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Hudson Leads Push to Increase VA, Defense Funding to Address Coronavirus

March 18, 2020
WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Congressman Richard Hudson (NC-08) was joined by Reps. George Holding, Ted Budd, David Rouzer, Patrick McHenry and Greg Murphy in sending a letter to President Trump’s budget director Tuesday requesting more funds for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and U.S. Department of Defense to address an influx of patients due to coronavirus.
"In wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, we write to share our great concern with the increased cost associated with both the current and anticipated influx of patients at Department of Veteran Affairs and Department of Defense medical facilities across North Carolina," members wrote. "As the representatives of thousands of veterans and active duty service members, we are urging you to consider specific funding for this unique population and include it in any request for additional appropriations from Congress."
The members' letter acknolwedges that the Families First Coronavirus Response Act provided $82 million for the Department of Defense and $60 million for the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide for coronavirus testing. Following the letter, the White House submitted an emergency funding request to Congress that included $8.3 billion for the Department of Defense to address coronavirus.
Read the entire letter below and here:
Dear Acting Director Vought,
In wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, we write to share our great concern with the increased cost associated with both the current and anticipated influx of patients at Department of Veteran Affairs and Department of Defense medical facilities across North Carolina. As the representatives of thousands of veterans and active duty service members, we are urging you to consider specific funding for this unique population and include it in any request for additional appropriations from Congress.
As the volume in patients continues to increase and medical facilities become stretched to their capacity, we know our veterans and service members will continue to receive the best care possible. However, we want to make sure Congress is providing adequate funding so this increased cost does not impact readiness.
While H.R. 6201, theFamilies First Coronavirus Response Act, provided $82 million for the Department of Defense and $60 million for the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide for COVID-19 diagnostic testing, we are concerned that as the virus spreads this will be insufficient to cover treatment costs for these populations. For any forthcoming funding request pertaining to COVID-19, we ask that you ensure our veterans and active duty service members have the resources necessary. We as a nation have already asked so much from our active duty service members, their families, and veterans and ask that you continue to deliver on our promise to care for them.
We as a nation need to come together now to fight the COVID-19 outbreak and we look forward to working with you to ensure veterans and active duty service members will have the resources they need during this public health emergency. Thank you for your consideration of this request and we eagerly await your response.
Sincerely,
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