Veterans' Medical Care Funding: FY1995-FY2004 (CRS Report for Congress)
Premium Purchase PDF for $24.95 (25 pages)
add to cart or
subscribe for unlimited access
Pro Premium subscribers have free access to our full library of CRS reports.
Subscribe today, or
request a demo to learn more.
| Release Date |
Jan. 14, 2005 |
| Report Number |
RL32732 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Sidath Viranga Panangaia, Domestic Social Policy Division |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
Summary:
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) provides services and benefits such as hospital and
medical care, rehabilitation services, and pensions, among other things, to veterans who meet certain
eligibility criteria. VA provides these benefits and services through four administrative units: the
Veterans Health Administration (VHA), the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA), the National
Cemetery Administration (NCA), and the Board of Veterans' Appeals. VHA is primarily
a direct
service provider of primary care, specialized care, and related medical and social support services
to veterans through an integrated health care system.
Funding for VHA is an issue of perennial interest to Congress, especially with the increasing
demand for VA medical services and with some veterans increasingly having to wait more than six
months for a primary care or speciality care appointment. VHA is funded through multiple
appropriation accounts, which are supplemented by other sources of revenue. Over the past decade,
the composition of VHA's funding has changed. Not only has VA's appropriation
account structure
been modified, but also VA's ability to retain nonappropriated funds has increased. These
changes
present challenges in comparing VHA funding over a period of time.
Between FY1995 and FY2004, appropriations for VA medical care grew by 63%. For the first
four years of this time period, from FY1995 through FY1999, appropriations for VA medical care
grew by 6.7%, from $16.2 billion in FY1995 to $17.3 billion in FY1999. In comparison, during the
last five years of this time period, from FY1999 through FY2004, VA medical care appropriations
grew by 52.7%, from $17.3 billion in FY1999 to $26.4 billion in FY2004. These amounts do not
include appropriations for medical research, medical administration and miscellaneous operating
expenses (MAMOE), and funds from nonappropriated funding sources.
The total number of veteran enrollees has grown by 76.9% from FY1999, the first year VHA
instituted an enrollment system, to FY2004. During this same period the number of veterans
receiving medical care has grown by almost 50%, from 3.2 million veterans in FY1999 to an
estimated 4.7 million veterans in FY2004.
This report will not be updated.
