TESTIMONY OF
VINCENT B.
NISKI, Senior Master Sergeant, USAF (Ret)
NATIONAL
PRESIDENT
OF
THE RETIRED
ENLISTED ASSOCIATION
BEFORE THE
SENATE
VETERANS AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
AND
HOUSE VETERANS
AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
ON
MARCH 1, 2001
Biography
of Vincent B. Niski, Senior Master Sergeant, USAF (Ret)
National
President
The
Retired Enlisted Association
National
President Vincent B. Niski enlisted in the U.S. Air Force on July 5, 1951. His military experience found him in a host
of foreign locations, including time spent in Vietnam. He retired from the Air Force on April 1,
1972.
Mr.
Niski joined TREA in 1984 and has been a member of various committees and the
Board of Directors of TREA Chapter 1.
Mr. Niski served as TREA’s Sergeant-at-Arms for many national
conventions. He has served on various
national committees and served as National Director, National 1st
Vice President before being elected TREA’s National President in September
2000.
President
Niski and his wife, Bev, reside in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
DISCLOSURE
OF FEDERAL GRANTS OR CONTRACTS
The Retired Enlisted Association does not currently receive, has not received during the current fiscal year or either of the two previous years any federal money for grants or contracts. All of the Association’s activities and services are accomplished completely free of any federal funding.
Chairman Specter, Chairman Smith, Ranking Member
Rockefeller, Ranking Member Evans, distinguished members of the House and
Senate Veterans Affairs Committees, on behalf of the 100,000 members and
auxiliary of The Retired Enlisted Association (TREA) and the over 1 million
enlisted retirees of the United States Armed Forces, I would like to express
our appreciation for having the opportunity to come before you today and
provide our view as to what benefit structure we believe will best benefit
current and future enlisted retirees, all veterans and their survivors.
VETERANS HEALTH
ADMINISTRATION
MEDICARE
SUBVENTION
The time has come to allow the Department of
Veterans Affairs to bill Medicare when the VA treats Medicare patients. Commonly referred to as Medicare Subvention,
this particular program can accomplish two goals: one, the VA would benefit by
billing Medicare for care it may have to provide to veterans regardless of
whether or not the VA would be compensated.
Two, it greatly improves veterans’ access to health care. Presently, many older veterans are severely
limited in their health care options.
TREA realizes that the Medicare Subvention program falls under the
jurisdiction of the Senate Finance Committee and House Ways and Means
Committee; however, we would certainly appreciate the support of all the
members of the Veterans Affairs Committees in this process. This issue has gone on long enough. In the past, we have had support in the
House, but not in the Senate, and vice versa.
While political posturing continues, veterans suffer without access to
quality health care. We have been
informed that the Senate is ready to act on legislation, therefore, to those
members of the House of Representatives, I ask you today to urge your
colleagues on the Health Subcommittee of the Ways and Means Committee to
finally address this issue.
HEALTH CARE
FACILITIES
There may be additional funding for veterans’ health
care already within the VA’s annual appropriation. Presently, the VA is working to redefine its facilities in the
wake of technological enhancements in the health care arena. The continually increasing number of
Community Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOC) has greatly increased veteran’s
access to health care. These new, or
renovated, facilities are helping veterans by “going to the veterans” as
opposed to veterans having to travel sometimes hundreds of miles to the nearest
VA Medical Center. The General Accounting Office reported in December 1995 that
11% of veterans live within 5 miles of a VA hospital and 17% of veterans live
within 5 miles of an outpatient clinic.
Further studies show that for every 1,000 veterans who live within 5
miles of a hospital, 34 use that facility for acute or surgical care, while for
every 1,000 veterans within 5 miles of an outpatient clinic, 131 use that
facility (VA Health Care, How Distance
From VA Facilities Affects Veterans’ Use of VA Services). We have a wonderful opportunity to use
modern science to expand the number of veterans who can easily, and therefore
are more likely, to receive care from the VA.
The implementation of these clinics is a positive development in
achieving the VA’s mission. I would
urge this committee to authorize full funding for the VA’s request for
outpatient clinics this year and in future years. While the CBOC program is an example of a successful facilities
development program being carried out by the Department of Veterans Affairs,
there are other concerns relating to the facilities run by the VA. The GAO reports that the VA is spending $1
million a day on unneeded facilities (General
Accounting Office, VA Health Care, Challenges Facing VA in Developing an Asset
Realignment Process). This, simply,
means less money can be directed to veterans’ health care. The time has come to analyze the
infrastructure that was created in the post-World War II era as well as the
demographics as to where our veterans are living today. Today, the VA directs funding to specific
regions based on the number of patients being treated in that region. However, this does not address the number of
unused hospital beds or empty buildings currently being maintained by the
VA. This step must be taken so some of
the $365 million being spent annually can be directed towards health care, not
facilities maintenance. Further, the
General Accounting Office (GAO) reports that by closing on a VA hospital in an
area with several facilities, the VA can redirect $200 million over ten years
from facilities to health care while still providing veterans in that region
with quality health care (GAO, VA Health
Care, Closing a Chicago Hospital Would Save Millions and Enhance Access to
Services).
