Bob Filner

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Other Members from the State of Iowa want to express support for the Iowa family that helped inspire this legislation. I would yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Iowa (Mr. Braley). (Mr. BRALEY of Iowa asked and was given permission to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2408) to designate the Department of Veterans Affairs outpatient clinic in Green Bay, Wisconsin, as the ``Milo C. Huempfner Department of Veterans Affairs Outpatient Clinic''.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I again ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2408.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I'm going to allow the author of the legislation, Mr. Kingston, to go into the career of our good friend Charlie Norwood. I just want to say that we all loved him as a Member. I didn't know he had this incredible career in the United States Army in the dental corps, and I will let you go through that, but it was a very incredible story of his devotion to our Nation. We saw his heart and soul here. He always wanted to take care of veterans, and I'm pleased to support your motion to name the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Augusta, Georgia, as the Charlie Norwood Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I would yield such time as he may consume to our Vietnam aviator, Mr. Boswell of Iowa.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to urge support for two bills I have just reintroduced, the ``Recognition of Forgotten Atomic Veterans and their Surviving Spouses Act'' (H.R. 3794) and the ``You Were There, You Get Care Act'' (H.R. 3795). The Recognition of Forgotten Atomic Veterans and their Surviving Spouses Act (H.R. 3794) directs the Department of Justice to obtain the records of all Atomic Veterans from the Department of Energy Operations Office in Nevada. Using these records, they are to locate and advise all veterans or their surviving widows of their rights under RECA and guide them in filing a claim for the compensation that is due them. RECA is the program passed by Congress in 1990 (P.L. 101-426) that provides compassionate payments to individuals who contract cancers and other serious diseases as a result of their exposure to radiation from above ground tests of nuclear weapons or from employment in underground uranium mines. Because the VA did not provide medical care to Atomic Veterans in many cases, many died at an early age. So there are thousands of widows, many on fixed incomes, who have never heard of RECA and do not know that they may be eligible for compensation. My bill will help them apply and receive substantial compassionate payments to ease their burden. The You Were There, You Get Care Act (H.R. 3795) ensures that veterans who served in the 1991 Gulf War and subsequent conflicts will be considered ``service-connected disabled'' for any illnesses currently covered by RECA and other diseases found by the Veterans Affairs Secretary to result from depleted uranium exposure. Depleted uranium is an incredibly effective weapon, but its residue has a half-life of 4 billion years and many believe that it is a carcinogen. We simply cannot allow another generation of veterans to be treated as were the Atomic Veterans. In addition, this bill calls for an in-depth medical study to be conducted by independent civilian medical entities, independent of the Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs, to determine other diseases that may result from exposure to depleted uranium. We need to ensure that veterans from the Gulf War and all wars waged since will not die an early and painful death without the health care and compensation they need and deserve. Taken together, my bills make a bold statement--that when young men and women volunteer for service, they can count on their government to compensate them and care for them if their service lends to illnesses. These assurances are so important and so necessary and should aid in the recruitment and retention of military personnel.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to introduce legislation (H.R. 3649) that would require mercenary training be conducted only on property owned by the Federal Government. As you may know, Blackwater USA, a private military security contractor, already operates two private military-style training facilities: one in Moyock, North Carolina and the other in Mount Carroll, Illinois. Blackwater USA is also seeking to open a third facility in Potrero, California. It is outrageous to allow private individuals or corporations to establish private military bases anywhere in the United States! The military-style training conducted at these facilities has no place in our backyards. The Federal Government and U.S. military have also become too reliant on these private security contractors, especially in Iraq and Afghanistan. We must stop this trend! However, in the meantime, my bill will take the modest step of requiring government contractors, like Blackwater USA, to train only on property owned by the Federal Government, such as our military bases.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, on rollcall No. 854, I was away on official business in my capacity as Chairman of the Veterans Affairs Committee. Had I been present, I would have voted ``yea.''

