A bill from U.S. Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) to secure more specialty care physicians at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) in order to treat veterans with lower extremity injuries won House approval on Monday.
The VA Provider Equity Act, H.R. 1058, would address discrepancies in pay and leadership opportunities for VA podiatrists that stem from qualifications that were drafted in 1976. By creating parity in pay and opportunities based on the skills and qualifications of today’s podiatrists, the bill aims to address the VA’s shortage in lower-extremity specialists.
“From lower extremity injuries related to improvised explosive devices to foot and ankle ailments caused by aging, diabetes or other service-connected disabilities, the veterans seeking care from the VA have uniquely complex medical needs,” Wenstrup, the chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee on Health and a practicing podiatrist, said. “Our veterans deserve the highest quality treatment from the most experienced medical professionals. My legislation will give VA the tools it needs to hire and employ the best and the brightest, and help ensure timely access to care.”
U.S. Rep. Phil Roe (R-TN), the chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, said that because Wenstrup is a podiatrist, he knows firsthand the valuable and necessary medical and surgical care that podiatrists offer to veterans.
“As a result of the VA’s failure to recognize and respond to advancements in podiatry practice, it has created significant disparities in pay and advancement opportunities for podiatrists practicing at the VA in comparison to their peers in the private sector,” Roe said on the House floor. “… This legislation would solve that problem by allowing VA podiatrists the opportunity to seek leadership opportunities at VA medical facilities and making podiatry pay equal to physician and dentist pay within the VA healthcare system.”
Speaking in support of the bill on the House floor, U.S. Rep. Tim Walz (D-MN) lauded Wenstrup for highlighting the issue and for introducing a legislative fix.
“This legislation would allow VHA (Veterans Health Administration) to attract the talented and experienced podiatrists it needs to better treat conditions caused by lower extremity injuries,” said Walz, the ranking member of the Veterans Affairs Committee. “By allowing podiatrists the opportunity to advance within the VHA while earning pay comparable to what private sector podiatrists earn, VHA can better attract and retain these providers.”
Wenstrup noted in remarks on the House floor that podiatric care is one of the top needs at VA medical centers across the nation. Specifically, veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars report a high rate of musculoskeletal ailments from injuries due to improvised explosive devices.
Despite the need for care, inefficiencies at the VA have led to increased wait times, he added.
“As of 2015, 93 percent of new podiatry patients wait more than 15 days for an appointment, and podiatry is the fourth most referred-out surgical service to community care,” Wenstrup said.