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'Antiquated' VA Ill Equipped to Care for Vets

Posted Oct 22, 07 2:25 PM CDT in Science & Health,  US 

(Newser) – Some 700,000 Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are eligible for VA benefits, and overhauling the overburdened system is firmly in the sights of  President Bush and a bipartisan commission. Citing "fundamental system weaknesses," a GAO report last week outlined a huge bureaucracy rife with staffing and training shortfalls, confusing policies, and slow decisions, reports the Christian Science Monitor. The bill will be hefty.

Bush promises a streamlined bureaucracy, but the real issue is cost. The price tag could reach $9 billion in medical and $4 billion in survivors’ benefits over the next decade alone, with one expert foreseeing $700 billion in long-term disability and medical care. "We cannot fund the war," said one congressman, "and fail to fund the warriors."

Source Christian Science Monitor

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Iraq • George W. Bush • Afghanistan • Iraq veterans • Department of Veterans Affairs • Bob Dole • GAO • medical costs • Donna Shalala


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