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor Jaime Barton for receiving the ``John's Labor Leader of the Year Award'' from the San Diego County Building and Construction Trades Council, AFL-CIO. Jaime Barton began his career with the Cement Masons Local 744 San Diego in 1982 right out of high school. In 1988, Jaime was approached by the financial secretary of the local to become the apprenticeship coordinator for the Cement Masons apprenticeships. In 1990, Jaime was elected as a business agent for the local, a position that he currently serves in today. In 1999, Jaime graduated from Mesa College with an associate degree and continued his educational quest at the George Meany Labor College with a bachelors degree in the political economics of labor. In addition, Jaime has been a trustee of the San Diego County Cement Mason Trusts Funds since 1992. Jaime is also a speaker, moderator and trustee committee member of the International Foundation of Employee Benefits. Jaime has been closely involved with the Cement Mason Apprenticeship Dedicated Donation's Projects which helps many non-profit organizations in San Diego County. Projects completed included the San Diego Blind Center, San Diego Children's Museum, Habitat for Humanity, several Little League ball parks, elementary schools, Disabled Children's Homes of San Diego County, the Sheriff's County SWAT White House Project and at several churches of all denominations. Jaime recently became a member of the LEAD San Diego Graduate Program, which develops future leaders of San Diego County. Jaime also sits on many boards and commissions, including the San Diego County Building and Trades Council, San Diego Labor Council, the John S. Lyons Memorial Foundation, the City of San Diego Housing and Advisory and Appeals Board, the United Way of San Diego County and the American Red Cross of San Diego County. Jaime Barton is highly deserving of this award and he received it from a very distinguished labor council that goes far beyond the call of duty on behalf of all working men and women who reside in San Diego County.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. I thank Mr. Miller for bringing us this bill, because working with Mr. Michaud of Maine, we have an important piece of legislation that most people would have thought dealt with a problem that didn't exist. Mr. Speaker, hospice and palliative care is a continuum of comfort- oriented and supportive services provided across settings, including hospitals, extended facilities, outpatient clinics and private residences. The VA offers a complement of hospice and palliative care options as part of a comprehensive health care benefit of provided to all veterans who are enrolled in our system. Under current law, a veteran receiving hospice care in a nursing home is exempt from any applicable copayments. However, if the hospice care is provided in any other setting, such as an acute-care hospital or at home, the veteran may be subject to an in-patient or out-patient primary care copayment. This policy penalizes a veteran who chooses to remain at home for their hospice care or who, out of medical necessity, receives hospice care in an acute care setting. Mr. Miller recognizes this injustice, and through H.R. 2623, corrects the inequity by exempting all hospice care provided through VA from copayment requirements. It would also align VA with the Medicare program, which does not impose copayments for hospice care. At the end of life, veterans should not have to worry about paying for the comfort that the hospice care provides. It's the right thing to do, and I am pleased that my colleague from Florida has taken leadership on this Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 2623, as amended.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, once again, I would state that with bipartisan working arrangements we have brought forward a package of bills today from the Veterans Committee which deals not only with our older veterans, but with our returning veterans from Iraq and Afghanistan, and that's what we will continue to do. I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2623, as amended Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 2623) to amend title 38, United States Code, to prohibit the collection of copayments for all hospice care furnished by the Department of Veterans Affairs, as amended.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I need to yield 1 further minute to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) for some thank-you words.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I just wanted to conclude by referring to the section that the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson-Lee) referred to. Unfortunately, because of scoring rules, we had to remove at the last minute a section that would have given protection from foreclosure, extend the protection from foreclosure on homes from 3 months to 6 months for those who are fighting abroad, whether in the active duty or in the Guard and Reserve units. It's a very important section, very important protection I think that we have to extend to our men and women in active duty. We will take that up at a later time and try to make sure that that protection is granted

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am glad that my colleagues on the committee were able to work together to craft this important piece of legislation. The Chair of our Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity, Ms. Herseth Sandlin, and her ranking member, Mr. Boozman, provided really strong bipartisan leadership that was important in this bill. As I said when starting this package of bills, we must never forget the great debt we owe to all of them. We have to remember the courage and sacrifice demonstrated daily by those who serve our Nation. Mr. Speaker, when our servicemembers return home, it is our solemn obligation to protect and serve them with the same commitment and dedication which they protected and served us. H.R. 1315, as amended, would contribute to just that level of commitment. Under current law, transitioning disabled servicemembers who are temporarily living in housing owned by a family member are barred from receiving financial assistance to make necessary adaptations to their housing. This bill before us clarifies this point of law and ensures those veterans have the resources necessary to enjoy a comfortable and independent lifestyle. This legislation creates a scholarship for students interested in earning a degree or certification in blind rehabilitation. In return for these scholarships, these students would provide 3 years of service to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The effect of this program will be a needed staff increase to meet the growing needs of our vision-impaired and blind veterans. I must say, Ms. Herseth Sandlin, we ought to look at this for some other needs of the VA, whether it is nursing or psychiatry or whatever. This way of encouraging and incentivizing those who could serve our veterans is a really fine approach. The bill will, furthermore, bring more efficiency and accountability to the veteran employment process by facilitating greater coordination among the U.S. Departments of Veterans Affairs, Defense, and Labor. It allows for a more transparent view of data concerning complaints submitted by the National Guard and Reservists regarding difficulty obtaining employment. Ensuring that our servicemembers are afforded a seamless transition from active duty to civilian life is an issue that we in the committee are keenly aware of, and I am glad to see needed language in this bill. Finally, this bill corrects a technical error in current law to increase the U.S. Department of Labor's Advisory Committee on Veterans Employment Training and Employer Outreach by one representative from the existing 15. We all stand united here in this House in caring for our veterans, and I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 1315, as amended Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, on this bill, H.R. 1315, and the previous bill, H.R. 23, I would ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material.

