According to Rep. Steve Buyer, chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, the Administration’s proposed $80.6 billion 2007 VA budget is a good first step, praising President Bush for increasing VA funding. However, he thinks there are chinks in the armor. In particular, he said at a committee hearing on Feb. 8 that he is concerned the VA “track record” indicates it is being “overly optimistic” in projecting it would collect nearly $3 billion from third-party health care insurers. Buyer also expressed concern that the budget proposal calls for annual enrollment fees and higher drug co-pays for veterans who do not have service-related disabilities—both of which failed to gain Congressional support last year.
A Defense Department team is on the ground in Ukraine assessing what the country needs to protect itself from air, naval, electronic, and cyber warfare threats as Russian troops gather on multiple fronts, a senior Ukrainian defense official told Air Force Magazine, describing an emphasis on what assistance can be…