The deal includes $10 billion in emergency funding to give veterans who cant get a VA medical appointment the option to receive non-VA care, and $5 billion to pay for hiring staff.

Negotiations in Congress over how to finance medical care for military veterans are stalled although Republicans and Democrats say completing a deal before next month is a top priority.

Benefits for military veterans will cost an extra $1.14 billion in the next five years without management improvements in an agency already criticized for health-care delays

The U.S. Senate voted to spend about $1.5 billion to improve health-care access for military veterans two weeks after an inspector generals report exposed widespread mismanagement at government hospitals.

Representative Tim Bishop of New York, among the most vulnerable House Democrats seeking re- election this year, said hes embracing Obamacare.

The Republican senator from Florida says the future of retirement in America is very much in doubt.

House Speaker John Boehner said hes still pushing to revamp U.S. immigration law even after mocking fellow Republicans for not backing legislation because its too hard.

A Republican alternative should be voted on before lawmakers leave Washington for a month-long recess in August.