I have talked to a lot of small businesses back in my home State of Maine. They, too, have a problem with accessing capital with the credit crunch.

Well, thank you very much for answering that question. And also thank you for your testimony today because this a very important issue when small businesses are the backbone of our economy.

That is a big concern that I have, plus the fact that there are a lot more drugs on the DoD formulary.

Thank you very much. It has been very helpful.

Thank you again for taking the time to answer these questions. The Committee looks forward to receiving your answers by November 12, 2009.

Thank you for the testimony of Belinda J. Finn, Assistant Inspector General for Audits and Investigations at the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Veterans' Affairs, Subcommittee on Health Oversight Hearing on 'Is the VA Meeting…

Thank you very much, Mr. Perriello, and also for your leadership on veterans issues. We really appreciate your tenacity in making sure we take care of our veterans.

I find that astonishing since this is a signature wound of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

I have heard complaints about FDA's progress for approving drugs and other issues that deal with conflicts of interest.

Do you have a sense of whether this is an issue in the private sector, and if not, do you think the VA can learn something from the private sector as it relates to monitoring their inventorying?

I believe VHA gets effective pricing, probably about 26 percent better on pharmaceuticals than other Federal customers.