June 23, 2014

Ranking Member Michaud’s Statement on OSC Report & New Allegations of Phoenix VA Misconduct

Washington, D.C. – As the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee held an evening hearing on veterans’ access to care, there were two new developments in the VA healthcare crisis today: a new report sent from the Office of the Special Counsel to President Obama, which raises serious concerns about the VA’s responsiveness to whistleblowers about patient care and safety; as well as new allegations from the Phoenix VA that staffers were instructed to alter the files of deceased patients to downplay the number of veterans who died while waiting for care.

Ranking Member Mike Michaud (D-Maine) issued the following statement in response to today’s news:

“I am angered by today’s revelations. Both the OSC memo and the latest reports out of Phoenix underscore the urgency of our mission as we work to finalize a bill that gets to the root of these systemic failures and ensure they never occur again, while also holding those accountable responsible.

“Unfortunately, it’s becoming increasingly clear that this is not a problem that we can blame on outdated software or a bulky, multi-layered leadership infrastructure – but also a cultural problem within the VA. We must get to a place where the VA is driven by ensuring it delivers high-quality, timely care to every single veteran, rather than be driven by things like shallow metrics. I am hopeful that, as we head to conference this week, we will continue acting in bipartisan unison to put measures in place that will give our veterans the VA system they truly deserve.”