David Thomas: “I will discuss a bill we have introduced in the last several weeks that I think is very important. It is called the…”

“I will discuss a bill we have introduced in the last several weeks that I think is very important. It is called the Medicare Equity for Veterans Act of 2002. It is designed to provide some fairness between Medicare and VA health care. There are a number of Members who have introduced the bill that will require Medicare services to reimburse the VA facilities for services rendered to certain Medicare-eligible veterans. These service men and women have paid into Social Security and Medicare as have the rest of us but are prohibited from utilizing the program when they are treated at a VA facility. It is only fair that they be allowed to use their Medicare coverage in the private sector or at a VA facility. An interesting thing has happened in the numbers with respect to veterans. The number of veterans enrolled in VA health care systems has more than doubled since 1996. Many VA facilities-eligible veterans, called priority 7, or category C veterans, being veterans who have served but their disabilities are not related to their military service and are able, financially, to care for themselves. This is where we have seen the greatest increase in the patient load. At the VA facility in Cheyenne, WY there were only 131 of these priority 7 veterans who were treated in fiscal year 1997. However, in fiscal year 2001, the same facility treated over 2,200 priority 7 veterans.”