The Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs held a hearing on Thursday to examine allegations that a number of Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities across the country falsified or concealed records.
VA facilities around the country allegedly concealed medical records to make it appear that patients were being treated within 14 days, according to a recent VA investigation. Reports found that at least 40 veterans allegedly died after they were placed on a “secret waiting list” for treatment at a facility in Phoenix.
Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, said the VA reported that 93 percent of specialty and primary care appointments and 95 percent of mental health appointments were made within 14 days of the requested date.
“At first glance, these numbers appear to demonstrate that veterans are receiving the care they want and when they want it,” Burr said. “However, we know this is not the case. I think if VA had asked hard questions regarding these statistics, we would not be here today discussing recent allegations surrounding many VA facilities.”
Burr said that the Government Accountability Office (GAO), the Office of Inspector General (IG) and the Office of the Medical Inspector issued reports on outpatient wait times and record keeping at VA facilities that date back to 2012.
“With the numerous GAO, IG and Office of the Medical Inspector reports that have been released, VA senior leadership, including the secretary, should have been aware that VA was facing a national scheduling crisis,” Burr said. “VA’s leadership has either failed to connect the dots, or failed to address this ongoing crisis, which has resulted in patient harm and even death.”
Burr said the committee needed to explore why the VA launched national audits this month when information on delays in care have been available since 2012.