[Pages S4079-S4083]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2005

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, the Senate will
resume the pending business, which the clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

A bill (H.R. 1268) making emergency supplemental
appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2005,
to establish and rapidly implement regulations for State
driver's licenses and identification document security
standards, to prevent terrorists from abusing the asylum laws
of the United States, to unify terrorism-related grounds for
inadmissibility and removal, to ensure expeditious
construction of the San Diego border fence, and for other
purposes.

Pending:

Ensign amendment No. 487, to provide for additional border
patrol agents for the remainder of fiscal year 2005.
Bayh amendment No. 520, to appropriate an additional
$213,000,000 for Other Procurement, Army, for the procurement
of Up-Armored High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicles
(UAHMMWVs).

The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is now 15 minutes equally divided. Who
yields time?
The Senator from Massachusetts.

Amendment No. 520

Mr. KENNEDY. Mr. President, I yield myself 3 minutes.
In December, just a few months ago, the Secretary of Defense on a
visit to Iraq was asked by a soldier why our troops were sent into
battle with unarmored vehicles.
It was a question on the minds of many Americans--especially those
with sons, daughters, husbands, wives, friends, and neighbors who had
answered their country's call and whose lives are on the line every day
in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The American people are appalled that our troops have had to fend for
themselves by strapping plywood and scrap metal onto their vehicles.
Our troops call them ``cardboard coffins.'' As one soldier who served
in Iraq said, ``I would feel safer in a Volvo than I would in one of
these (unarmored) Humvees.''
But month after month, the Pentagon has failed to provide enough
armored Humvees to meet the urgent security needs of our troops on
dangerous patrols in Iraq. On nine different occasions, we have asked
the Pentagon for their requirements for armored Humvees, and nine times
they have been wrong.
An now the Pentagon actually wants to decrease the production of
armored Humvees.
Tell that to our troops in Iraq and Afghanistan and they'll let you
know how irresponsible that is--just as they told Secretary Rumsfeld on
his trip to Iraq in December.

[[Page S4080]]

Tell that to the family of James Sherill, a Kentucky National
Guardsman who was killed in an unarmored vehicle just this month.
Tell that to the families in Massachusetts who have lost loved ones
in Iraq.
Tell that to the tens of thousands of dedicated men and women in
uniform about to serve their second and third tours there. Tell them
they may have to ride into the danger zone yet again without enough
armor.
We know that American companies can produce more.
Armor Holdings--the company that puts the armor on the armored
Humvee--told my office this morning that its current contract with the
Army will mean sharp reductions in production. Right now, they provide
550 armored Humvees a month. Their current Army contract calls for only
239 in June, zero in July, 40 in August, and 71 in September. The
company is negotiating with the Army for slightly higher levels of
production for June, July, and August, but it still expects to decrease
production to 71 by September.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The time of the Senator has expired.
Mr. KENNEDY. I will take another minute.
We cannot let the Department of Defense get it wrong for the tenth
time. For the sake of our troops we need to get it right.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record a letter from
the Department of Defense to Senator Inouye that says:

To sustain production at the maximum capacity through the
end of FY05, the Army would need an additional funding of
approximately $213 million.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:

Department of the Army, Office of the Deputy Chief of
Staff, G-3/5/7,
Washington, DC.
Hon. Daniel K. Inouye,
Ranking Minority Member, Subcommittee on Defense, Committee
on Appropriations, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Senator Inouye: Greatly appreciate your outstanding
support as you work your way through the FY05 supplemental
request. Understand you are receiving several inquiries
regarding Up-Armored HMMWVs (UAH). To lend clarity to Army
requirements for the UAH in support of the Global War on
Terrorism (GWOT), we provide the following information.
The current GWOT requirement for UAH is 10,079. The amount
already appropriated and supported in reprogramming actions
funds 4,528 UAHs in FY05 enabling the Army to meet the 10,079
requirement in June 05 with no additional funding.
We currently are producing at the manufacturer's maximum
capacity of 550 per month. This will continue through June
05, at which time production rates will decline. To sustain
production at the maximum capacity through the end of FY05,
the Army would need additional funding of approximately $213
million; however, this sum is not necessary to address the
extant requirement.
Thank you very much for your hard work and fast action on
the supplemental bill. Your dedication to our men and women
in uniform, and their families, is deeply valued.
Sincerely,

David F. Melcher,

Lieutenant General,
U.S. Army, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-8.

