Kay Bailey Hutchison: “I really appreciate the one-on-one experiences that Senator Edwards has mentioned because that really brings it home…”

“I really appreciate the one-on-one experiences that Senator Edwards has mentioned because that really brings it home, when that poor child started with a small rash and by the time she could get an appointment with a doctor the rash had covered her body. That is a terrible story, and I have heard stories like that as well. It is why I became interested in trying to fix a problem that was really hurting the military families and our ability to retain those military families. Just last week I toured Lackland Air Force Base. That is the basic training base for all Air Force personnel. A young drill instructor came up to me and said, ``Senator, keep up the good work and fix TRICARE.'' I told him that we would. Certainly, this is the answer to that drill instructor, because he clearly was having a hard time getting care for his family. In a letter that was written to me recently, a retired veteran explained the difficulties he was experiencing with TRICARE. But, he said, ``Senator, please don't concentrate your efforts on my individual problems--this is a systemic problem * * *'' It is a problem. We are losing access to care because of the nightmare associated with claims processing and the dismal rate of reimbursement for services.”