consideration of the Dr. James Allen Veteran Vision Equity Act of
2007 by the Senate before the end of this session of Congress.
Mr. Speaker, I yield whatever time she may consume to the gentlewoman
from Wisconsin (Ms. Baldwin).
Ms. BALDWIN. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Filner.
I rise in strong support of H. Res. 855, the Dr. James Allen Veteran
Vision Equity Act that I introduced earlier this year. This bill fixes
an inequity in the current paired organ statute that has resulted in a
denial of appropriate disability compensation to blinded veterans.
Congress has rightly recognized that some human organs or limbs are
designed to work in pairs: legs, hands, kidneys, lungs, ears and, of
course, eyes. In the instance of eyes, blindness in one eye profoundly
affects depth perception even if sight is fully retained in the other
eye. The paired organ statute was written to assist those veterans who
experience a service-connected loss of a paired organ or limb. The
statute recognizes the interdependency of paired organs and endeavors
to treat the combined disability created by a nonservice-connected
loss, injury or degeneration of the remaining paired organ or limb as
though it was the result of a service-connected disability. In general,
the paired organ statute accomplishes this task, with the exception of
its treatment of eyes and loss of sight.
I want to share with you the story of Dr. James Allen, after whom
this legislation is named. Dr. Allen is a professor of ophthalmology at
the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine in my district. He has
worked at the Veterans Affairs Hospital for 33 years and treated
numerous eye patients, including veterans who are blind.
One example is Mr. Donald May. Don is a World War II veteran who lost
his right eye in a hand grenade explosion. A few years ago, Mr. May
became legally blind in the nonservice-connected left eye. He applied
to the Department of Veterans Affairs for help and was denied further
benefits. He was told that the current law in regard to paired organs
did not apply to him, even though he was legally blind in his service-
connected right eye.
After Dr. Allen brought the plight of his patients to my attention, I
began to research why these veterans were being denied the benefits I
felt they deserved, benefits that I believe Congress intended to grant
them. Through my work with the Blinded Veterans Association, we
discovered that while the current paired organ statute covers
blindness, in practice few, if any, veterans have ever been able to
qualify for such compensation.
In theory, the statute provides that a veteran who is service-
connected for blindness in one eye could qualify for additional
disability compensation if they become blind in the remaining eye for
nonservice-connected reasons. However, the statute does not define the
term ``blindness,'' nor is any provision made for impairment of vision
in the nonservice-connected eye short of blindness.
Rather than using visual acuity of 20/200 or loss of field of vision
to 20 degrees as the definition of legal blindness that has been
adopted by all 50 States and the Social Security Administration, the
Department of Veterans Affairs uses a much more restrictive definition,
5/200, as a rating for legal blindness, which in rough layman's term is
the equivalent of having an eye with light perception only. As a
result, few, if any, blinded veterans are able to qualify for
additional compensation under the paired organ statute.
H. Res. 855, the Dr. James Allen Veterans Vision Equity Act, fixes
this problem. It defines blindness as impairment of vision where the
impairment is to a visual acuity of 20/200 or less or of a peripheral
field loss of vision of 20 degrees or less. This change in the law
would only affect a small percentage, estimated to be roughly 5 percent
of the 13,000-plus veterans who are service-connected for loss of
vision in one eye. Yet such a change would send a powerful message that
our Nation's blinded veterans and the hardships that they have faced
are not forgotten.
Indeed, our Nation's blinded veterans face significant challenges in
the labor market. The National Institute on Disability and
Rehabilitation Research found that for individuals with visual
impairments, to the extent that they are unable to read letters, the
employment rate is only 30.8 percent, compared to 82.1 percent for
those without disability.
I want to mention that this resolution complies with the PAYGO rules.
The costs associated with H. Res. 855 are fully offset. This bill
directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs and the Secretary of Health
and Human Services to match and compare VA needs-based pension benefits
data, parents' dependency and indemnity compensation data, health care
services data and unemployability compensation data with the National
Directory of New Hires maintained by DHHS, for the purpose of
determining eligibility for such benefits and services. According to
the GAO, such data matching will help reduce fraud and abuse within the
VA system as it determines eligibility and benefits to those veterans
thought to be unemployable but are indeed working.
I would like to just thank Chairman Filner, Subcommittee Chairman
John Hall, as well as Congressmen John Boozman and Vic Snyder for their
unwavering support of this bill. I also want to thank the staff of the
Veterans' Affairs Committee for their help in advancing this
legislation.
H. Res. 855 is a modest but important step in restoring fair
treatment to those veterans blinded due to their service to our country
and to further our commitment to them. Their sacrifices and their
service to this Nation should be matched by our desire to improve the
quality of life for them and their families.
