By Counts H.C.R. No. 275 77R14714 CCK-F HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 1-1 WHEREAS, State veterans homes represent a unique partnership 1-2 among the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), the State of 1-3 Texas, and providers of skilled health care for the men and women 1-4 to whom we owe an immense debt of gratitude for their patriotic 1-5 service; and 1-6 WHEREAS, The Texas Legislature authorized the creation of a 1-7 state veterans home program in 1997 and has authorized issuance of 1-8 revenue bonds to construct four homes that have been established in 1-9 Temple, Floresville, Big Spring, and Bonham; and 1-10 WHEREAS, Chapter 164, Natural Resources Code, vests the 1-11 Veterans' Land Board with the responsibility to build, manage, and 1-12 oversee the operation of state veterans homes in Texas; and 1-13 WHEREAS, Texas is challenged by a large and growing 1-14 population of veterans over the age of 65 who may require the 1-15 long-term skilled care provided by state veterans homes; and 1-16 WHEREAS, Current VA funding policies for the care of veterans 1-17 in private nursing homes differs significantly from those governing 1-18 care to veterans in state veterans homes; and 1-19 WHEREAS, There are veterans who have expressed interest in 1-20 residence at a Texas state veterans home but who are unable to meet 1-21 the financial requirements for admission and thereby are denied the 1-22 opportunity to receive quality long-term care by that means 1-23 compared to VA-funded care in a private nursing home; and 1-24 WHEREAS, VA guidelines are interpreted differently from state 2-1 to state and from facility to facility; such differences may cause 2-2 unequal treatment, financial difficulty, and limitations to quality 2-3 care among this nation's many deserving veterans; and 2-4 WHEREAS, The VA guidelines on the provision of prescription 2-5 drug benefits by state veterans homes are unclear and open to 2-6 discretionary interpretation, which can act to significantly 2-7 increase the cost of medications and put an additional burden on 2-8 the State of Texas and its state veterans home program; and 2-9 WHEREAS, The VA has advised that a veteran entering a state 2-10 veterans home surrenders the primary care relationship with his or 2-11 her VA physician, despite the fact that VA medical centers permit 2-12 the doctor-client relationship to continue; the consequence of this 2-13 loss is to subject veterans and their families to confusion and 2-14 economic hardship; and 2-15 WHEREAS, The Veterans' Land Board recognizes the need to 2-16 continue and expand the use of Texas state veterans homes to 2-17 provide quality skilled nursing care to veterans of all economic 2-18 levels and varying needs of health care; now, therefore, be it 2-19 RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas 2-20 hereby strongly urge the Congress of the United States to take 2-21 immediate steps to clarify its intent regarding the U.S. Department 2-22 of Veterans Affairs guidelines for veterans care in the 50 states, 2-23 and to remove any ambiguous language in current law that yields 2-24 varied and unequal interpretations; and, be it further 2-25 RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official 2-26 copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to 2-27 the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of 3-1 the senate of the United States Congress, and to all members of the 3-2 Texas delegation to the congress with the request that this 3-3 resolution be officially entered in the Congressional Record as a 3-4 memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.