"Charlie Wolf" <charlie_wolf@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:5clbt21k0t5sbc98hblmrrmm5qb9dvfimm@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> On Thu, 15 Feb 2007 00:50:27 -0500, "Tom" <tomtk3@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote:
>
> The Bush Administration has increased the VA budget by more than 38%
> in 7 years.
>
> **** off Tom.
> Regards,
http://veterans.house.gov/democratic/budget/snapshot6-29-05.htm
Snapshot of How VA Budget Shortfall is Hurting Veterans'
Access to Safe and Timely Care across the Nation
The VA claims that by ****fting funds dedicated to replace old equipment
and
conduct maintenance the department can address its budget shortfall and
meet
veterans' demand for timely, high-quality health care. The following
snapshots from across the nation reflect the stark reality of the budget
shortfall on veterans' access to safe, high quality care.
a.. The 3 surgical operating rooms at the White River Junction VAMC in
Vermont had to be closed on June 27 because the heating, ventilation, and
air conditioning system was broken and had not been repaired due to the
siphoning of maintenance funds to cover the budget shortfall.
a.. The VAMC in San Antonio could not provide a paraplegic veteran with
a
special machine to help clean a chronic wound because the facility did not
have the equipment dollars.
a.. The VAMC in Lebanon, Pennsylvania, closed its Geriatric Evaluation
and
Management Unit which does extensive case management to help elderly
veterans increase their functioning and remain at home.
a.. The Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs) needed to meet
veterans'
increased demand for care in the North Florida/South Georgia VA Healthcare
System have been delayed due to fiscal constraints. The Gainesville
facility has made progress in reducing its wait lists, but as of April
there
were nearly 700 service-connected veterans waiting for more than 30 days
for
an appointment.
a.. VA Medical Centers in VISN 16, which includes Arkansas, Oklahoma,
Mississippi and Louisiana and part of Texas, have stopped scheduling
appointments for many veterans who are eligible for care, pending
available
resources.
a.. Even though the VA Palo Alto, California, Health Care System has
used
$3 million in capital funds for operating needs, as of March 1 more than
1,000 new patients had to wait more than 30 days for a primary care
appointment. A third of these new patients had to wait more than 3
months.
More than 5,000 patients had to wait more than 30 days for a specialty
care
appointment. Roughly 1,400 had to wait more than 3 months.
a.. The replacement of the fire alarm system at the Loma Linda VAMC in
California won't be done this year because the facility is using most of
its
capital funds to cover operating expenses.
a.. The White River Junction VAMC in Vermont struggling with a $525,000
shortfall in its prosthetics budget.
Because the FY 2005 budget is inadequate, the facility has not been
allowed
to hire 3 additional mental health care staff and 3 additional Registered
Nurses for the ICU. Nurses in the ICU have been forced to work double
****fts, which this Committee has found to be an unsafe patient practice.
a.. Even though the San Diego VAMC expects to exceed its goal in medical
care cost collections, it will divert $3.5 million of non-recurring
maintenance funds to partially cover operating expenses, and has delayed
filling 131 vacant positions for 3 months. The facility has a waiting
list
for patients of 750 veterans.
a.. Because the Iowa City VAMC had to ****ft maintenance funds and
equipment funds to cover a FY 2004 million shortfall of $3.2 million in
medical care expenses in FY 2004, the facility is facing severe
infrastructure problems and a larger shortfall of $6.8 million in FY 2005
that puts patient care and safety at risk. The facility wanted to spend
$950,000 in non-recurring maintenance funds last year to prevent a
mechanical failure of the electrical switcher, which would close the
facility, but was required to use those funds to cover a budget shortfall
in
medical care last year. As a result in FY 2005, the VA must divert $1.5
million of medical care funds to maintain the key electrical switchgear
for
the hospital.
Recently, a motor failed on a hospital bed, which the VA planned to
replace
but couldn't because of the shortfall, causing a fire with the patient on
the bed. Fortunately the patient was able to get out of the bed safely,
but
the facility was forced to expend $700,000 of medical care dollars to
replace all the beds, which thanks to the diligence of VA staff lasted 7
years beyond their life expectancy. The facility could not use capital
funds to replace the very old beds because the money had already been
siphoned off to cover medical care.
To bring the shortfall down to $6.2 million the facility has delayed
hiring
staff for 4 months. The deliberate short staffing of nurses on the
psychiatric ward - as a means to correct the budget shortfall -- has
forced
the VA to cut the beds available for treatment in half.
a.. As a result of cost cutting measures to make up for the shortfall in
FY 2005, the ****tland, Oregon, VAMC is delaying all non-emergent surgery
by
at least six months. For example, veterans in need of knee replacement
surgery won't be treated because of the budget shortfall.
Since FY 2002, the ****tland VAMC has had to use its equipment and
non-recurring maintenance funds to cover medical care expenses. For FY
2005
the facility needed $13 million for medical and clinical equipment but
only
received $2 million.
The facility is reducing staff as a cost-cutting measure and is now short
at
least 150 hospital staff, including nurses, physicians, and social
workers.
As a result of budget cuts for staffing, the VA has cut the number of
medical beds available to care for veterans.
Veterans in need of outpatient psychiatric treatment at the ****tland
facility are on a waiting list because of the budget shortfall.
a.. The Biloxi, Mississippi, VAMC has diverted maintenance dollars to
meet
operating expenses for the past two years but the facility will not be
able
to balance its budget without reducing staffing levels at a time when the
Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System has approximately 100 new veterans
seeking enrollment each week.
a.. Fifty percent of all the veterans receiving home health care through
the San Antonio VAMC will now have to fend for themselves. This
cost-cutting measure means that some 250 veterans, including those with
spinal cord injuries, will no longer be provided this care.
a.. The VA Connecticut Healthcare System is facing a major budgetary
challenge of sending veterans to non-VA facilities for hospitalizations
because the VA has a shortage of beds to care for veterans and staff.
a.. Due to the budget shortfall, the VA facility in Bay Pines, Florida,
has been forced to put veterans who have a service-connected illness or
disability rating of less than 50% on a waiting list for primary care
appointments. As of late April, some 7,000 veterans will be waiting
longer
than 30 days for a primary care appointment.
Prepared by the Democratic staff of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee
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