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for his endorsement, support, and leadership on our committee. He has raised some very good questions that I hope our committee will deal with. Mr. Speaker, without a doubt, these men, now all of them are in their eighties, the average age is 83, in fact, of the remaining 10,000 that are alive, have earned and deserve this delayed compensation. They fought the good fight. They gave our country everything they could. This is what H.R. 23 will do, provide the merchant mariners with the compensation they earned and have been denied for decades, not just in words, but in deeds. Mr. Speaker, I ask all the Members of this House for the support of this historic piece of legislation

Mr. FILNER

Mr. FILNER. I thank the gentleman for his leadership on mental health parity in this Nation.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, one of our new Members, Congressman Murphy from Pennsylvania, returned from Operation Iraqi Freedom. He gives us the benefit of that experience both as an advocate for our active duty and to the veterans who have served. We welcome you to the Congress. We thank you for your expertise, and I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, as with the last bill, I want to just thank both the chair, Mr. Michaud of Maine, and the ranking member, Mr. Miller from Florida, for their great leadership and bipartisan cooperation to get an important piece of legislation out. This bill, the Veterans' Health Care Improvement Act of 2007, combines a lot of different ideas from Members on both sides of the aisle, and we are pleased to have this bill on the floor today. Certainly, the mental health and well-being of our newest generation of veterans is a serious cause for concern and deserves our fullest attention. The VA reported in April of this year that of the OEF/OIF veterans who have separated and sought health care through the VA, mental disorders rank second of frequency of possible diagnoses amongst these veterans. Post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, is the number one health concern. At this point, over 39,000 returning veterans have received a provisional diagnosis of this, and we are looking into, in fact, maybe a systemic underestimation of those who are diagnosed and, therefore, to get treatment. Mr. Speaker, the composition of the fighting forces in Iraq and Afghanistan today is unique from past conflicts. Guard and Reserve forces make up a large percentage of those fighting, around 50 percent or a little more. Though only 19 percent of the Nation lives in rural America, 44 percent of U.S. military recruits come from rural areas. We must ensure that their health care and services meet the needs that they deserve and have earned. It must be available and accessible to all, and I would say we will take up as a committee the broad subject of rural veterans sometime in the near future. This bill requires the VA to award grants to conduct workshop programs to help heal and better the lives of veterans who need it through therapeutic programs such as art, writing and music to name just a few. It establishes a grant program to provide transportation options to veterans living in rural areas that will help to lessen the burden on veterans who are unable to drive long distances due to their disability or illness. It also provides permanent authority to the VA to treat veterans who are subject to chemical and biological testing. This is an obligation we owe to those who have served. We provide also for readjustment counseling and mental health services. We include contracting with community mental health centers in areas not adequately served by VA and contracting with nonprofit mental health organizations to train OEF/OIF veterans in outreach and peer support. We address issues affecting homeless veterans and their families. The VA has now become the largest single provider of direct services to homeless veterans, reaching 25 percent of homeless veterans a year through various programs. Our aim is to make it 100 percent. Many communities have recently gone through what they call stand-downs, 2- or 3-day efforts to bring the whole community in cooperation to provide the services that homeless veterans need, whether they be medical or dental or legal or drug abuse counseling, of course, food and clothing; and we do that in 3 days a year in many communities. It is up to the VA to do that 365 days a year for all our veterans, and we estimate over 200,000 on the streets tonight who served our Nation. Prior to becoming homeless, a large number of veterans have struggled with PTSD or had addictions acquired during or worsened by their military service, and we want to expand and extend the counseling services for these veterans. We expand programs to 12 locations throughout the Veterans Health Administration and extend this program through 2011. The VA domiciliary care programs are an essential piece in assisting veterans and providing needed services to help them recover and become productive citizens again. We enhance in this bill the capacity of such domiciliary care programs, for female veterans especially. Finally, we want to authorize VA to provide financial assistance to provide supportive services for very low-income veteran families who reside in permanent housing. In short, Mr. Speaker, H.R. 2874 takes care of the men and women who have so selflessly taken care of us. It provides our veterans with the quality health care programs and services they need and they so richly deserve. It is another down payment, another measurable piece of keeping our promise to those who have kept their promise to us Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Rodriguez from Texas has been particularly active and energetic in advocating for the treatment of the mental health needs of our veterans, and I yield 3 minutes to him.

Mr. FILNER. Again, I thank Mr. Miller and Mr. Michaud for their leadership on the bill and all the Members on both sides of the aisle that have contributed to it. General Leave