ELIGIBILITY
REFORM
2001 is the third year in a row in
which the Secretary of Veterans Affairs has announced that all veterans who
desire can be enrolled in the VA for health care. This is significant because it means that a large number of
non-service connected veterans whose income is above the means test, are now
guaranteed health care through the VA.
This has dramatically increased the number of potential patients at VA
facilities. The unfortunate consequence of this decision is that
service-connected disabled veterans are having difficulty in receiving health
care due to lack of space. While the
category system may exist in name, it does not in practice. We have been greatly disturbed by calls we
have received from disabled veterans, rated above 50%, placing them in Category
1, being told that there were no primary care teams to enroll them into because
Category 7 veterans had flooded the system.
While TREA appreciates the efforts
of Congress for enacting eligibility reform, and the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs for finding the necessary funding to allow Category 7 veterans to
enroll, we are concerned that this increase in customers has shifted the focus
away from disabled veterans seeking care for their service connected disabilities.
Finally, we ask the committee to authorize military retirees be moved to a
category after all disabled veterans.
Retired veterans have earned it and The American Legion has passed a
resolution at their convention to agree with TREA.
CHAMPVA
The survivors of veterans who died
from a service-connected disability often fight the same struggle as military
retirees and their survivors. Once they
reach they age of 65 their VA health care benefit ceases and they are forced
onto Medicare. As an organization
representing military retirees, we are often engaged in the struggle to provide
Medicare-eligible military retirees with greater access to health care. We believe that the time has come to extend
that fight to include CHAMPVA beneficiaries who lost their benefit as well.
Now, we would like to work with
Congress to ensure that those survivors formerly covered by CHAMPVA are
provided with additional health care options when they reach age 65.
VETERANS BENEFIT
ADMINISTRATION
EDUCATION
BENEFITS
For more then 50 years, veterans of the Armed Forces
of the United States have been rewarded for their honorable service with
education opportunities. From World War
II through today, an educational benefit has existed which was designed to make
me good soldiers even better citizens.
Unfortunately, the benefit provided to members of the services today
does not adequately meet their educational needs. Based on the recommendations of the Commission on Servicemembers
and Veterans Transition Assistance, along with the obvious data reflecting the
increase in college tuition and fees, the time has come to enhance the
Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB).
Today, the MGIB is paying just over half of the
average tuition and fees of a public, four-year college education for a
non-resident student. Mr. Chairman, we
have two choices, either increase the benefit, or tell new recruits that the
MGIB pays for half of their education.
We must remain vigilant in our efforts and realize the education system
in this country has changed greatly over the years. College tuition increases have nearly always doubled inflation
over the past few years. That has made
the pursuing of a college degree much more difficult for separating
servicemembers as the value of the MGIB has steadily decreased. Further, education itself has changed. No longer is a four-year degree the only
form of higher education. Often,
separating servicemembers may take a course over six months, which costs
thousands of dollars. This issue needs
to be addressed within the context of any GI Bill improvement for the 21st
Century.
TREA is proud to have joined with an unprecedented
organization of representatives from higher education and the veterans’
community to push for a minimum standard of what the educational benefit must
be. That minimum, to be determined
annually, will be based on the average cost of a four-year degree at a public
college for a non-resident student. At
a minimum, this is what we owe our veterans for this will provide them with the
education they were promised.
CLAIMS
PROCESSING
Of all the difficulties facing veterans in their
dealings with the Department of Veterans Affairs, perhaps none is more
demoralizing then the current claims process. Veterans with service connected
disabilities should not be discouraged from applying for their earned
entitlement to disability compensation because they know that the system will
be working against them. TREA is
pleased that the Department of Veterans Affairs is in the process of hiring
more claims adjudicators, adding nearly 1,000 over the past two years. However, we remain skeptical that these
additions will have enough of an impact to truly correct this problem. Perhaps the most significant difficulty
facing the Veterans Benefit Administration (VBA) is the fact that in Fiscal
Year 1998 VBA tested its new accuracy review system. This system found an accuracy rate of only 64% for VA Regional
Offices’ initial decisions (General
Accounting Office, Veterans’ Benefit Claims, Further Improvements Needed in
Claims-Processing Accuracy). This
despite the fact that until recently, VBA claimed Regional Offices had a 95%
accuracy rate.
Further, the length of time required to get a
response from the VA is unacceptable.
