President Obama submitted a $112.8 billion Department of Veterans Affairs budget request for 2010 to Congress, with most of the money earmarked for veterans’ health care and benefit programs. The figure represents an 11 percent increase over the Bush administration’s final proposed VA budget last year, not including money the VA received under the Recovery Act. The proposed 2010 VA budget anticipates an 8 percent increase in education benefit claims, treatment of 122,000 more patients at medical facilities, and 6.1 million patients receiving care by year’s end, including 419,000 who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. The administration hopes to expand health care eligibility to more than 500,000 newcomers by 2013, and reduce the time it takes to process compensation and pension claims to 150 days by the end of 2010. The plan also calls for several new veterans’ cemeteries, seven new medical facilities, and improvements at other medical centers.