James J. Lovelace,

Lieutenant General,
U.S. Army, Deputy Chief of Staff, G-3.

Mr. KENNEDY. The House of Representatives added 232. This amendment
is to do what the Department of Defense says is necessary to keep the
production line going. I hope it will be accepted.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Who yields time? The Senator from New Jersey.

Amendment No. 368, As Modified

Mr. CORZINE. Mr. President, amendment No. 368, as modified, was
accepted by both sides on the Foreign Operations Subcommittee last
night before a unanimous consent agreement, not in time for inclusion
in the managers' amendment. I therefore ask unanimous consent to lay
aside the pending amendment so I may call up amendment No. 368, as
modified, and ask unanimous consent this amendment be adopted.
Senator Brownback, Senator DeWine, and others are on this amendment
as well, which is funding for the Darfur peacekeeping operations as
well as disaster assistance.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Kansas.
Mr. BROWNBACK. Mr. President, this is an amendment we worked on for a
long time, a Darfur amendment, $50 million for peacekeepers, $40
million for food aid. It was agreed to but not in the managers' package
last night. We do ask unanimous consent this be brought up and we will
be asking for a voice vote on it. It has broad bipartisan support.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.
Mr. DeWINE. Mr. President, this is an amendment that will clearly
save lives. It is the right thing to do and I join my colleagues in
asking it be passed.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection? The Senator from
Mississippi.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, we have no objection to the amendment
being called up. We have discussed the amendment with the Senator from
New Jersey and the Senators from Kansas and Ohio. We have no objection
to proceeding to consider the amendment.
Mr. CORZINE. I ask for the yeas and nays.
Mr. COCHRAN. We are not going to join that request.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the amendment.
The bill clerk read as follows:

The Senator from New Jersey [Mr. Corzine] for himself, Mr.
DeWine, Mr. Brownback, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Leahy, and Mr. Obama,
proposes an amendment numbered 368, as modified.

Mr. COCHRAN. I ask unanimous consent the reading of the amendment be
dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:

On page 183, after line 23, add the following:

sudan

Sec. . Of the funds appropriated in this Act for
``Contributions for International Peacekeeping Activities'',
$90,500,000 may be made available for assistance for Darfur,
Sudan: Provided, That within these amounts, $50,000,000 may
be transferred to ``Peacekeeping Operations'' for support of
the efforts of the African Union to halt genocide and other
atrocities in Darfur, Sudan; Provided further, That
$40,500,000 may be transferred to ``International Disaster
and Famine Assistance'' for assistance for Darfur, Sudan and
other African countries.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. If there is no further debate on the
amendment, the question is on agreeing to the amendment.
The amendment (No. 368), as modified, was agreed to.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote and I move
to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Idaho.
Mr. CRAIG. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to offer an
amendment.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Mr. KENNEDY. Reserving the right to object, I do not intend to
object, but I thought we had a brief time for discussion of this
amendment. That is what I heard the unanimous consent agreement was,
for 15 minutes. That is what I thought we were going to debate and vote
on at a quarter of. That is the only reason I raise this objection
because there was a unanimous consent.
If the Senator wants to complete a brief unanimous consent request, I
will not object, but I hope if there are arguments against this
amendment, we will be able to hear them. We are prepared to put some
more arguments out there on the table.
Mr. CRAIG. I appreciate the concern of the Senator. I believe the
amendment I am sending to the desk has been agreed to on both sides.
There is a second degree. We should be able to move very quickly
through it.
Mr. KENNEDY. I have no objection.

Amendment No. 564

Mr. CRAIG. I send an amendment to the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Idaho [Mr. Craig] for himself and Mr.
Akaka, proposes an amendment numbered 564.

