[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 83 (Monday, May 21, 2018)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E695]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                VETERANS CEMETERY BENEFIT CORRECTION ACT

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                               speech of

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 16, 2018

  Ms. McCOLLUM. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to S. 2372, the VA 
Mission Act. When our brave men and women take an oath to serve in the 
United States Armed Forces, we make them a solemn promise. Upon 
completion of their service, we assure them and their families of 
clearly defined benefits that are guaranteed. Legislation that impacts 
those benefits must be held to a critical and fundamental test. It must 
never jeopardize the future of those benefits that our men and women in 
uniform and their families sacrificed for. While S. 2372 has a number 
of outstanding provisions that I support, I am disappointed and 
troubled to say that it fails that fundamental test. The changes this 
legislation makes to the Veterans Choice Program jeopardizes the 
necessary future funding to support our veterans and guarantee their 
healthcare benefits. For that reason I cannot support S. 2372.
  S. 2372 combines the VA community care programs by merging the 
current Veterans Choice Program with other VA community care 
initiatives. While this consolidation may make it easier for veterans 
to receive private sector care through the VA, S. 2372 creates a 
significant future funding problem for the Veterans Choice Program and 
the VA as we know it today. Currently, Veterans Choice is designated as 
mandatory spending-guaranteed. S. 2372 shifts funding for Veterans 
Choice to discretionary spending, meaning that spending on Veterans 
Choice will compete for funds directly within the VA against other 
programs for healthcare, benefits, homelessness, infrastructure, and 
electronic health record technology modernization. It also means that 
this funding will compete against spending in other appropriations 
bills including education, law enforcement, the environment, and 
infrastructure.
  Additionally, the current budget caps do not support the level of VA 
spending that would be required to absorb Veterans Choice as a 
discretionary program. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office has 
projected that S. 2372 will cost the VA nearly $47 billion over the 
next five years. This means that in the short-term, S. 2372 could 
subject the VA to automatic sequestration cuts that would jeopardize 
every VA program. This goes beyond simple bad budgeting. By failing to 
ensure future funding for veterans' benefits programs, S. 2372 fails to 
uphold that most solemn promise we make to our women and men in uniform 
when they serve this nation.
  Mr. Speaker, passing this legislation and subjecting the VA and our 
veterans to the threat of future budget cuts is plain wrong. Ensuring 
the highest quality care for our veterans is the right thing to do and 
is not a partisan issue. In the coming weeks it is my hope that 
Democrats and Republicans will come together to ensure that this 
legislation is fixed and that the guaranteed benefits provided by the 
Department of Veterans Affairs are robustly funded for the future.

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