NASDAQ - House Passes $17 Billion Overhaul of Veterans Affairs

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By Dow Jones

The House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to pass a $17 billion compromise bill to help fund an overhaul of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, leaving the Senate next to vote on the measure.

The Senate could vote on the measure Thursday, according to Senate staff.With a vote of 420-5, the House approved legislation cobbled together by members of a House and Senate in conference committee after more than a week of contentious wrangling by lawmakers.

"I am proud that Republicans and Democrats were able to put aside their partisan differences to focus on supporting our nation's warriors with choice, accountability and greater transparency," said Rep. Mike Coffman (R., Colo.), a member of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs and a Marine Corps combat veteran, in a speech on the House floor.

The legislation, if approved by the Senate and signed by President Barack Obama, would provide the VA with $10 billion to allow veterans experiencing long appointment wait times, or who live far from VA hospitals, to see non-VA doctors to get health care. It would also provide $5 billion to hire new doctors, nurses and other staff, as well as make infrastructure improvements.

The bill includes other provisions, including allowing the VA secretary more power to fire underperforming executives, expanding health care for rural veterans and leasing more than two-dozen facilities, bringing the total cost of the bill to $17 billion.

The vote comes a day after the Senate confirmed Robert McDonald, the former CEO of Procter & Gamble Co. from 2009- 2013, as VA secretary. Mr. McDonald replaces Sloan Gibson who has been acting secretary since the resignation in late May of Eric Shinseki following revelations of systemic problems at the VA, including employees falsifying records of appointment wait times for patients.

A conference committee convened more than a week ago to hammer out differences in the House and Senate versions, but there were disagreements primarily over funding between Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.), chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs, and Rep. Jeff Miller (R., Fla.), his House counterpart. Mr. Sanders wanted as much as $25 billion while Mr. Miller insisted spending be capped at $10 billion.

Some of the feuding over spending resulted from the Congressional Budget Office's original estimate that an earlier version the bill could cost as much as $50 billion a year. But the CBO most recently has estimated the legislation will increase the federal deficit by $10 billion in total over the next decade.

Some conservative groups, however, say the bill's cost will spiral out of control. "The conference committee's solution to the VA's systemic inefficiencies amounts to the creation of a new entitlement that will likely increase at a rapid rate," said the conservative interest group Heritage Action for America.

A dissenting vote came from Rep. Rick Crawford (R., Ark.), who said the VA should be forced to trim wasteful spending and use unspent funding before being authorized a new outlay of money. "And if additional supplemental funds are needed, then Congress should appropriate those on an as-needed basis," he said. "In my view, this would be a more responsible approach in light of the debt crisis that is bearing down on our nation."

Still, despite the five "no" votes, nearly the whole House seemed to agree on the necessity of a compromise. "This, of course is not a perfect bill, but, then again, I don't think I've ever voted for a perfect bill," said Rep. Steny Hoyer the Democratic Whip from Maryland. "But this is a good bill that moves in the right direction."

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