Panel votes to allow veterans to seek care closer to home

By Elaine S. Povich CongressDaily July 17, 2008

A pilot program approved by the House Veterans Affairs Committee on Wednesday may make it easier for veterans who live far away from the nearest hospital to receive the care they need.

The bill would allow some veterans who live more than 60 miles away from a VA hospital to receive services at a local health facility.

"I'm glad to see we are inching our way forward for our veterans from rural areas," said Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Kan.

Several members of the committee pointed out the difficulty rural veterans have in reaching health care, whether they live on farms or in other remote areas.

The bill also provides an exception to the mileage rule, allowing veterans to access care in other facilities if it is determined that travel would be a hardship or that the travel is "not in the best interests of the veteran." That determination would be made by the VA.

The bill is on track to reach the House floor before the August recess.

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  • I have to second both JTF AND Fred. While I note that only the Pachyderms were polled, and Rep. Moran got in his sound bite, this didn’t occur 5 years ago when it should have. After the fiasco of the Shrub administration (both fiscally and medically), I must give most of the credit to the Blue Dogs and am thankful they are beginning to make some head way in the recovery of the greatness of our nation. Tip off Posted July 24, 2008 8:38 AM
  • While I agree that Congress has not maintained the free healthcare for life promise and we do owe the miliraty a lot, $460/year is peanuts. Try paying $400/month and still have all the co-pays and deductibles. $460/year is a bargain! JTF Posted July 18, 2008 12:41 PM
  • This is not the issue. The issue is that Congress promised military members that if we served 20 years or more, we'd get free healthcare for life. THEY LIED We now pay $460.00 a year for TriCare Prime and that comes with co-pays. THIS IS NOR FREE. We need to start puting up the billboards again so that America knows about this lie and Congress fixes this. Fred Mills Posted July 18, 2008 8:36 AM
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