Mr. CRAIG. I ask unanimous consent the reading of the amendment be
dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:

[[Page S4081]]

(Purpose: To amend title 38, United States Code, to provide a traumatic
injury protection rider to servicemembers insured under section
1967(a)(1) of such title)

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

SEC. __. TRAUMATIC INJURY PROTECTION.

(a) In General.--Subchapter III of chapter 19, Title 38,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in section 1965, by adding at the end the following:
``(11) The term `activities of daily living' means the
inability to independently perform 2 of the 6 following
functions:
``(A) Bathing.
``(B) Continence.
``(C) Dressing.
``(D) Eating.
``(E) Toileting.
``(F) Transferring.''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:

``Sec. 1980A. Traumatic injury protection

``(a) A member who is insured under subparagraph (A)(i),
(B), or (C)(i) of section 1967(a)(1) shall automatically be
issued a traumatic injury protection rider that will provide
for a payment not to exceed $100,000 if the member, while so
insured, sustains a traumatic injury that results in a loss
described in subsection (b)(1). The maximum amount payable
for all injuries resulting from the same traumatic event
shall be limited to $100,000. If a member suffers more than 1
such loss as a result of traumatic injury, payment will be
made in accordance with the schedule in subsection (d) for
the single loss providing the highest payment.
``(b)(1) A member who is issued a traumatic injury
protection rider under subsection (a) is insured against such
traumatic injuries, as prescribed by the Secretary, in
collaboration with the Secretary of Defense, including, but
not limited to--
``(A) total and permanent loss of sight;
``(B) loss of a hand or foot by severance at or above the
wrist or ankle;
``(C) total and permanent loss of speech;
``(D) total and permanent loss of hearing in both ears;
``(E) loss of thumb and index finger of the same hand by
severance at or above the metacarpophalangeal joints;
``(F) quadriplegia, paraplegia, or hemiplegia;
``(G) burns greater than second degree, covering 30 percent
of the body or 30 percent of the face; and
``(H) coma or the inability to carry out the activities of
daily living resulting from traumatic injury to the brain.
``(2) For purposes of this subsection--
``(A) the term `quadriplegia' means the complete and
irreversible paralysis of all 4 limbs;
``(B) the term `paraplegia' means the complete and
irreversible paralysis of both lower limbs; and
``(C) the term `hemiplegia' means the complete and
irreversible paralysis of the upper and lower limbs on 1 side
of the body.
``(3) The Secretary, in collaboration with the Secretary of
Defense, shall prescribe, by regulation, the conditions under
which coverage against loss will not be provided.
``(c) A payment under this section may be made only if--
``(1) the member is insured under Servicemembers' Group
Life Insurance when the traumatic injury is sustained;
``(2) the loss results directly from that traumatic injury
and from no other cause; and
``(3) the member suffers the loss before the end of the
period prescribed by the Secretary, in collaboration with the
Secretary of Defense, which begins on the date on which the
member sustains the traumatic injury, except, if the loss is
quadriplegia, paraplegia, or hemiplegia, the member suffers
the loss not later than 365 days after sustaining the
traumatic injury.
``(d) Payments under this section for losses described in
subsection (b)(1) shall be--
``(1) made in accordance with a schedule prescribed by the
Secretary, in collaboration with the Secretary of Defense;
``(2) based on the severity of the covered condition; and
``(3) in an amount that is equal to not less than $25,000
and not more than $100,000.
``(e)(1) During any period in which a member is insured
under this section and the member is on active duty, there
shall be deducted each month from the member's basic or other
pay until separation or release from active duty an amount
determined by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs as the
premium allocable to the pay period for providing traumatic
injury protection under this section (which shall be the same
for all such members) as the share of the cost attributable
to provided coverage under this section, less any costs
traceable to the extra hazards of such duty in the uniformed
services.
``(2) During any month in which a member is assigned to the
Ready Reserve of a uniformed service under conditions which
meet the qualifications set forth in section 1965(5)(B) of
this title and is insured under a policy of insurance
purchased by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs under section
1966 of this title, there shall be contributed from the
appropriation made for active duty pay of the uniformed
service concerned an amount determined by the Secretary of
Veterans Affairs (which shall be the same for all such
members) as the share of the cost attributable to provided
coverage under this section, less any costs traceable to the
extra hazards of such duty in the uniformed services. Any
amounts so contributed on behalf of any member shall be
collected by the Secretary of the concerned service from such
member (by deduction from pay or otherwise) and shall be
credited to the appropriation from which such contribution
was made in advance on a monthly basis.
``(3) The Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall determine the
premium amounts to be charged for traumatic injury protection
coverage provided under this section.
``(4) The premium amounts shall be determined on the basis
of sound actuarial principles and shall include an amount
necessary to cover the administrative costs to the insurer or
insurers providing such insurance.
``(5) Each premium rate for the first policy year shall be
continued for subsequent policy years, except that the rate
may be adjusted for any such subsequent policy year on the
basis of the experience under the policy, as determined by
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs in advance of that policy
year.
``(6) The cost attributable to insuring such member under
this section, less the premiums deducted from the pay of the
member's uniformed service, shall be paid by the Secretary of
Defense to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. This amount
shall be paid on a monthly basis, and shall be due within 10
days of the notice provided by the Secretary of Veterans
Affairs to the Secretary of the concerned uniformed service.
``(7) The Secretary of Defense shall provide the amount of
appropriations required to pay expected claims in a policy
year, as determined according to sound actuarial principles
by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
``(8) The Secretary of Defense shall forward an amount to
the Secretary of Veterans Affairs that is equivalent to half
the anticipated cost of claims for the current fiscal year,
upon the effective date of this legislation.
``(f) The Secretary of Defense shall certify whether any
member claiming the benefit under this section is eligible.
``(g) Payment for a loss resulting from traumatic injury
will not be made if the member dies before the end of the
period prescribed by the Secretary, in collaboration with the
Secretary of Defense, which begins on the date on which the
member sustains the injury. If the member dies before payment
to the member can be made, the payment will be made according
to the member's most current beneficiary designation under
Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance, or a by law
designation, if applicable.
``(h) Coverage for loss resulting from traumatic injury
provided under this section shall cease at midnight on the
date of the member's separation from the uniformed service.
Payment will not be made for any loss resulting from injury
incurred after the date a member is separated from the
uniformed services.
``(i) Insurance coverage provided under this section is not
convertible to Veterans' Group Life Insurance.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter
19 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding
after the item relating to section 1980 the following:

