Directing Secretary of Veterans Affairs to Submit A Report on Use of Cameras in Medical Centers of Department of Veterans Affairs

Floor Speech

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Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1510, the Veterans' Camera Reporting Act, introduced by Representative McKinley of West Virginia.

This bill, as amended by the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, requires VA to submit a report to Congress analyzing the Department's use and maintenance of video cameras for the purposes of patient safety and law enforcement within all of its medical facilities.

Last Tuesday, a nursing assistant who was formerly employed at a VA hospital in West Virginia was sentenced to seven consecutive life sentences plus 20 years after she pleaded guilty to murdering seven veterans and assaulting an eighth veteran with intent to commit murder. She took insulin that she was not authorized to administer, and she injected it into veterans who did not need it, killing all eight of them.

Following the sentencing last week, the VA Office of the Inspector General issued a report identifying numerous deficiencies in patient care and failures in VA oversight at the facility where these murders occurred. Among other things, the OIG found that there were no cameras in the ward where these events occurred, nor in the medication room where the insulin was stored, and there were no locks or other mechanisms for monitoring access to medication carts where insulin was also kept.

There are no words to adequately express the horror and sorrow we feel about the heinous crimes committed against these veterans. We cannot imagine the pain the families have endured since evidence of these murders came to light nearly 3 years ago. We can only hope that last week's sentencing will help the victims' families begin to heal and to find a sense of closure.

In Congress, we have a responsibility to help ensure that VA never allows something like this to happen again. Now, as an initial step, we need to better understand how VA uses video cameras for monitoring patient safety and physical security within its medical facilities. To that end, H.R. 1510 will require VA to submit a report summarizing how cameras are used to monitor staff and patients, the units within which cameras are prioritized, and how cameras are used to monitor drug storage. The report also must include recommendations on improving the use of cameras at VA, including whether the Department needs additional resources to install cameras for patient safety and law enforcement purposes.

This bill will require VA's report to encompass all of its medical facilities nationwide. Drug diversion, assaults, harassment, suicides, and other patient safety incidents can occur at any VA medical facility, not just hospitals. VA operates more than 1,000 inpatient and outpatient facilities across the country. Congress needs a complete picture of the extent to which cameras are used across VA so that we can better assist the Department in addressing any shortfalls.

Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to join me in approving this important bill.

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Mr. TAKANO. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers. In closing, I ask all my colleagues to join me in passing H.R. 1510, which cleared the committee unanimously. I can see no reason why any Member would vote against this bill.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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