2008 Testimony

June 4 , 2008
NAUS Legislative Director Rick Jones testified before the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Sub-commitee on Defense Appropriations, urging the Senate to reject Pentagon plans to hike TRICARE costs and fees by fully funding the military health care system. NAUS also testified in support of a 3.9% pay raise in 2009, to continue to reduce the military pay gap. The testimony covered several other important issues including seamless transition of health care of veterans from DoD to the VA system, research and care in the areas of prosthetics, PTSD and TBI, and force protection from IEDs. Read NAUS testimony.

May 22, 2008
NAUS Legislative Director Rick Jones testified before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Sub-committee on Disability Assistance and Memorial Affairs regarding the effectiveness of  Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) outreach efforts. In the testimony, NAUS expressed concerns about the health care needs of Afghanistan and Iraq war veterans – Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). While applauding the VBA’s apparent commitment to its outreach effort, NAUS remains “guardedly optimistic,” and urged the Subcommittee to continue its work to ensure resources are ready not only to provide a veteran’s earned benefits, but for the veteran’s awareness of these services as well. Read NAUS testimony.

May 7, 2008
NAUS submitted a written statement for the record in support of S. 961, the Belated Thank You to World War II Merchant Mariners Act, to the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. Read NAUS testimony.

March 13, 2008
Rick Jones, NAUS Legislative Director, presented testimony before the House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies. NAUS testimony addressed the need for continued adequate funding for the Base Realignment and Closure accounts, adequate resources for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care, and appropriate resources to train and maintain a support staff sufficient to reduce VA’s disability claims backlog. A number of related priority concerns such as the diagnosis and care of troops returning with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), the need for enhanced priority in the area of prosthetics research and traumatic brain injury, and providing improved seamless transition for returning troops between the Department of Defense (DoD) and VA are also included. Read NAUS testimony

February 7, 2008
Rick Jones, NAUS Legislative Director, testified before the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs about the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) FY 2009 budget request. NAUS testimony called on Congress to use the recommendations of the Veterans' Disability Benefits Commission as a "road map" for the future. NAUS urged increased funding for the VA health care system, recommending $1.6 billion more than the President's 2009 budget request. Read NAUS testimony

2007 Testimony

May 16, 2007
Rick Jones, NAUS Legislative Director, testified before the Senate Subcommittee on Defense Appropriations. NAUS testimony called for blocking TRICARE fee increases, ensuring funding for proper diagnosis and care for Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) among servicemembers and returning veterans, a higher-than-requested military pay raise, and other defense funding priorities. Read NAUS testimony

April 18 , 2007
NAUS submitted testimony to the House Veterans Affairs Committee in support of the Belated Thank You to WWII Merchant Mariners bill (HR 23).
Read NAUS testimony

March 21, 2007
NAUS Legislative Director, Rick Jones, presented testimony before the House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies. Among the issues addressed were adequate funding for the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) accounts, adequate resources for the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care, and resources to reduce VA’s disability claims backlog.
Read NAUS testimony

March 7, 2007
NAUS Legislative Director, Rick Jones, presented testimony before the Defense Department's Task Force on the Future of Military Healthcare. Citing the Pentagon's obvious plan to shift the burden of higher costs of health care onto beneficiaries again this year, Mr. Jones stated that NAUS members are concerned that the Task Force will simply echo DoD's plans. NAUS urged the Task Force to look at the issue of funding priorities in the defense and overall Federal govern-ment budgets. "If our defense budget is insufficient to cover our national security requirements [which include health care benefits Jones had argued earlier], then why do we continue to spend billions on non-defense, non-federal and non-essential programs and projects?" he asked. Read NAUS testimony

March 1 , 2007
NAUS Legislative Director, Rick Jones, presented testimony before the Subcommittee on Military Personnel of the House Armed Services Committee on behalf of the National Military and Veterans Alliance. Rick’s testimony concentrated on military retiree and survivors’ benefits, calling for elimination of the so-called “widow’s tax” - SBP/DIC offset - and a moratorium on raising TRICARE fees until a full analysis is complete. The Alliance also called for closing the active duty pay gap; expanded educational and retirement benefits for Guard and Reserve servicemembers; changes to the Uniformed Services Former Spouses Protection Act (USFSPA); and high quality medical care for wounded servicemembers. 
Read NAUS testimony or listen to it here

2007 Testimony (continued)

February 28 , 2007
NAUS submitted testimony to the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel in support of the Total Force GI Bill (HR 1102), a NAUS-endorsed bill to modernize education benefits for Guard and Reserve members.
Read NAUS testimony.

2006 Testimony

September 21 , 2006
NAUS President MG Bill Matz testified before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs on the programs and policies of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). He said that NAUS appreciates the Committee’s bipartisan push to better fund veterans’ health care and other benefits in the coming year and stressed the need for doing so without increasing fees paid by veterans. He also called for prescription drug assistance for certain Medicare-eligible veterans currently banned from enrolling in the VA system and more medical research. 
Read NAUS testimony

May 24, 2006
NAUS President MG Bill Matz testified before the Subcommittee on Defense Appropriations of the Senate Committee on Appropriations regarding the 2007 Defense appropriations bill. Gen Matz stressed the need to provide proper health care for the military community and adequate funding for pay, allowances and benefits. He also discussed concerns about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the requirement for additional force protection against Improvised Explosive Devices (IED's).
Read NAUS testimony

March 29, 2006
NAUS President MG Bill Matz testified before the Subcommittee on Personnel of the House Armed Services Committee regarding proposed TRICARE fee increases and other DoD health program cost savings initiatives. Gen Matz appeared on behalf of the National Military Veterans Alliance, a group of 29 military and veterans organizations including NAUS, the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), the Korean War Veterans, and AMVETS, among many others, representing approximately 5 million members nationally.
Read NAUS testimony

March 1, 2006
NAUS Legislative Director, Rick Jones, presented NAUS testimony before the House Subcommittee on Military Quality of Life, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies. NAUS testimony before this subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee addressed many issues including pay and compensation, TRICARE fees and standards of care, and the need to fully fund veterans health care.
Read NAUS testimony

February 16, 2006
NAUS Legislative Director, Rick Jones, presented NAUS testimony before the House Veterans' Affairs Committee (HVAC). NAUS testimony addressed provision of a cost-of-living adjustment for compensation and survivor benefits, the need for full funding for veterans health care, and the need for more emphasis on the study and treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (PTSD) and the severe injuries of many of those who have served or are serving now in the War on Terror.
Read NAUS testimony

2005 Testimony

September 28, 2005
NAUS was asked to provide written testimony to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs, House of Representatives, on the status of "seamless transition" between the Department of Defense and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Read NAUS testimony

May 10, 2005
NAUS Military and Veterans Benefits Advisor, Mike Plumer, presented NAUS testimony before the opening session of the Veterans Disability Benefits Commission (VDBC), representing NAUS on two panels of military and veterans associations that offered testimony. NAUS testimony concentrated on the need for the Commission to look closely at the lengthy process involved in determining claims, the long waiting list of claims being processed and the disparity in claims between regional offices.
Read NAUS testimony

February 16, 2005
NAUS President MG Bill Matz testified at a hearing on the VA Budget for 2006 before the House Veterans Affairs Committee (HVAC). During his testimony General Matz discussed the NAUS priorities that fall under the oversight of the Veterans Committee, especially the need for a "seamless transition" for our active duty and reserve personnel as they leave DoD medical care and transition to VA medical care.
Read his testimony