Obama Drops Plan To Bill Disabled Veterans For Care

White House drops plan to bill disabled veterans for care
Disabled American Veterans home page
Article is HERE at Disabled American Veterans
WASHINGTON
The Disabled American Veterans today commended the Obama administration for backing down from a controversial proposal that would force private insurance companies to pay for the treatment of military veterans who suffered service-related disabilities and injuries.
The proposal that had been considered as part of the president’s budget would require private insurance companies to reimburse the Department of Veterans Affairs in such cases. But the idea was unanimously opposed by the DAV and other leaders of the veterans community who were invited to the White House Monday to discuss the plan directly with President Obama. Veterans were again united in opposing the plan in a follow-up meeting with White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel Wednesday.
The decision to drop the idea was announced by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi at a meeting with veterans groups after the meeting with Emanuel.

“The president was very open and candid when he met with veterans groups earlier this week, and we are pleased that he has heard our concerns and taken them to heart,” said Washington Headquarters Executive Director David W. Gorman. “Our message to the president was simple and direct: that our government must not abandon its moral responsibility to the men and women who have sacrificed so much for our freedoms.”

“Now that this ill-advised proposal is off the table, the DAV looks forward to working with the administration and Congress on crafting a good budget that will include sufficient appropriated dollars to cover veterans’ health care needs,” Gorman said. “We also urge the president to fulfill his pledge to include advance appropriations for veterans health care in his budget submission.”

A top priority for the DAV and other groups is passage of the recently introduced Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act. The measure would authorize Congress to approve VA medical care appropriations one year in advance of the start of each fiscal year. The legislation also would add needed transparency to the process by having the Government Accountability Office review and report on the VA budget request.

“This budget reform legislation would ensure sufficient, timely and predictable funding for veterans’ health care. It has the added benefit of making government more efficient, transparent and accountable. These are three key elements that President Obama, Congress and veterans all agree are needed in these challenging times. And if enacted in conjunction with the fiscal year 2010 budget, advance appropriations for 2011 would not add one dime to the 2010 deficit,” Gorman said.

The 1.2 million-member Disabled American Veterans, a non-profit organization founded in 1920 and chartered by the U.S. Congress in 1932, represents this nation’s disabled veterans. It is dedicated to a single purpose: building better lives for our nation’s disabled veterans and their families. For more information, visit the organization’s Web site, Disabled American Veterans

You have GOT to see this:
The Hill
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) was the first to announce Wednesday afternoon that the president won’t pursue such a proposal.

She told veterans that Obama decided to scrap the proposal “Based on the respect that President Obama has for our nation’s veterans and the principled concerns expressed by veterans’ leaders.”

For the second time in a week, representatives from prominent veterans organizations went to the White House on Wednesday to meet with the White House chief of staff to discuss VA budget issues.
Jim King, the national executive director for American Veterans (AMVETS), said that the meeting with Rahm Emanuel lasted all of 15 minutes and that the health insurance issue was the only topic discussed. The representatives of the 11 veterans organizations told Emanuel they were not willing to back down, and the chief of staff told them that he thought the issue was “off the table,” but that he needed to talk to Obama.
Gutting the proposal is the “right move to make, because it could have caused too many hardships for veterans,” King said.
White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said in a statement on Wednesday that the president wants to continue a “constructive partnership” with veterans and military organizations and “is grateful” to those organizations who have worked “in good faith” with him on the budget proposal.
On Monday the organizations’ representatives met with the president, but that meeting led to public outcry over what some veterans perceived as a move by the president to still consider the proposal despite opposition.
Veterans groups were enraged over the proposal, charging that it would discourage employers from hiring disabled veterans by raising the premiums insurance companies would charge. They also argue that the plan could jeopardize health insurance for entire families.
Veterans groups also argued that the VA is abdicating its responsibility to veterans.

“We are pleased that [the president] has heard our concerns and taken them to heart,” said Disabled American Veterans (DAV) executive director David Gorman. “Now that this ill-advised proposal is off the table, the DAV looks forward to working with the administration and Congress on crafting a good budget that will include sufficient appropriated dollars to cover veterans’ healthcare needs.”

Obama may not be off the hook with veterans yet. Another possible battle is brewing over the issue of advance appropriations for veterans’ medical care. Veterans see the Obama administration backtracking on an Obama campaign promise to fund medical care a year in advance, rather than just on an annual basis.

Wild Thing’s comment………..
This was too easy. There has to be something else going on. They will sneak this into some other legislation, or take some other devious action to get what they want pushed through. Damn Obama for even suggesting it! I still think we should keep an eye on this. Obama is notorious for slipping legislation in under the cover of darkness. Obama and his minions in Washington are like a Magician and his assistants. “Watch this hand while I do what I don’t want to see with the other”
Are Secret Service men considered part of the Armed Forces? Maybe they would think twice about taking a bullet if this passed.
I know they have to phrase the press releases that way but it sure sounds like the victim thanking the robber for not pistol whipping them. I suspect there is a draft version of that release that isn’t so complimentary.
It was a message. And an unmistakable, unsubtle one, at that. The message was…”this is what it ‘could’ be like if you don’t play nice with us”.
Obama never gives up on an idea….people who have dealt with him know this. He is sneaky and immoral and deceitful. He has no moral code. None!
We must NEVER forget what these slimey, unappreciative, traitorous bastards were ready to do to those who have fought, bled, and suffered for our nation, our liberty, and way of life…we must NEVER forget!
I will Never forget that Obama tried this and was serious about it…I will never forget how he feels about the troops and the nation.
I will Never forget how he has shown his contempt for our Veterans and our troops.
I will never forget that these despicable creatures tried to do this. The fact that the idea was able to get this far is reprehensible.
I will Never forget.

“Let it be known that he who wears the military order of the purple heart has given of his blood in the defense of his homeland and shall forever be revered by his countrymen.” —George Washington