The most recent figures on claims processing show that the existing
backlog makes the stated goal of 74 days for a rating-related action
unlikely. Further, the increasing
complexity, both medically and legally, will continue to have a significant impact
on timeliness. The Board of Veterans
Appeals currently renders a decision within 120 days of receiving an
appeal. However, the total elapsed
processing time for an appeal in the first quarter of FY 99 was 968 days, and
this is an improvement from FY 98! A
time frame of nearly two and one-half years is not satisfactory. TREA is pleased the VA is working to correct
this delay but the fact remains that it still exists. Outside the Department of Veterans Affairs Headquarters is a
quote from President Lincoln, which reads, “To care for him who shall have
borne the battle and his widow and his orphan.” In reality, many who have borne the battle do not receive what
they earned for fighting in that battle.
The process of filing a claim needs to be reviewed to ensure that
veterans who deserve compensation receive it in a timely and efficient manner.
DISABILITY
COMPENSATION
A cause of great concern for
veterans receiving disability compensation is the fact that Congress must act
annually to approve a Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) to those receiving
disability compensation as well as survivors receiving dependency
indemnification compensation (DIC). Why
does Congress address this issue annually?
Can this COLA not be an automatic adjustment, such as the COLA given to
federal retirees, military retirees, military retiree survivors and Social
Security recipients? It would appear
that we are inviting a mishap by not ensuring that this adjustment happens in
the same format as other federal pensions.
Another issue of great concern to military retired
veterans is the fact that they must offset their retirement pays dollar for
dollar to the amount of VA disability they receive. This issue, commonly called Concurrent Receipt, places military
retirees in a class of their own when it comes to receiving VA disability. Unfortunately, this is a class that is
punished for twenty or more years of military service, not rewarded for
it. No other veteran, whether a federal
employee or private sector employee, has their retirement offset if they
receive VA disability. According to the
Department of Defense, there are presently over 400,000 retired enlisted
members of the uniformed services who are forced to offset their
retirement. Often, these disabled
veterans are unable to work due to conditions, which are connected, to the
military service. The reward that these
veterans receive is a deduction in their retirement. It is imperative that something be done to assist these veterans’
live better lives. The support of the
members of this committee would be greatly appreciated in our efforts to gain
these retirees some sort of relief.
It is also important to remember that the payment
received from the Department of Veterans Affairs is not retired pay, but
compensation for a disability sustained in service to our country. Unfortunately, there are those who would
like to strip this service-connected compensation from retirees. TREA is concerned with the frequent
garnishment of VA disability compensation in cases of divorce. Marriages ending in divorce have become a
common occurrence in our society, including the military community. In order to protect the spouses of members
of the Armed Forces, Congress, in 1982, passed the Uniformed Services Former
Spouse Protection Act, Public Law 97-252; 10 USC 1408. Unfortunately, this legislation, which
Congress assumed would help many, has only damaged the lives of retirees,
particularly those receiving disability.
The USFSPA gives judges issuing the divorce decree the right to award up
to 50% of a retirees pay to a former spouse as part of the settlement. However, judges have failed to recognize the
fact that VA disability compensation is not retirement pay. Disability compensation should not be
garnished to pay court-ordered obligations.
Now, military retirees who are disabled, the more severely disabled the
worse situation, are forced to surrender up to all of their already reduced
retirement pay and a portion of their disability pension. This in spite of the fact that the USFSPA is
supposed to protect disability pay from being garnished and that the United
States Supreme Court reinforced this fact in its ruling in Mansel vs. Mansel in
May, 1989.
We recognize the fact that the issue of the Former
Spouse Protection Act falls under the jurisdiction of your colleagues on the
Armed Services Committee. However, it
is imperative of this Committee to pass legislation, which will strengthen the
protections of VA disability compensation because it is obvious that they are
being ignored today.
GULF WAR
ILLNESS
Health care and disability compensation for veterans
of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm are another area of concern for
TREA. The concept of service-connected
disability is relatively simple. If you
leave the military with an illness you did not have when you entered, you are
no longer a “whole person” as defined by the VA and are, therefore, entitled to
a disability rating and proportionate compensation. Many veterans of the
Persian Gulf returned with symptoms of no particular illnesses or injury. In response, Congress passed legislation
allowing the VA to compensate these veterans with undiagnosed illnesses. Currently, the VA has extended the
eligibility period to
December
31, 2001 for compensation for undiagnosed illnesses in Gulf War veterans. We are certainly pleased that the VA has
done this. We are also pleased that the
GAO reported in 1998 that the VA has taken a number of steps to improve its
processing of Persian Gulf claims (General
Accounting Office, Veterans’ Benefits, Improvements Made to Persian Gulf Claims
Processing). However, the work is
not finished. Let us not repeat the
mistakes that were made over the issue of Agent Orange twenty years ago, where
many died while studies were trying to determine the cause of their
illness. We may never know what
happened to our men and women who served in the Gulf. But we do know that they are sick and in need of our help. I would like to thank the many members of Congress,
from both sides of the aisle, who have introduced legislation calling for
increased research, expansion of the list of illnesses, which are service
connected, and other issues relating to Persian Gulf illness. I sincerely hope these veterans will not be
forgotten as time goes by and memories of our nation’s efforts in 1990 - 1991
become part of history.