Earlier this year, the Blinded Veterans Association had found over
200 soldiers returning from Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan
and Operation Iraqi Freedom who are blinded in one eye due to their
service-related injuries. They could be benefited in the future by this
legislation.
I strongly encourage all my colleagues to support H. Res. 855.
Mr. LAMBORN. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 855,
which would amend H.R. 797, the Dr. James Allen Veterans Vision Equity
Act, as amended by the other body. I would like to thank my colleagues,
Chairman Filner, Ranking Member Buyer, Mr. Boozman of Arkansas and Ms.
Baldwin of Wisconsin, for their efforts on this bill. On March 21 of
this year, this body
[[Page H15264]]
passed H.R. 797 with a unanimous vote of 424-0, and I am pleased to
support it.
The first title of this resolution would allow veterans who receive
veterans disability compensation for impairment of vision in one eye to
be eligible to receive additional disability compensation for
impairment of vision in the eye that is not service connected. This
eligibility includes situations where the impairment in each eye is to
a visual acuity of 20/200 or less, or of a peripheral field loss of 20
degrees or less. This is the same definition of legal blindness adopted
by all 50 States and the Social Security Administration.
Title II of H.R. 797 incorporates several sections of H.R. 2696, the
Veterans Dignified Burial Assistance Act of 2007, which I introduced in
June to improve VA burial benefits and State veterans cemeteries.
From time to time, Mr. Speaker, a State locates the remains of
veterans who were not interred at the time of their death for various
reasons. When States inter these veterans, they cannot be reimbursed by
VA because of the time limit on reimbursement costs. This legislation
would repeal this limitation and helps ensure that all veterans will
receive a proper interment with the honor and respect that they have
earned.
Title II would also authorize the Secretary of the VA to make
additional grants to States for improving and expanding State veteran
cemeteries. States would be required to submit an application to the
Secretary for this funding, of which the aggregate amount authorized
for all State grants is $5 million.
The final provision of title II would provide families with the
option of placing a medallion on a deceased veteran's grave denoting
veteran status, in lieu of a VA headstone for graves already marked by
a private marker.
Mr. Speaker, many private cemeteries do not allow a second marker on
a grave site because it complicates routine maintenance. Therefore, a
medallion would identify a veteran's grave in a manner that would be
universally acceptable and would meet the family's desire to honor the
deceased veteran and will be one more reminder to everybody of the
sacrifices made by veterans. This provision is very similar to an
amendment that I offered at the full committee markup of H.R. 797, and
I'm very pleased to support it again now.
While not the specific intent of the provision, veterans' families
may benefit financially from this measure. Currently, VA offers second
markers for veterans' graves that already have a privately procured
marker. While there is no cost for the markers, mounting of these
second markers is at the family's expense, usually several times the
cost of the stone itself. Since the new medallion could be applied
directly to the current marker with an industrial-grade adhesive,
families will be able to apply the medallion on their own, allowing
them to avoid significant mounting costs.
Mr. Speaker, title III of the resolution extends the use of the New
Hires Act and would save the government money by allowing the Secretary
of Veterans Affairs to consult with the Secretary of Health and Human
Services regarding unemployment compensation data in order to determine
eligibility for VA needs-based pension benefits.
The Congressional Budget Office informally estimates that this
section of the resolution would save the taxpayers $30 million over 10
years. I would note that this savings funds the vision, burial and work
study provisions in this bill.
Also included in title III is a provision that extends work study
jobs at VA through June 2009. Current law allows work study recipients
to perform a variety of duties throughout the VA, as well as veteran-
related paperwork at their schools.
Congress extended the provision for 6 months in PL 109-461 to prevent
canceling benefits in the middle of the school year. I'm pleased that
we're able to extend this provision even further in this bill.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H. Res. 855, which would
amend H.R. 797, as amended.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. FILNER. I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. LAMBORN. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to my
colleague, the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Boozman).
Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 797 is a very, very good bill, and I
appreciate Ms. Baldwin working so hard. I think we could actually use
the adjective tirelessly on this one, in order to bring it forward.
It really has two provisions that I'm especially pleased to support.
First, I'm pleased that this bill will help veterans with visual
disabilities. To put this in perspective, VA compensates about 13,000
veterans for blindness in one eye.
{time} 1600
DOD statistics show that about 1,169 servicemembers have experienced
eye injuries in Iraq, and VA states about 111 of those are now
receiving compensation. And let us not forget that with the number of
traumatic brain injury casualties, and those that have gone
undiagnosed, many of them will experience visual impairment as a result
of those injuries. Thanks to Ms. Baldwin's work in bringing this
forward, the change in this law will make sure that all of these
individuals will be treated fairly.
I am also greatly pleased that we have been able to fund
reinstatement of the GI Bill work-study provisions that expired last
June. These additional work-study jobs will benefit both the veteran
student and veterans at large by increasing the resources available to
assist VA employees in accomplishing their mission.
