Committee approves funds to repair crumbling vets' hospitals

The House Veterans' Affairs Committee on Wednesday approved a revised version of the Veterans' Hospital Emergency Repair Act, authorizing appropriations of $250 million in fiscal year 2002 and $300 million in fiscal 2003 to cover "urgent" construction and repair needs for veterans' health facilities.

Action on the bill, H.R. 811, came by voice vote. Committee Chairman Christopher Smith, R-N.J., said he hoped to put the measure on the suspension calendar the week of March 26, since compromises had been worked out and the text of the original bill had been revised accordingly before it was presented to the full committee at Wednesday's markup session.

The Department of Veterans' Affairs and several major veterans' groups had told the committee at a March 14 hearing that there are substantial concerns about the safety, adequacy and privacy of many veterans' hospital and health facilities. Some of the facilities are crumbling and falling apart or are unable to deal with the needs of modern medicine, witnesses said.

"The infrastructure must be maintained," said Rep. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas