Wyden, Merkley and DeFazio Announce New, Bipartisan Legislation to Improve Staffing at VA Health Centers

Press Release

Today, Oregon's Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Representative Peter DeFazio announced new, bipartisan legislation to improve health care at VA facilities. The Veterans Health Care Staffing Improvement Act would make common-sense changes in staffing policies at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and improve veterans care at VA health care facilities.

The legislation was introduced today in the Senate by a bipartisan coalition of Senators and will be introduced by DeFazio in the House next week.

At many VA health centers around the country, veterans face wait times of weeks or even months for an appointment. These severe roadblocks to providing timely and quality health care to veterans stem in part from a shortfall of tens of thousands of medical staff. The Veterans Health Care Staffing Improvement Act would reduce bureaucratic obstacles to make it easier for the VA to boost staffing at VA health centers and reduce wait times.

"Our military medical professionals are some of the best-trained, most experienced folks around when it comes to providing care," Wyden said. "This bill will help the VA tap that resource, cutting red tape, hiring the trained medical professionals it desperately needs, and reducing wait times for our veterans at home."

"Our veterans have stepped up, taken the oath, and put on the uniform so that the rest of us can live in a country that is safer and more secure," Merkley said. "They have stood up for us, and we must stand up for them. Long wait times put our veterans' health in jeopardy and are simply unacceptable. It's absurd that doctors can't move from one VA hospital to another without significant red tape. It's just common sense to eliminate unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles like these and to create a "docs-to-doctors' pipeline from the military into the VA system."

"After years of gross negligence and outrageous mismanagement, there is no reason the VA should not explore every possible option to improve their policies," DeFazio said. "Long wait times, practitioner shortages, and haphazard administrative standards are impacting the quality of care that our nation's veterans are receiving. Our bill will cut bureaucratic red tape and instill some much-needed common sense into the VA's policies."

"The Douglas County Veterans Forum is pleased to endorse the "Veterans Health Care Staffing Improvement Act,'" said John McDonald, President of the Douglas County Veterans Forum. "We want to thank Senator Merkley, Senator Wyden and Congressman DeFazio for this common sense bill that will facilitate a seamless transition from military service into a VA Healthcare system that is experiencing a drought in providers."

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