Veterans affairs freezes enrollment

Veterans Affairs Secretary Anthony Principi anpounced in late January that he would suspend enrollment in the VA health program for selected veterans for one year. That means an estimated 160,000 so-called Category 8 veterans with no disabilities and earnings above the mean incomes set by VA will not be able to enroll. The mean incomes, adjusted for local costs of living, range from $24,000 to more than $30,000.

The suspension is intended to relieve VA's huge backlog of eligible veterans waiting for enrollment. More than 200,000 veterans have been waiting six months or longer for their first appointment at a VA hospital.

By the end of the year, Principi hopes to be able to let some of those Category 8 veterans back into VA facilities under an agreement he has struck with the Health and Human Services Department. The VA would essentially become an option for Medicare beneficiaries. It would be the first time Medicare has ever paid for care delivered through the VA.