U.S. House Approves Measure that Brings Accountability and Responsibility to Veterans Administration

Press Release

The U.S. House of Representatives this afternoon passed legislation that holds accountable Veterans Administration officials at all levels. The bill, H.R. 1994, the VA Accountability Act, protects whistleblowers that are motivated by higher VA standards, strengthens performance measures for senior VA staff, and empowers the secretary of veterans affairs to remove incompetent VA employees. It was approved by a bipartisan vote of 256-170.

Iowa Congressman David Young, a cosponsor of the legislation, released this statement following its successful passage.

"We all remember the scandals at the Phoenix and Philadelphia VA facilities where veterans were an afterthought by the employees. The tragic truth is that one in three veterans seeking VA care died while waiting for that care, equating to hundreds of thousands of lives. It is unacceptable that the VA remains inefficient, unaccountable, and completely lacking transparency."

"This legislation is a step in bringing genuine accountability and responsibility to the VA and to the employees who are charged with serving and protecting our veterans. It will streamline the process to remove or demote VA employees for poor performance, misconduct, or simply not doing their job. And it will protect the whistleblowers needed to root out problems and address this lack of accountability in the VA. Like the men and women who have served; we must lead, we must change the way the VA operates so that it delivers the best care in the world to our nation's heroes."

The legislation now awaits consideration by the U.S. Senate before it can be sent to the President's Desk to be signed into law.

Why this legislation is needed:

There are now 50 percent more veterans on wait lists for a month or more than there was during the height of the scandal last year according to a NY Times report from earlier this year.

Additionally, the VA's Health Eligibility Center says 847,822 veterans were awaiting healthcare as of April 2015, and that of those, 238,647 were already deceased.

The VA Secretary went on national television and said 60 people were fired for manipulating wait times, and yet only 3 have actually lost their jobs.

A recent study done by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that on average, it takes six months to a year, if not longer, to remove a permanent civil servant in the Federal Government.

A new poll from Concerned Veterans for America shows that 88 percent of veterans want health care options outside the VA.

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