VA budget shortfall of $15B may impact October payments to veterans

Budget burdens, pharmaceutical options and hyperbaric oxygen therapy are concerns lawmakers in Congressional are raising with Veterans Affairs.

The budget shortfall could impact veterans across the nation with a disruption in payments as soon as October.

Needed is $2.88 billion for disability and education benefits. Secretary Denis McDonough told Congress this month the projection for shortfall this year and next is $15 billion, of which $11.97 billion is for medical care next year.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., is one of six signatories on a Wednesday letter to Chairman Jon Tester of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs in their chamber seeking an immediate hearing rather than waiting until the Sept. 9 resumption of session. Sens. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D.; Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.; Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala.; Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska; and Mike Rounds, R-S.D. also signed the request.

The letter reads in part, “The sudden nature of the issue, and the sheer financial volume of the request, are both cause for concern and call into question the information previously reported by VA. Our committee is directly responsible for conducting rigorous oversight and this budget shortfall proves that VA is in desperate need of scrutiny and accountability.”

The budget of McDonough, an appointee of President Joe Biden, was presented to Congress four months ago. Tillis, in a release, said the shortfall is a “clear departure” from what was presented, and said the “deficit alone is greater than the entire annual budget of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.”

Senators’ request comes within hours of McDonough and Dr. Thomas Emmendorfer sitting with U.S. Rep. Dr. Greg Murphy, R-N.C. Emmendorfer is the executive director in the VA for Pharmacy Benefits Manager Services.

Murphy in a statement afterward said, “I addressed the procurement of safe drugs from nondomestic sources such as India and China, the electronic medical records pilot program’s pause, significant cost overruns, and the adoption of lifesaving hyperbaric oxygen therapy. As the representative of 76,000 veterans, it is my duty to advocate for more adequate and quality care for our veterans who have made many sacrifices. I conveyed the dissatisfaction of many veterans in my district, and across the country, with the VA’s management and my commitment to pursuing meaningful solutions to these issues.”

As The Center Square previously reported, state lawmakers in North Carolina approved in September an appropriation of $500,000 that will help military veterans struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy, known as HBOT, has significantly reduced suicidal ideations and an array of other symptoms in about 60 North Carolina military veterans suffering from PTSD and TBI over the last two years through a program called HBOT for Vets. Murphy has led the effort in Washington to increase resources.

North Carolina is home to roughly 800,000 active duty or veteran families, including about 650,000 veterans. Roughly a quarter of veterans nationwide suffer from PTSD or TBI, suggesting more than 162,000 North Carolina veterans may benefit from HBOT.