BILL ANALYSIS
AJR 71
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AJR 71 (Wolk)
As Amended May 5, 2004
Majority vote
VETERANS AFFAIRS 10-0
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|Ayes:|Parra, Dutton, Kehoe, | | |
| |Matthews, Mountjoy, | | |
| |Nakano, Runner, Salinas, | | |
| |Wiggins, Wyland | | |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Urges the federal government to guarantee funding for
veterans health care. Specifically, this bill :
1)Makes a series of findings regarding federal health care
programs for veterans.
2)Urges Congress and the President to provide a guaranteed level
of funding for veterans health care.
3)Urges the United States (U.S.) Department of Veterans Affairs
(DVA) to restore the benefits to all priority groups of
veterans.
4)Urges DVA to seek out veterans eligible for benefits and
informed them and their families of the programs and benefits
available.
EXISTING LAW provides for federally funded health care benefits
for veterans of the U.S. armed forces. Law and regulations
establish eligibility criteria and priority categories for
veterans based on income and on the cause and severity of the
veterans injury or illness. DVA has established eight levels of
priority for receipt of DVA health services. Currently,
veterans in Priority Group 8 are not eligible for DVA health
care benefits.
FISCAL EFFECT : None
COMMENTS : DVA provides health care to veterans based upon
various eligibility criteria and the amount of funding provided
by Congress. As rising health care costs have caused more
AJR 71
Page 2
veterans to seek DVA health care, funding limits have forced DVA
to ration care for veterans. Rationing has taken the form of an
eight-level priority group system, patient co-pays and a
comprehensive assessment of DVA health facilities.
DVA is not currently providing care to veterans in Priority
Group 8, the lowest group. Priority Group 8 includes veterans
". . . who agree to pay specified copayments with income and/or
net worth above the VA Means Test threshold and the HUD
geographic index."
Critics argue that veterans earned, through their service to the
nation, the health care they were implicitly or explicitly
promised. Congress, therefore, should fully fund the health
care costs of veterans. DVA asserts that it is providing
quality health care to those veterans who need it within the
constraints of the funding made available by Congress.
Analysis Prepared by : Burt McChesney / V.A. / (916) 319-3550
FN: 0005173