Vets pleased VA insurance proposal dropped

WASHINGTON, March 19 (UPI) -- U.S. veterans' groups cheered U.S. President Barack Obama's scrapping of a plan requiring wounded vets to rely on private insurance for long-term treatment.

"We are very pleased the administration dropped this proposal," said Amvets spokesman Jay Agg. "It flew in the face of the government's covenant to care for all service-connected needs of our veterans."

The Washington Post reported Thursday that Obama was ready to move forward with the idea as late as Monday when he met with leaders of veterans' groups who urged him not to reduce the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' historical commitment to medical care for the military.

The idea was meant to save the VA about $530 million per year. However it raised the ire of veterans who said troops injured in the line of duty or who were battling combat stress disorders shouldn't have to contend with the costs and red-tape associated with private insurance.

"Pushing combat injuries onto personal insurance plans could make service to our nation a pre-existing condition," U.S. Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., told The New York Times.