Problems at the VA

Military veterans have the right to receive reasonable medical care. That is the agreement that exists between them and the nation they defend, obey and die for. Therefore, the tragedy of patients of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) who die waiting for care is absolutely unacceptable and shameful.

According to news reports, at the VA’s hospital in Phoenix, 40 veterans died while waiting for their medical appointments. The delay in care at the VA is a problem that has been known for years. Reports from the Government Accountability Office already mentioned delays in providing health care to veterans.

What is unusual and very serious about the situation is the accusation that people within the hospital manipulated waiting lists, at least to report that the delay in providing care to veterans was not as bad as it actually was. We need to know for sure what type of manipulation occurred, for example in Phoenix, and whether it had an impact on patient deaths. The FBI should investigate this.

On the other hand, the VA is a huge bureaucracy, with almost 1,700 facilities that include hospitals, clinics, counseling centers and more. Around 280,000 people work in these facilities; the VA’s annual budget for 2014 is $152.7 billion.

Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric Shinseki is the one responsible for the slow reaction to the reports of deaths and the poor responses in front of Congress. He will very probably have to resign from his job in order to neutralize Republican attacks targeting the White House and seeking political brownie points for the November mid-term elections.

Inevitably, the worst bureaucratic inefficiency lends itself to politicking. In this case, the Obama administration is the one that must send clear signals that it will tackle the problem. The president said it yesterday. However, it may be too late to save Shinseki, like the president intends, and set this problem aside, making sure that veterans get the health care that they deserve.