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(Washington, D.C.) –Congressman Larry Bucshon, M.D. (IN-08) released the following statementafter the House of Representatives passed the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018:
“Each and every day, our brave servicemen and women put their lives on the line to defend our nation and our freedom. Unfortunately, as a result of budget cuts over the past several years, our military capabilities have been dangerously pushed to the brink. Across every service branch, our troops are unable to effectively and safely carry out their mission. The Air Force is at its smallest size in our nation’s history. In the Army, modernization funds have been cut in half in just the past eight years. In the Navy, sailors are working 100-hour work weeks while less than half of their aircraft are capable of flying. In fact, in 2017, we lost 80 service members in accidents and training incidents—nearly four times more than we lost in combat. The Bipartisan Budget Act paves the way for Congress to provide the higher levels of defense spending that Defense Secretary Mattis has said is needed to begin rebuilding our nation’s military capabilities and will allow our men and women in uniform to be able to do their jobs.
“In addition to ensuring our troops get the funding they need; the Bipartisan Budget Act advances other important priorities. For instance, the bill includes two additional years of funding for community health centers, increased funding for infrastructure, and much needed funding to help fight the opioid crisis that is raging in communities across America and destroying families and communities in its wake. Finally, the Bipartisan Budget Act helps advance the effort to repeal Obamacare by repealing the Independent Payment Advisory Board (IPAB). The IPAB would have resulted in health care decisions for seniors being made by a board of unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats more focused on ensuring that care fits into a budget than on ensuring seniors get the care they need.
“While the Bipartisan Budget Act is far from perfect, the bottom line is that in a world where challenges to our national security are only growing it enables Congress to get our troops the resources they need to keep our nation safe.”
Congressman Larry Bucshon, M.D. is a physician and Republican member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee serving his fourth term representing Indiana's 8th Congressional district. The 8th District of Indiana includes all or parts of Clay, Crawford, Daviess, Dubois, Gibson, Greene, Knox, Martin, Owen, Parke, Perry, Pike, Posey, Spencer, Sullivan, Vanderburgh, Vermillion, Vigo, and Warrick counties.
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