``1980A. Traumatic injury protection.''.

(c) Effective Date.--
(1) In general.--The amendments made by this section shall
take effect on the first day of the first month beginning
more than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.
(2) Rulemaking.--Before the effective date described in
paragraph (1), the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, in
collaboration with the Secretary of Defense, shall issue
regulations to carry out the amendments made by this section.

Amendment No. 551 To Amendment No. 564

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Ohio.
Mr. DeWINE. I have a second-degree amendment at the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the second-degree
amendment.
The legislative clerk read as follows:

The Senator from Ohio [Mr. DeWine] proposes an amendment
numbered 551 to amendment No. 564.

Mr. DeWINE. I ask unanimous consent the reading of the amendment be
dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:

(Purpose: To make the traumatic injury insurance provision retroactive
for servicemembers injured in Iraq)

On page 8, line 16, strike ``(c)'' and insert the
following:
(c) Retroactive Provision.--
(1) In general.--Any member who experienced a traumatic
injury (as described in section 1980A(b)(1) of title 38,
United States Code) between October 7, 2001, and the
effective date under subsection (d), is eligible for coverage
provided in such section 1980A if the qualifying loss was a
direct result of injuries incurred in Operation Enduring
Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom.
(2) Certification; payment.--The Secretary of Defense
shall--
(A) certify to the Office of Servicemembers' Group Life
Insurance the names and addresses of those members the
Secretary of Defense determines to be eligible for
retroactive traumatic injury benefits under such section
1980A; and
(B) forward to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs, at the
time the certification is made

[[Page S4082]]

under subparagraph (A), an amount of money equal to the
amount the Secretary of Defense determines to be necessary to
pay all cost related to claims for retroactive benefits under
such section 1980A.
(d)

The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there further debate on the second-degree
amendment? If not, the question is on agreeing to the amendment.
The amendment (No. 551) was agreed to.

