Showing posts with label Department of Veterans Affairs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Department of Veterans Affairs. Show all posts

Monday, August 11, 2014

What "inept, corrupt" officials?

August 11, 2014 Department of Veterans Affairs , Veterans Affairs Scandal 0 Comments
VA Not Rushing To Fire Inept, Corrupt Officials

House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman 
Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., is asking about the VA’s plans
 to fire employees, but has come up empty so far. 
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
By Pete Kasperowics, Aug. 11, 2014, Theblaze.com

The Department of Veterans Affairs has offered few indications in the last few weeks that it’s willing to move aggressively to fire incompetent or corrupt officials involved in the VA health care scandal, and so far is keeping Congress in the dark about its plans.

These signs are leading some to worry that few officials will be punished for the scandal that left thousands of veterans waiting months or even years for health care appointments.

In late July, the VA announced that it might discipline six officials, but it declined to name them, and indicated that only two of them may be fired.

That vague announcement prompted House Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) to ask the VA’s Office of Inspector General for details about these six officials. But as of Monday, the IG had yet to respond to Miller’s July 31 letter, according to a House aide.

Miller also asked new VA Secretary Robert McDonald on July 30 for a weekly update on all disciplinary actions taken against VA officials, something that Miller asked for earlier in the summer.

“I requested that the VA begin providing the committee with weekly updates on all adverse employment actions being initiated against VA employees, officials and contractors,” Miller wrote. “I requested that the first production of such information be provided to the committee by Friday, June 6, 2014. To date, we have received no information regarding this request.”

Miller’s letter asked for weekly updates to begin on August 8, but the House aide said the VA has yet to comply.

The slow start to the firing process comes despite recent evidence that many VA officials were involved in the scandal. In late July, Rep. Martha Roby (R-Ala.) said she learned that more than half of the employees surveyed were told to manipulate veterans’ health care wait times in Central Alabama, and that one doctor manipulated 1,200 patient records to pretend tests were done that never took place.

Read the full story: www.theblaze.com

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Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Bad VA Care May Have Killed More Than 1,000 Veterans, Senator's Report Says--Only 1,000?

Bad VA Care May Have Killed More Than 1,000 Veterans, Senator's Report Says--Only 1,000?

June 25, 2014 Department of Veterans Affairs , Sen. Tom Coburn 0 Comments


By Curt Devine, Jun. 24, 2014, Cnn.com

(CNN) -- More than 1,000 veterans may have died in the last decade because of malpractice or lack of care from Department of Veterans Affairs medical centers, a new report issued by the office of Sen. Tom Coburn finds.

The report aggregates government investigations and media reports to trace a history of fraudulent scheduling practices, budget mismanagement, insufficient oversight and lack of accountability that have led to the current controversy plaguing the VA.

The VA has admitted that 23 patients have died because of delayed care in recent years, but the report, titled "Friendly Fire: Death, Delay, and Dismay at the VA," shows many more patient deaths have been linked to systemic issues affecting VA hospitals and clinics throughout the U.S.

Coburn, an Oklahoma Republican and physician, says that if the VA's budget had been properly handled and the right management had been in place, many of these deaths could have been avoided.

"Over the past decade, more than 1,000 veterans may have died as a result of VA malfeasance," said Coburn, a three-time cancer survivor who says the government should offer veterans access to private hospitals.

"Poor management is costing the department billions of dollars more and compromising veterans' access to medical care," he said.

Since November 2013, CNN has been reporting on how veterans wait excessive periods for VA health care, causing some to die in the process.

Read the full story:  www.cnn.com

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Monday, May 19, 2014

Report: 100 Veteran Deaths Linked To 'Delay In Treatment' At VA Hospitals --Only the beginning of scandal

May 19, 2014 CBS' Face the Nation , Department of Veterans Affairs 1 Comments
By Greg Richter, May 18, 2014, Newsmax.com

As the Department of Veterans Affairs faces an increasing amount of scrutiny over allegations of "secret" waiting lists that left veterans at VA hospitals untreated for months, a new report shows that the VA settled several claims that appear related to treatment delays.

The Dayton Daily News, in a story published Sunday, says its investigation of a database of paid claims shows that since 2001 the words "delay in treatment" were used 167 times. The VA paid out $36.4 million to settle the claims, the Daily News reported.

In one case the newspaper found the Dayton VA paid out $140,000 in 2009 on a 2006 claim described as "Failure/Delay in Admission to Hospital or Institution; Medication Administered via Wrong Route; Failure to Order Appropriate Test."

On Sunday, the deputy director of the VFW Nation Veterans Service told Fox News that there needs to be “swift accountability” regarding reports of treatment delays at veterans’ hospitals across the country.

“The families of these veterans need justice and they need it quickly,” Ryan Gallucci said on “Fox News Sunday.”

Also, the White House chief of staff said that President Barack Obama is "madder than hell" about the reports of treatment delays at veterans' hospitals around the nation.

Denis McDonough told CBS' "Face the Nation" that Obama is demanding that Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki and others in the administration "continue to fix these things until they're functioning the way that our veterans believe they should."

Dayton VA spokesman Ted Froats told the paper he is unaware of any deaths at the Dayton VA Medical Center related to delayed care. But the paper reported that one pending case was filed by a man who says his wife's 2012 death was caused by failure of the VA to diagnose her cervical cancer.

More than 100 payments a year are made on claims that veterans died as a result of VA medical care, the Daily News and WSB-TV in Atlanta reported.

Read the full story:  www.newsmax.com


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