When is the new machine to be placed in Denver?

Dr. ENGLE. Denver will be funded in fiscal year 1967, Senator. Senator ALLOTT. That is 365 days, Doctor, that is a long time. Dr. ENGLE. Starting July 1.

Senator ALLOTT. It starts July 1, and goes to July 1, 1967. I would like to know when you are planning on having a machine in there. Because I am going to get 365 letters at least on that situation.

Mr. DRIVER. We certainly have a planning date that we can supply. Senator ALLOTT. You have assured me this was in the 1967 budget. Senator MAGNUSON. Is this a problem of money?

Mr. DRIVER. NO. It is a problem of scheduling it. It has to be constructed.

Senator MAGNUSON. I think time is of the essence in these things. This committee does not want to be accused of not having enough money for this worthy program. We want to put in as much as you need to get these things accomplished.

Dr. ENGLE. We are going as fast as we can. We have to prepare certain things. We have to buy equipment, train the people. We have 11 operating now, and 17 additional ones starting July 1. Denver is one of the 17.

Senator MAGNUSON. Go as fast as you can. If there is any question of the amount of money-because in this budget, it is a comparatively small mount for this lifegiving project.

Senator ALLOTT. That is right-particularly when you have individuals who are waiting for care, specific individuals, and cannot get it. It gets to be a pretty delicate thing to explain to them that there are 17 going to be funded this year.

Senator MAGNUSON. Is that in the research amount?

Mr. MONK. No, sir. Medical care.

Senator MAGNUSON. All right.

Good.

Mr. MONK. Plus there are some construction moneys, Senator, to

fix up the places.

Senator MAGNUSON. Fine.

GRANTS TO THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

Now, the grants to the Philippines. That has gone down, hasn't it? Mr. DRIVER. Yes, sir.

Senator ALLOTT. What are our total contributions through the VA to the Philippines now?

Mr. STRATTON. About 58 percent of our foreign payments. The total for fiscal year 1966 is $71 million, and $41,600,000 goes to the Philippines. These are in direct payments.

Senator ALLOTT. $41,600,000 now?

Mr. STRATTON. Yes, sir.

Senator ALLOTT. Are those mostly pensions?

Mr. STRATTON. No, sir; mostly compensation.

Senator ALLOTT. Are we still supporting that hospital over there?

Mr. STRATTON. $386,000 a year; yes, sir.

Senator ALLOTT. All right? Thank you.

993

CONSTRUCTION OF HOSPITAL AND DOMICILIARY FACILITIES

Senator MAGNUSON. Now, we are down to "Construction." Of course, we will hear from our colleagues about these items, many of them.

I am going to step down as chairman of the subcommittee for 1 minute, and ask you a question as a Senator from the State of Washington.

VA HOSPITAL, SEATTLE, WASH.

You have kept telling me as far back as 1963, that there is a Sattle VA hospital on the drawing boards-since 1963. Where is it now? Mr. DRIVER. Seattle hospital?

Senator MAGNUSON. I mean the enlargement of it.

Mr. MONK. Well, Senator, we are planning to add some beds in Seattle. We were planning, you know, to add them at the present hospital. Just last week, or the week before last, the Public Health Service sent a team out there to evaluate our hospital, Public Health Service has needs in Seattle, and they need to modernize or do something with the hospital they have.

Senator MAGNUSON. That is right.

Mr. MONK. They were going out there to look at our hospital, to see whether they could take our hospital to fulfill their needs, in which event we would then plan to build a new, larger hospital in Seattle. We have not heard from the Public Health Service team. Senator MAGNUSON. That is the so-called marine hospital. They are right within a few blocks of each other, five or six blocks.

Mr. MONK. Yes, sir. But they feel they need more beds, as I understand it, and they need to do some modernization. If they could fulfill their needs by taking our hospital, we would build a new one. Now, if they don't do that

Senator MAGNUSON. I would hope that they would do something themselves, because I think you have the most beautiful piece of land there is within a city, in the United States. At the VA hospital in Seattle, you have plenty of land, the best located VA hospital within a big metropolitan center I have seen.

Of course, they are crowded near the base of that hill. A freeway, I guess, is going to come in right next to them.

However, the VA hospital has a beautiful piece of property.

Mr. DRIVER. We need about 250 more beds.

Senator MAGNUSON. Give me a report on when they come in, because I am constantly getting a lot of mail as to when we are going to add some beds, or to the prospect of a new hospital.

Mr. DRIVER. Yes, sir.

Senator MAGNUSON. NOW

995

VA HOSPITAL, BOSTON, MASS.

Senator ALLOTT. On hospital construction, do you have any report on the building of the hospital in Boston, as to the status of the lawsuit that was brought?

Mr. MONK. That lawsuit is still in process, and they are still hearing. Apparently it is going to take several more weeks.

VA HOSPITAL, TAMPA, FLA.

Senator MAGNUSON. Now, you have a new place at Tampa, Fla.a 720-bed hospital. How does that affect the one that Senator Holland is always interested in?

Mr. DRIVER. Doesn't affect it at all. It is just an additional hospital. It will have to come in for reevaluation and modernization later. But they need all these beds.

Senator MAGNUSON. If it does, we will be hearing from him.

All right. We discussed that nursing home.

If there are no further questions, thank you very much.

Senator ALLOTT. I have one question.

This was before you got to be Administrator here.

In the hearings, page 2212, fiscal year 1964-relative to the St. Paul facilities for the veterans insurance "St. Paul facilities are completely satisfactory and meet our requirements fully for the consolidated insurance activity." The other day GSA testified that the new $161⁄2 million building which they are about to build on Fort Snelling property would be occupied 40 percent by the Veterans' Administration. That would be about six and a half million of the sixteen and a half million.

Do you agree to that?

Mr. DRIVER. It is approximate. I am not exactly sure whether it is 40 percent. But it is in that area; yes, sir.

Senator ALLOTT. Well, I just wish for a minute that you were not Administrator, and that I had Mr. Gleason back here as Administrator-just for this morning, you understand. Because the situation which I pointed out at that time, at the time they made this transfer, has turned out completely. The Veterans did not have and this was not done by you the Veterans did not have the space up there for that facility. They broke up 700 homes in the State of Colorado to move them up there. And now we are spending about six and a half million dollars, at least, according to GSA, to house the facilities which we have up there.

Now, do you have any veterans in any other Veterans' Administration, and will you have when they complete this, in any other places? Mr. DRIVER. Up there?

Senator ALLOTT. Yes.

Mr. DRIVER. We have a hospital which we will continue. But all of our administrative personnel associated with insurance and regional office activities would be in the Federal building. And we are turning over all of the land and the building as quickly as we can to the State.

Senator ALLOTT. I assume, then, from the fact that the building is being built, and that you are going to occupy it, that you made justification that this kind of new space was needed for the Veterans' Administration there?