Amendment No. 564, As Amended

Mr. CRAIG. Mr. President, prior to a vote on the amendment as
amended, I would like to speak for up to 3 minutes.
I have sought recognition to comment on an amendment I have offered
to address a tremendous gap in coverage that exists in our treatment of
the soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen, who are fighting for our
country. My amendment addresses that coverage gap through the creation
of a new ``Traumatic Injury Protection'' insurance program for the
benefit of severely disabled servicemembers. But before I describe my
amendment, let me further discuss the nature of the problem my
amendment would attend to.
It is widely known that due to incredible advances in medicine,
servicemembers who may not have survived life-threatening injuries in
previous wars are now making it back home from Iraq and Afghanistan
alive. That is the good news. The bad news, however, is that they must
live with injuries that may have left them without their limbs, sight,
hearing, speech, or ability to even move.
All of my colleagues have likely met with these brave men and women
in their home States, or right here in Washington, DC, at the Walter
Reed Army Medical Center. They are fighting for their lives. They are
attempting to learn through physical and occupational therapy how to
reintegrate back into society. Needless to say, relearning things I and
my colleagues take for granted every day--how to walk, how to read, how
to simply make breakfast in the morning--can take months or, quite
possibly, years.
It is during this rehabilitation period at military hospitals that
the need for additional financial resources is most acute. For many
Guard and Reserve members at Walter Reed, they already have foregone
higher paying civilian jobs prior to their deployment. Lengthy recovery
periods simply add to the financial strain they bear. In addition,
family members of injured soldiers bear the burdens necessary to travel
from great distances to provide the love and emotional support that is
absolutely essential for any successful rehabilitation. Spouses quit
jobs to spend time with their husbands at the hospital. Parents spare
no expense to be with their injured children.
To meet these needs, my amendment would create a ``Traumatic Injury
Protection'' insurance rider as part of the existing Servicemembers'
Group Life Insurance Program. The traumatic insurance would provide
coverage for severely disabling conditions at a cost of approximately
$1 a month for participating servicemembers. The payment for those
suffering a severe disability would be immediate and would range from
$25,000 to a maximum of $100,000. The purpose of the immediate payment
would be to give injured servicemembers and their families the
financial cushion they need to sustain them before their medical
discharge from service when veterans' benefits would kick in.
The traumatic injuries covered under my amendment include: total and
permanent loss of sight; loss of hands or feet; total and permanent
loss of speech; total and permanent loss of hearing; quadriplegia;
paraplegia; burns greater than second degree, covering 30 percent of
the body or face; and certain traumatic brain injuries.
The cost of the amendment is entirely reasonable given the cause.
Informal CBO estimates put the FY2006 cost at $10 million. A very small
price to pay to meet the needs of these wounded warriors.
I cannot take credit for the idea behind this amendment. The credit
must go to disabled veterans of the Wounded Warrior Project, run under
the aegis of the United Spinal Association. Three Wounded Warrior
veterans of the Iraq war visited my office last week to discuss the
need to provide this type of an insurance benefit. One veteran, former
Army SSG Heath Calhoun, had both of his legs amputated after being
struck during a rocket propelled grenade attack in Iraq. Heath and his
wife, Tiffany, who was present with him in my office, described the
financial problems they endured after Tiffany quit her job to be with
Heath during his convalescence. It took over a year before Heath was
medically discharged from service. While the Calhoun family was able to
make it through that extremely trying period, Heath told me he was
adamant that other servicemembers in Iraq should not have to worry
about finances should they, too, be injured. The quickest way to
accomplish that, he told me, was to add a disability insurance rider--
financed by servicemembers through monthly premium deductions--to the
existing life insurance program. I am honored to sponsor this amendment
in the Senate on his, and the other veterans of the Wounded Warrior
Project's, behalf. I would also like to personally complement Ryan
Kelly, who also visited me last week. Mr. Kelly lost his right leg
during an ambush near Baghdad almost 21 months ago. I am told he was a
principal author of the draft legislation that culminated in the
amendment I offer today. I thank him for his fine work.
I also want to thank President Bush and his top administration
officials for lending their support to this amendment. Secretary of
Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson, Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul
Wolfowitz, and their staffs, who provided invaluable technical support
in the drafting of this amendment.
And most importantly, I want to thank my partner in this effort, the
Committee's ranking member, Senator Daniel K. Akaka. I thank him for
cosponsoring the amendment, and I thank him for joining me in a spirit
of bipartisanship as we seek to serve veterans together.
The supplemental already would make substantial improvements to
benefits provided to survivors of those killed in the line of duty. I
applaud those efforts. But I also remind my colleagues that we must be
vigilant in our care for those who are still fighting to regain the
normalcy of the lives they enjoyed prior to sustaining catastrophic
injuries in defense of our freedom. I ask for your support.
Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I speak in favor of the amendment offered
by the distinguished chairman and ranking member of the Veterans
Affairs Committee.
A few weeks ago, I met with Sergeants Ryan Kelly, Jeremy Feldbusch,
and Heath Calhoun, all of whom had recently returned from Iraq. They
served their country bravely in battle, and in doing so, each of these
men sustained a disabling injury that will change their lives forever.
When they came home, it would have been easy for them to go about
their own business or feel sorry for themselves.
But they did not. Instead, they decided that their service to our
country would not end on the battlefields of Iraq. They would speak out
for their fellow soldiers--the ones who also may come home without a
leg, or an arm, or their sight, but may not have the resources to carry
on and support their families.
This amendment is their tribute to their brothers and sisters-in-
arms.
For only about $3 per month, it allows service members to purchase
group disability insurance that would award them a maximum of $100,000
if they are deemed seriously injured. For disabled veterans who may not
be able to work when they come home, this insurance could help them
obtain long-term care, send their kids to school, or simply make sure
that they can pay the bills and still put food on the table. It won't
cost the Government a dime. It simply needs our approval to allow it to
happen.
The blessings of modern technology have saved the lives of many
service members who would otherwise have died from their wounds. Yet,
it also means there will be more wounded who need care. Every single
one of us has a fundamental moral duty to take care of those men and
women who've sacrificed to safeguard our freedom. This amendment offers
us one way to do that, and I thank Senators Craig and Akaka for their
cooperation in moving this issue forward.

