funds were coming from carry-over money in the budget and, in the future there will be administrative “belt-tightening” at the VA. 

Secretary Nicholson has not asked for any additional funding to pay for the credit monitoring program and seems content to use funds currently allocated to other VA programs. In other words, veterans will end up paying for the credit monitoring program. By taking money out of the existing VA budget, healthcare and other benefits will have to be reduced or delayed.

There may be a happy ending to all of this. On Thursday, June 22, Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Robert Byrd (D-WV) pushed $160 million in funding dedicated to the VA’s credit monitoring program through the Senate Appropriations Committee. This would guarantee that the VA does not have to use currently budgeted funds for the program.

Hope Yen, reporting for the Associated Press, wrote of the vote:  “…some Republicans objected because the VA has said it can use existing funds to pay for credit checks.”

Senator Murray said, “If we don’t provide emergency funding, the VA will take that money out of the services and benefits our veterans rely on.” Murray added, “It's not acceptable to tell veterans – ‘We lost your personal information and by the way, we're going to cut your healthcare and benefits to pay for this mess that we created.’” The Murray/Byrd funding was tacked onto the Agriculture Appropriations Act which will go before the full Senate.

Now, millions of veterans are waiting. Free credit monitoring is assured. But, will veterans end up paying for it through reduced healthcare and benefits? Or, will Congress do the right thing and provide additional funding to pay for the credit monitoring program? A date has not been set for the full Senate vote.

How do you feel about this issue? Let your public officials know how you feel!