DAV Conference Provides Valuable Insight

DAV Conference Provides Valuable Insight



The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 15, 2008

The National Disabled American Veterans had delegates from every state, including Hawaii, in Washington, D.C. at its mid-winter legislative and benefits protection conference to impact its legislative agenda upon the 29-member House and Senate Veterans Committee March 2-5. John Houyou, on the state DAV line to become Florida DAV state commander in two years; and Deron Mikal, DAV Florida department service officer, represented Hernando County Disabled American Veterans Chapter 67 at State Road 50 representing the state of Florida DAV and its 14 delegates.

Teams from each state visited their House and Senate representative to press upon them issues in the DAV independent budget that stress line item priorities to create sufficient, timely, predictable and sustainable funding guaranteeing the long-term viability and vitality of the VA health care system as well as assuring fair, just and expeditious action for compensation to those more than 300,000 wounded warriors of Iraq and Afghanistan and the more than 311,000 of these young veterans with nervous-anxiety disorders and lingering illnesses specific to their service in those combat zones.

In addition, efforts to recognize that some 52 percent of those in uniform in Iraq and Afghanistan are represented from our National Guard and Reserve forces, our DAV urged more VA benefits for access to burial in national cemeteries, compensation for not only injuries but also diseases and long-term VA health care. Many from our home guards have been deployed two and three tours to Iraq or Afghanistan.

Naturally, our DAV teams urged mandatory funding for VA health care and discretionary funding for scores and hundreds of considerations that are necessary to keep abreast of demanding priorities in efforts our service officers can assert in claims for compensation and pension. Steven Lucas, director of the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital, assured that parking garages, new bed towers and expanding budget priorities have been approved for construction in the near future at the Tampa Medical Center, this in his remarks at the 10th anniversary celebration March 7 at the Brooksville Pinebrook VA outpatient clinic serving more than 26,000 visits in 2007 alone with expanding staff and services.

Budget priorities in the DAV independent budget recommended $50.2 billion for the Department of Veterans Affairs, some $4.6 billion over last year, $3 billion over the president's request. DAV recommended $41.2 billion for its medical care budget, $1.6 billion above the administration's request. The independent budget recommended $555 million for medical and prosthetic research over the administration's request of $442 million. Significant is the DAV recommendation for benefits processing to manage the projected increase in new claims, reduce the out-of-control claims backlog and improve the quality of processing claims asking $1.99 billion over the $1.70 billion for the General Operating Expenses account. Finally, the DAV recommended some $2.1 billion for FY 2009 over the $1.1 billion above the administration's request.

The VA's budget can be understood in simple terms by comparing Florida's budget of close to $50 billion annually. Understand that there are about 23.8 million living veterans, 7.5 percent of whom are women. There are about 37 million dependents (spouses and dependent children) of living veterans and survivors of deceased veterans. Together, they represent 20 percent of the U.S. population. Most veterans living today served during times of war. The Vietnam Era veteran, about 7.9 million, is the largest segment of the veteran population.

Our DAV teams came home encouraged that their efforts on Capitol Hill were met with positive responses by their representatives in both the House and the Senate. Hernando's DAV Chapter membership approved and sponsored its representatives for lodging, fuel and food totaling $700.

Deron Mikal

DAV service officer

Brooksville

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mar/15/ha-dav-conference-provides-valuable-insight/