State Lawmakers Oppose Cost Increase on Veterans
Greg Berman, GoLocalProv News Contributor
State Lawmakers Oppose Cost Increase on Veterans
The proposal, which is currently being reviewed by the House and Senate finance committees, would require residents of the home to pay the entirety of their income towards the cost of their care. Currently, veterans in the home contribute only 80 percent of their income, with the remaining 20 percent being used for personal items such as toiletries and clothes. Despite this increase, residents would continue to receive a monthly stipend of $150 for personal spending.
The fee hike was first reported earlier this week by GoLocalProv.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTIf passed, the proposal would raise an extra million dollars, but only 20 percent of that would be funneled back into the Veteran’s home, with the rest simply going to the state’s general fund.
‘A very, very sad thing’
The governor’s office has defended the proposal, arguing that in a time of recession and budget deficits everyone must share the burden; but the prospect of balancing the budget at the expense of veterans, has outraged veterans.
Veteran advocates have already expressed their opposition to the proposal, including the retired head of the Rhode Island National Guard, who said an extra million dollars was not worth the cost of stripping veterans of their dignity.
Speaking on behalf of the Bristol legislators, Senator Walter Felag, who was one of the legislators who helped set the 80 percent limit years ago, called the new proposal “a very sad, sad thing,” lamenting that “we have become a meaningless society if we turn to the people who fought for our freedom and strip them of everything they have, and their dignity, to try and solve a budget problem."
Among the legislators who added their names to the list of opponents to the proposal are Sen. Walter S. Felag Jr. (D-Dist. 10, Bristol, Tiverton, Warren), Sen. Christopher Scott Ottiano (R-Dist. 11, Bristol, Portsmouth), Sen. David E. Bates (D-Dist. 32, Barrington, Bristol), Rep. Jan P. Malik (D-Dist. 67, Barrington, Warren), Rep. Richard P. Morrison (D-Dist. 68, Bristol Warren) and Rep. Raymond E. Gallison Jr. (D-Dist. 69, Bristol, Portsmouth).
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