COMMENTARY
Shaping a better VA for Hawaii's veterans
By U.S. Sen. Daniel Akaka
This year, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Hawai'i statehood — thanks in large part to our World War II veterans, including those who served with the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team and Military Intelligence Service. Their valiant service put to rest any question about whether the members of our diverse communities were "American" enough.
Hawai'i's service members were among the first to enter the Korean War, and the last to return from Vietnam. More than 85 percent of the members of the Hawai'i National Guard currently deployed overseas were already combat veterans before leaving. The needs and concerns of Hawai'i's veterans are important — both locally and to the entire nation.
To reward those who have sacrificed for us, and to encourage others to enter into the military services, all veterans must have access to the care and benefits they have earned through their honorable service. We are fortunate that our relatively small state now has such a strong presence in veterans' affairs — including Gen. Eric Shinseki, secretary of Veterans Affairs, soon-to-be Assistant Secretary Tammy Duckworth, and President Obama, the first commander-in-chief to have served on the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs. All have Hawai'i ties.
The importance of caring for our veterans is as clear to me today as it was 19 years ago, when I was privileged to succeed my fellow World War II veteran, Sen. Spark M. Matsunaga, on the Veterans' Affairs Committee. As chairman of this critical committee since 2007, I have worked to help the Department of Veterans Affairs adapt to the needs of America's veterans and their families.
On a national scale, this includes reforming VA, which is the nation's second-largest Cabinet department; securing funding for the Veterans Health Administration, which is the nation's largest healthcare system; working toward comprehensive overhaul of a broken disability compensation system; and preparing new benefits, such as the post-9/11 GI Bill.
These reforms will increase our ability to care for veterans in America's only island state. Secretary Shinseki and I are working to improve the delivery of services here. Many veterans bills pending in the Senate will bring us closer to meeting the needs of Hawai'i's veterans and their families, including two bills I recently introduced:
Other pending veterans bills aim at national reform of critical elements of the Department of Veterans Affairs, such as its nationwide network of hospitals and clinics. The veterans healthcare system's funding is tied to a year-by-year Congressional appropriation. In 19 of the past 22 years, the VA has not been funded on time, and the department has had to ration care to the millions of disabled and ailing veterans who require its services.
To remedy this situation, I have introduced legislation to fund veterans healthcare one year ahead of the regular appropriations process. With this change, the VA can plan out its healthcare operations, enabling it to serve veterans more effectively and to use taxpayer dollars more efficiently. This bill, the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act, is co-sponsored by nearly one-third of the Senate and has the support of President Obama as well as a large partnership of veterans service organizations. Its passage will secure timely and predictable funding for veterans facilities, from the Honolulu VA Medical Center to veterans clinics across our nation.
Generations of kama'aina have proven themselves through distinguished military service, and our support for them does not end when they return home. I look forward to working with President Obama, Secretary Shinseki and my colleagues in Congress to help the VA better meet the needs of veterans and their families in Hawai'i and across these United States.
Sen. Daniel K. Akaka is the chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs and a World War II veteran who attended the University of Hawai'i-Manoa on the original GI Bill. He wrote this commentary for The Advertiser.
