Making Continuing Appropriations During a Government Shutdown

Floor Speech

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Mr. WYDEN. Madam President, I come to the floor today as we get ready to vote on the veterans bill to make several points and would like to begin by commending Senators SANDERS and MCCAIN. They have obviously acted quickly. They have acted responsibly. They are taking up some of the most extraordinary concerns that really have come to light in the last few weeks regarding the access our veterans have to medical care.

I think it would be fair to say that every single Senator--every Senator--is grateful for the immeasurable sacrifices veterans make for the Nation. These are men and women who give up years of their lives to serve our country and willingly head into harm's way. They suffer physical and mental wounds all too often. Many of the veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan--and I have seen this in my home State--have volunteered for three, four, and five tours of duty.

What is undisputable is this: The Senate understands that when our veterans come home, the health care services they receive must be second to none. I believe that strongly. I believe it is a concern widely shared here in the Senate. That is why the reports of long wait times and falsified records are so appalling.

The VA audit that came out this week showed, for example, how hard veterans in my home State of Oregon have been hit. More than 3,000 Oregon veterans could not be seen by a doctor within 90 days at the Portland VA facility, and nearly 3,500 faced the same wait times at the Roseberg VA facility. Many Oregon veterans who rely on the Boise and Walla Walla facilities got similar treatment. Moreover, an investigation is underway to determine how things deteriorated so rapidly. It is pretty obvious that these kinds of findings are inexcusable and they are unconscionable.

Veterans deserve the best. Senators SANDERS and MCCAIN deserve credit for working in a bipartisan way--a way that is too rare here in Washington, DC--to address this challenge. It is never easy to work in a bipartisan way. I commend them.

I wish to also raise today one part of the bill that I believe has to be resolved and can be resolved before the legislation gets to the President's desk. The legislation currently directs many of our veterans to Medicare's doctors and specialists. At first glance that might not raise questions, but I wanted to bring up the possibility of some unintended consequences.

Right now there is a mandated 2-percent cut on payments for Medicare services because of across-the-board sequestration. That is still in effect. However, that particular spending cut, that spending reduction, does not apply to treatment for veterans. So, in effect--and I know this was completely unintended--this could create an incentive for physicians--we already do not have enough of them caring for seniors who rely on Medicare--it could create an incentive for doctors to take the veteran patients over our Nation's seniors. I think no Senator wants that to happen. I have talked about this with Chairman Sanders and with Senator McCain, and they certainly do not want that false choice. I think it would be fair to say that no one wants to see seniors pitted against veterans. All Senators want the best possible care for both our older people and our veterans.

The problem, however--and all Senators are familiar with this--Medicare patients often are already waiting in line to see their doctors. In fact, many of the underperforming VA facilities are located in communities that have difficulty meeting the current demand for care. This is especially true in some medical fields that are absolutely crucial for our veterans, particularly primary care and mental health.

It is important to note that the other body--the House--has picked up on an idea that I and others have advanced in order to resolve this matter. So this is an opportunity for the Senate and the House, in a bipartisan way, to work together. I have talked to leaders of the veterans committee in the House. My sense is that we now have the House fully supportive of a way to resolve this issue and ensure that despite the fact that the veterans funds are not sequestered and the seniors funds--the Medicare funds--are, there would be a way to resolve this, and that would simply be to stipulate that any credentialed provider could contract with the VA to treat veterans. That way, in effect, we would ensure that both seniors and veterans would get the care they need. In effect, it would put the Senate and the other body on the same wavelength.

It is a simple fix. We just allow our veterans to meet with any licensed clinical provider, not just the Medicare provider.

In closing, I commend again Chairman Sanders and Senator McCain for first-rate work, accomplished at truly land-speed record timing.

As chairman of the Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction and a long history with respect to Medicare, I want them and our colleagues in the other body to know the Finance Committee is very anxious to work with all concerned to make sure the final version of this legislation--the bill we hope goes to the President's desk as soon as possible--addresses what is best for both veterans and seniors.

I am confident that by working together--Democrats and Republicans in the Senate and the House--we can achieve that resolution before the bill gets to the President's desk.

With that, I yield the floor.

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