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Panel: Vets care 'poor'

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published March 9, 2007

WASHINGTON - A former Veterans Affairs official said Thursday he warned the department as early as August 2005 of backlogs in the VA benefits claims system but officials instead shelved a program aimed at alleviating delays.

Paul Sullivan, a former project manager for the VA, told a House panel investigating veterans care that he helped develop a program to consolidate medical records with the Defense Department but that the program suddenly ended once Secretary Jim Nicholson took office in early 2005.

Testimony from Sullivan and the Government Accountability Office painted a picture of neglect, bureaucratic delays and poor coordination in the nation's vast network of 1,400 VA hospitals and clinics.

Lawmakers from both parties expressed outrage.

"That's unacceptable and embarrassing, and the American people deserve answers," said Rep. Harry Mitchell, D-Ariz., who chairs the subcommittee. "I'm not convinced the Veterans Affairs Department is doing its part."

Rep. Steve Buyer, R-Ind., agreed, citing years of warnings. "I can't even begin to count the number of GAO reports over the years outlining the problems," he said. "It's been 20 years in the making trying to get the VA and DoD to cooperate."

Thursday's hearing was the latest to examine the quality of care for wounded veterans in the wake of disclosures of shoddy outpatient health care at Walter Reed, one of the nation's premier facilities for treating veterans wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Since the report last month by the Washington Post, Defense Secretary Robert Gates has forced Army Secretary Francis Harvey to resign and Maj. Gen. George W. Weightman, who was in charge of Walter Reed since August 2006, was ousted from his post.

[Last modified March 9, 2007, 02:32:31]