host: bill rausch of the iava. your reaction to the statements by john boehner on the house floor last week. guest: the first thing i agree with is the cost overruns in denver are atrocious. the the v.a. medical facility in denver, which is a large complex, is years behind schedule and millions over edge it. it is another example why the v.a. should not be in the construction business. they brought in a corps of engineers were looking to tennis that, but there is a budget battle on whether there should be a stoppage of work. in d.c., we know things can get wonky so there is a debate on whether funding should continue so they can finish the medical center or whether they should stop, which would cost the government even more. there is a debate so -- host: where does the iava come down on that, do you think the money should keep coming? guest: we think the v.a. should get out of construction. the immediate problem, there is a deal that will cost less than the original proposal to finish what has been constructed and

bill rausch who is missing in action right now for awol. political director for iraq and afghanistan veterans of america. carlos field taste of the veterans of foreign wars and we welcome all of you and we will start with you mr. butler. >> chairman nye six and ranking member blumenthal and distinguished members of the committee on behalf of our national commander michael hamm in the 2.3 million members of the american legion we thank you for this opportunity to testify regarding the american legion steel of the progress of the veterans choice program. the american legion supported the access to choice and accountability act of 2014 as a means of addressing emerging problems than the department of veterans affairs. v-8 waits for medical care have reached an unacceptable level as veteran struggled to reset access to timely health care within the va health care system. it was clear this with changes were needed to ensure that veterans have access to health canada timely matter. as a result the american legion to charge by setting up veterans

bill rausch who is missing in action right now for awol. political director for iraq and afghanistan veterans of america. carlos field taste of the veterans of foreign wars and we welcome all of you and we will start with you mr. butler. mr. butler: chairman isakson six and ranking member blumenthal and distinguished members of the committee on behalf of our national commander michael hamm in the 2.3 million members of the american legion we thank you for this opportunity to testify regarding the american legion steel of the progress of the veterans choice program. the american legion supported the access to choice and accountability act of 2014 as a means of addressing emerging problems than the department of veterans affairs. v.a. waits for medical care have reached an unacceptable level as veteran struggled to reset access to timely health care within the va health care system. it was clear this with changes were needed to ensure that veterans have access to health care in a timely matter. as a result the american legion took charge by s

bill rausch. carlos fuentes. we welcome all of you for being here today. >> on behalf of our national commander, michael hamm and the 2.3 million members of the american legion we thank you for this opportunity to testify. it's reached an unacceptable level nationwide has veterans struggle to receive access to timely health care within the va health care system. it was clear that swift changes were needed to ensure veterans could access health care in a timely manner. the american he john vbc charges to work first hand with veterans experiencing difficulties in obtaining health care or having difficulties in receiving their benefits. according to the v.a. latest daily choice metrics dated november 31st 2015 there were approximately 51000 authorizations issued for non-v.a. care since implementation of the choice program with about 49,000 scheduled. the american he john is optimistic that the recent rule change by eliminating the straight line rule and using the actual driving distance will allow more veterans acce