[[Page S4083]]

Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I am pleased to support this important and
timely amendment.
This amendment will go far to ease the financial burden that is
placed on a service member and his or her loved ones as a result of
traumatic injury. Between $25,000 and $100,000 will be paid to service
members who suffer such injuries based on severity of injury.
Service members and their families face heavy financial burdens while
hospitalized, and prior to being medically discharged from the
military. This effort will help lessen the burden that exists on
service members and their families before VA benefits kick in.
Importantly, to qualify for this necessary benefit, our soldiers,
sailors, airmen, and marines do not have to do any additional
paperwork. They are automatically enrolled in this program by virtue of
being a participant in the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance
Program.
The insurance premium will cost the service member approximately $1 a
month and will be determined by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.
This insurance policy is meant to supplement, and not take the place
of, existing DoD and VA benefits. This amendment is intended to fill a
gap: assistance to service members and their families during recovery
from a traumatic injury. In no way should anyone view this as a
precedence for shifting costs to a service member.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there further debate? If not, the question
is on agreeing to the amendment.
The amendment (No. 564), as amended, was agreed to.
Mr. COCHRAN. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
Mr. CRAIG. I move to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Idaho.
Mr. CRAIG. I thank the Senator from Massachusetts for his
consideration, most importantly the chairman of the full Appropriations
Committee for his cooperation, the chairman of the Armed Services
Committee for his understanding and work with his staff. As chairman of
the Veterans' Affairs Committee, this was truly a team effort. Working
with my colleague from Ohio, Senator DeWine, we have accomplished
something for America's veterans, especially those very traumatically
injured, that I think is critical and necessary.
I yield the floor.
Mr. REID. Mr. President, I will speak briefly. If this time is taken
from the time scheduled for a vote at 3:45, I ask unanimous consent
whatever time I use extend the vote that amount of time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

____________________