Review of Veterans Healthcare System Called for by Kilmer Moving Forward
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-06) praised the effort to comprehensively study management problems at the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). The Government Accountability Office (GAO) agreed to examine the organization’s layout, workforce, and IT systems after a request from Kilmer. The report follows numerous reports of manipulated wait times and management failures at the VHA.
“We have an obligation to care for veterans who sacrificed so much to fight for our freedom,” said Kilmer. “It’s time to prove we have their backs. After stories and reports about manipulated wait times and mismanagement in our VA system it became clear systemic reforms were needed. It’s great news that a review I called for with Representative Corrine Brown will be conducted to help us better increase oversight and improve care at the VA to get veterans the services they need.”
In response to news reports about patient delays at the Phoenix VA last summer a national audit of VA facilities was released. The Tacoma News Tribune found that the VA Puget Sound hospital facilities had new patients waiting 59 days – on average – for an appointment. Nearly 100,000 veterans use the VA Puget Sound system. Nationally, the audit found that 13 percent of VA schedulers reported that supervisors told them to manipulate appointments to make wait times look shorter. Washington state’s 6th District is home to more than 25,000 active duty and reserve service members, along with more than 50,000 veterans and their families.
In their letter to the GAO, Kilmer and Brown asked that the review look into three key areas:
- Structure of the organization: Including how well roles and responsibilities are defined between national and local facilities, accountability on following core VHA duties, how audits are used to improve services, and how effective planning, communications, and contracting is within the organization.
- Workforce: Including if planning meets VHA needs, hiring and retaining talented workers, ensuring a positive work environment, and how performance is evaluated.
- Information Technology (IT): Including if technology is supporting core VA responsibilities and priorities for technology systems.
The GAO study was included in the Veterans Health Administration Management Improvement Act Kilmer reintroduced in January. Kilmer has worked with Veteran Service Organizations, his Veterans Council, and the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to come up with proposals to effectively address long-term challenges in the VA system. Though the House of Representatives passed a package to address several issues affecting veterans’ healthcare last June, Kilmer’s legislation is intended to address and change the underlying culture that caused manipulated wait times and cover-ups.
The Veterans Health Administration Management Improvement Act seeks to supplement and enhance the changes that Congress already made by passing the Veterans Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014. The bill takes additional steps to address leadership failures by management, and to make it easier for employees to report mismanagement. Specifically the legislation:
- Directs the GAO to conduct a study to determine what management problems exist at the VA, and establishes a pilot program to provide an opportunity for management to improve;
- Establishes a VHA Management and Accountability Ombudsman to provide a safe avenue for employees to report issues they observe. The Ombudsman would be responsible for keeping the Secretary of Veterans Affairs appraised of employee concerns; and
- Establishes a patients’ bill of rights to create basic rights for VHA beneficiaries, so that veterans have a clear sense of what they are entitled to in their healthcare. The bill of rights was written after consulting multiple stakeholders to ensure it meets industry best practices.
This week, the Congressional Research Service released a report this week detailing how the GAO study, pilot program, and creation of an ombudsman could help with oversight issues in the VHA system.
During his time in Congress, Kilmer has sought to address issues facing the nation’s veterans. In both of his terms Kilmer has introduced a bill to add anti-discrimination laws for housing and employment to ensure that military status isn’t used against any veteran looking for a home or a job. Kilmer first announced his VHA reform bill in Tacoma with representatives from local veterans’ organizations. He has also formed a Veterans Advisory Group to identify the challenges that veterans face.
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