WASHINGTON, DC -- The White House today unveiled details of a proposed $51.7 billion budget for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1.
"The budget reflects the administration's commitment to our nation's veterans," said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Anthony J. Principi. "It will allow us to preserve vital programs and services for veterans, and to begin reshaping VA for the challenges of the 21st century."
Principi said the administration's budget request for fiscal year 2002 is based upon three priorities -- improving the timeliness and accuracy of claims processing, ensuring that veterans receive high-quality health care, and maintaining veterans' cemeteries as national shrines. Health Care
The budget request would allocate $22.3 billion for VA's health-care system, a figure that includes nearly $900 million collected from third-party health insurance and co-payments from veterans. This is a $1 billion increase in estimated spending for health care compared to this year's budget.
With the new funding level, VA will be able to provide medical care to about 4 million patients (3.8 million of whom are veterans), including 41 million outpatient visits and 681,000 hospitalizations.
The budget projections assume that 65,000 of the 240,000 military retirees over the age of 64 who are currently enrolled in VA's health care system will switch to the recently expanded TriCare program offered by the Department of Defense.
Among the items in the health care budget are an extra $196 million for long-term care and an additional $164 million to improve patient access. VA's goal is for patients to receive appointments for primary care and non-urgent care in 30 days, while being seen within 20 minutes of a scheduled appointment.
A requested $360 million - $10 million above this year's budget - would support 3,163 VA employees engaged in a wide range of research projects, especially at research centers specializing in Gulf War illnesses, diabetes, Parkinson's disease, spinal cord injury, prostate cancer, depression, environmental hazards and womens issues. Financial Payments
The administration's budget requests $28.3 billion for compensation, pension and other VA-administered entitlement programs. This includes an estimated cost-of-living adjustment of 2.5 percent in compensation and pension programs that would take effect Dec. 1, 2001. The actual amount will be determined by changes in the Consumer Price Index.
Supporting those programs would be 12,714 full-time employees (FTE), an increase of 890 over this year's level. The extra staffing will allow VA to handle the projected workload triggered by several key pieces of legislation last year.
One law strengthens the help that VA can provide to assist veterans as they apply for disability compensation and pensions. The new "duty to assist" rules will require VA to review 98,000 cases that were previously denied, plus another 244,000 cases that were pending when the legislation passed.
A VA decision in January to declare that diabetes in Vietnam veterans is officially regarded as "service connected" is also causing a dramatic increase in workload. About 105,000 applications for disability compensation are expected in FY 2002 under the new rules on diabetes.
Because of the increase in workload, VA predicts an increase in the time needed to process these applications. In FY 2002, the average claim is projected to take 273 days to handle, compared to 202 days this year. However, VA has begun immediate efforts to stem the worsening situation in the claims processing backlog. National Cemeteries
The budget requests $121 million, or $12 million more than the current level, for VA's national cemeteries. It doubles to $10 million the spending dedicated to upgrade the cemeteries to a level befitting their status as national shrines. Funds will be used to renovate gravesites and to clean, raise and realign headstones and markers.
The request includes funding for land acquisitions for new cemeteries in the Detroit, Pittsburgh and Sacramento areas; development of a new cemetery in Atlanta; design of a new cemetery in Miami; and columbaria expansion and improvements at the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne, Mass., and the Tahoma National Cemetery in Kent, Wash. Other Programs
VA is replacing its accounting and logistics computer systems with "coreFLS," or "core financial and logistics system," which replaces other computerized and manual systems. It will be supported by funds from other VA offices.
A VA-wide evaluation of all information technology (IT) systems is underway, designed to ensure that critical computerized systems can communicate within VA and with other federal agencies.
A total of $441 million is requested for VA construction programs. This request provides funding for the cemetery projects mentioned above, and an emergency electrical project at Miami. Also, $115 million is requested to begin implementing VA's Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) recommendations.