VOCATIONAL
REHABILITATION
As veterans, we are pleased and grateful that our
nation has created a system of programs to help us readjust to civilian life
and recover from injuries sustained while in service to this nation. We urge that these programs be guaranteed
the necessary funding to make them effective.
Veterans often need assistance finding jobs or earning disability
compensation. However, if the system is
not serving those it was designed to help, and then the system is broken. The GAO reports that only 8% of veterans
participating in the vocational rehabilitation program are rehabilitated. This in comparison to 37% rehabilitated by
the Department of Education in their state vocational rehabilitation
program. Further 41% dropped out of the
VA’s rehabilitation program while 32% dropped out of the Department of
Education’s (General Accounting Office,
Vocational Rehabilitation, VA Continues to Place Few Disabled Veterans in Jobs). Why does this discrepancy exist? If veterans are dropping out, or not
displaying confidence in programs, then the programs are broken. If veterans with disabilities are being told
there is “no space” for them at the hospital, the system is broken.
NATIONAL CEMETERY SYSTEM and
ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY
ARLINGTON
ELIGIBILITY
It is our hope that the Senate will address another
important issue, which the House addressed during the last session. Former Chairman Stump’s Arlington Burial
Eligibility Act is a piece of legislation important to all veterans, not only
military retirees. I would like to
thank the members of the House of Representatives for their overwhelming
support of this legislation. The controversies
of 1998 concerning our nation’s most hallowed resting place are sad, and must
never be allowed to happen again. The
politicization of Arlington National Cemetery must never happen again.
NEW NATIONAL
CEMETERIES
I would also
like to urge Congressional support for the continued expansion of the VA
Cemetery system. Some may look upon the
creation of National Cemeteries as an unnecessary expense. However, as veterans, we share a common bond
with others who served with us in unfriendly places far away from home. As the reality of our own mortality, and
that of the generation of Americans who fought and won World War II becomes
more prevalent, the need for expansion of cemeteries becomes more
pressing. The General Accounting Office
(GAO) reports that the years 2005 - 2010 will see the peak in veteran’s
interments in national cemeteries. The
total burials will be 40% higher than in 1995, this despite the fact that half
of all national cemeteries will not be able to accommodate casket interments at
new grave sites (General Accounting
Office Report, National Cemetery System, Opportunities to Expand Cemeteries’
Capacities). Now is the time to act
to ensure that those veterans who wish to rest alongside their comrades in arms
should not have to worry about whether or not there will be space in the
cemetery for them.
KEEPING TRACK OF OUR
NATION’S VETERANS
One lesson that has been learned
through our experiences with Gulf War Illness is the ability to track down
veterans after they separate from the military. As we enter a new century this nation still does not have an
accurate database of all its veterans.
The VA does not necessarily have a copy of the discharge papers (DD-214)
for veterans who separated before 1974.
That means there are, potentially, millions of veterans from World War
I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam who are not recorded in the VA’s
database. Further, once a veteran moves
after they separate, their address is no longer accurate. The 21st Century is the
present. It is time we use the
technology we have developed in order to track our veterans throughout their
lives. By doing so, the VA will better
understand there needs and have the ability to inform veterans of their
entitlements in a timely and efficient manner.
This issue needs to be addressed by
your colleagues on the Commerce/State/Justice Appropriation Subcommittee. However, the members of this Committee can,
no doubt, impress upon the members of the appropriations subcommittee how
important it is that we have the ability to get in contact with our veterans
when necessary.
CONCLUSION
Mr. Chairman, I recognize the fact
that I addressed some issues, which fall outside the jurisdiction of the
Veterans Affairs Committee, however many of you have other committee
assignments that can influence passage of other legislation.
Chairman Specter, Chairman Smith,
Ranking Member Rockefeller, Ranking Member Evans, honorable Committee members,
thank you for the opportunity to come before you today. It is truly an honor and a privilege. Today I have presented an outline of areas
where TREA believes progress can be made in helping our nation’s veterans. We recognize the constraints under which you
must determine which program is funded and which is not. However, we ask you to remember the
sacrifice that many of you, as veterans, made for your country and to all that
is possible to ensure that our veterans have the finest benefits afforded to
them.
Again, thank you for your time. I would be pleased to answer any questions
at this time.