[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Page 5148]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                VETERANS CHOICE PROGRAM IMPROVEMENT ACT

  Mr. SCHATZ. Mr. President, distance or delays should never be the 
reason that veterans don't get the healthcare they need, but that is 
exactly what is happening to veterans across the country. That is why 
the Veterans Choice Program was started--so that thousands of veterans 
and their families can get the care they deserve when and where they 
need it. Instead of traveling long distances or waiting months on a 
list, veterans can use the Choice Program to get the healthcare they 
need in their own communities.
  As the ranking member of the Military Construction and Veterans 
Affairs Appropriations Subcommittee, I want to give a little 
perspective on what would happen to our veterans if we don't pass the 
bipartisan Veterans Choice Program Improvement Act.
  Now, I know that the Choice Program is not funded through my 
subcommittee, but what we do today has an impact on the VA as a whole. 
If the Veterans Choice Program Improvement Act does not pass, the 
funding we appropriated to the VA will expire before it has all been 
used. It is not a small amount of funding. It is $1 billion, and the VA 
does not have $1 billion elsewhere in the budget to make up for this 
loss.
  In other words, if we don't pass this bill, it is going to be a 
disaster for veterans because all of the veterans who use this program 
for their healthcare are going to have to go back to the VA. That means 
the wait times that everybody was complaining about over the last 
couple of years will grow longer and longer and longer, and especially 
in rural America, where access to care is such a challenge, it will get 
worse and worse.
  To manage the increase in patient load, the VA will have to scramble 
to find funding that can take away from other VA programs, including 
hospital maintenance and medical equipment. That is what is going to 
happen if we don't pass this bill. This is an urgent matter for 
veterans across the country. Whether you are a participant in the VA 
Choice Program or you go to a traditional VA clinic or hospital, one 
way or another, this is going to impact you.
  Now, I know the Choice Program isn't perfect, but this temporary 
extension, coupled with the improvements in the system contained in the 
bill, gives Congress the time we need to develop a long-term, 
comprehensive solution. And while we are working on a solution, let's 
not punish veterans by cutting off $1 billion toward a program that is 
designed to improve services for people who have served our country.
  So I hope we can come together to find a way to pass this bill. Our 
veterans are counting on us.
  I yield the floor.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The bill clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. UDALL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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