- Hall Supports President's Major Veterans Announcements, Calls them Long Overdue -
- Hall Has Been Pushing Seamless Electronic Record Transition from DoD to VA -
- Hall is original co-sponsor of bill in Congress to mandate advanced funding for VA healthcare -
Washington, DC - U.S. Rep. John Hall (D-Dover), Chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Subcommittee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs, today applauded the President's support of two key veterans programs that Hall has been pushing in Congress.
President Obama today announced support for advanced funding of veterans medical care and that the Department of Defense (DoD) and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) have taken the first step in creating a Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic record. The President will ask that both Departments work together to define and build a system that will ultimately contain administrative and medical information from the day an individual enters military service throughout his or her military career, and on to when they retire from active duty and become a veteran.
"This is a historical day and a monumental step forward for veterans and the VA," stated Congressman Hall. "President Obama is displaying an unwavering support of our nation's veterans by supporting advanced funding for VA healthcare and a seamless transition from active duty to veteran status."
Two of the largest impediments that face the VA, and the veterans that it serves, is the handoff from the DoD as well as untimely and unreliable budgets. Through the implementation of the Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record Initiative, DOD and VA medical and administrative records will be electronic and interoperable.
"For years, veterans have trudged through an archaic and bureaucratic system where their service and medical records have been lost and disregarded," stated Hall. "The gap between the transition from active duty to veteran status has allowed veterans to fall through the cracks. Now, with this Joint Virtual Lifetime Electronic Record, a soldier's information will be retained from the moment he or she enlists and stay with them for as long as they need. This marks a new era of cooperation between VA and DoD, and for the treatment of America's veterans."
Historically, funding for the VA has been late in reaching its many critical programs. This is why Congressman Hall is an original cosponsor of H.R. 1016, the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act of 2009, a bill which requires that the Department of Veterans Affairs be funded one year in advance.
"The budget for VA has been passed late for nineteen of the last twenty years," said Hall. "This is absolutely deplorable and forces the VA to ration healthcare to veterans. By announcing his support for advance VA funding, the President is displaying his commitment to providing quality care for our veterans and will no longer allow it to be compromised by budget delays."
Hall has also been an avid supporter of a seamless transition from DoD to VA and of advanced appropriations.
"I applaud the President for taking this historic step forward," said Hall. "Both of these initiatives are long overdue, and will now pave a new way forward to providing veterans with the treatment and service that they have earned with their service."
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