Mr. Speaker, this is a very good bill and I urge my colleagues to
support it. I also want to thank Mr. Filner and his staff for, again,
bringing this forward, along with Mr. Buyer, the ranking member; and
the staff over here. Again, this is a very good bill, and I urge
support of its passage with my colleagues.
Mr. LAMBORN. I want to thank the gentleman from Arkansas for his
remarks.
Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, at this time I will include in the Record an
article published in the Ophthalmic News on protective eye gear, and I
urge my colleagues to unanimously support this resolution.
[From Ophthalmology Times, May 1, 2007]
Protective Eye Gear Essential for Modern Soldier: Ocular Injuries Have
Climbed to Number 4 Slot Behind Amputation, Traumatic Brain Injury,
PTSD
(By Lynda Charters)
Baltimore.--Ocular injuries during war have steadily
increased from as far back as the Civil War because of the
vulnerability of the face and eyes on the battlefield and the
increasing use of fragmentary weapons. Thomas P. Ward, MD,
described how ocular injuries have changed and how to prevent
them here at the Current Concepts in Ophthalmology meeting in
Baltimore.
The meeting was sponsored by Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine, Baltimore, and Ophthalmology Times.
``What we learned about eye injuries was not just learned
from the current war in Iraq but from several previous
wars,'' said Dr. Ward, a private practitioner in West
Hartford, CT, and former ophthalmology consultant to the U.S.
Army's surgeon general. The percentage of ocular wounds
received on the battlefield has increased steadily over the
past century, from less than 1% during the Civil War to about
13% in the early phase of the war in Iraq, he added.
``That 13% is much higher than would be expected if we were
considering only the random chance of a projectile hitting
the eye,'' Dr. Ward said. ``The eye has a very small profile,
i.e., only 4% of the face and 0.27% of the body surface
area.''
He recounted that, through June 2006 at the Echelon III-
level combat support hospital in Iraq and Afghanistan, 1,086
ocular injuries occurred. Of these, 207 were primary eye
injuries. In the remaining 879 eye injuries, another organ
was the primary injury (usually the brain or a limb). The eye
injuries represented 13% of all patients who sustained
injuries. Many more ocular injuries occurred in the local
populace, he said.
The eyes are so vulnerable, he explained, because they are
preferentially exposed during combat, whereas the rest of the
body, except for the limbs, is protected with armor.
In addition, the types of munitions used have changed over
the past century. During the Civil War, if a soldier was hit
by a cannonball or minnie ball, he likely would die, and
ocular injuries were not an issue. Modern weapons, however,
generate numerous fragments when they explode. ``Modern hand
grenades, for example, fragment into about 2,000 individual
projectiles, and the eye is exceptionally vulnerable to small
fragments,'' Dr. Ward said.
[[Page H15265]]
Other lessons:
penetrating injuries are the most important type,
accounting for up to 50% of all ocular injuries, and
there is no delayed primary closure in ophthalmology; the
primary repair almost always is the definitive repair.
Finally, because of the nature of modern weaponry, ocular
injuries often are bilateral. More than half of all eye
injuries (57%) are caused by improvised explosive devices
(IEDs). The remaining injuries were caused by rocket-
propelled grenades, gunshot wounds, mortar and shrapnel, land
mines, and other causes.
Surprisingly, according to Dr. Ward, the incidence of
endophthalmitis was 0%, despite the fact that approximately
25% of ocular injuries are caused by intraocular foreign
bodies. Another factor that did not seem to affect the
incidence was that the foreign bodies were not removed for
weeks in many cases. Dr. Ward wondered whether the lack of
endophthalmitis may have been the result of the use of
topical and systemic third- or fourth-generation
fluoroquinolones.
The IEDs being used are increasingly more powerful, and Dr.
Ward showed that the injuries sustained with more recent ones
cause more damage.
Many more eye injuries do not result in evacuation to the
combat support hospital, he said. ``As of late 2005,
approximately 3,000 ocular injuries were reported as having
been treated and the soldiers returned to duty. There were a
total of 14,559 eye-related patient encounters by
optometrists in the theater of war. This [number] from the
Army is considered low as the result of inconsistent
reporting,'' Dr. Ward emphasized.
Armor to protect the eyes has been used over the centuries,
and it has been shown to be effective in eliminating war-
related problems. Sympathetic ophthalmia, Dr. Ward pointed
out, developed in about 0.3 percent of ocular injuries during
World War II. Only one documented case has been reported by
U.S. forces since the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom.
A statistic that emphasizes the importance of prevention is
that ocular injuries hold the number four slot for disability
behind amputation, traumatic brain injury, and post-traumatic
stress disorder.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Altmire). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) that the House
suspend the rules and agree to the resolution, H. Res. 855.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the resolution was agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________