Mac's Blog
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Root Out VA Abuse - Mac's Video Mailbox
Across the political spectrum, there has been outrage at the mismanagement and coverup at the Veterans Administration (VA). These problems must be fixed – whatever it takes. Across party lines, we can agree that our country owes a debt to the men and women who risk their lives to keep us safe. After serving our country, our veterans deserve a government that will serve them when they come home. Stories of extended wait times and veterans failing to receive care – or, in some cases, even dying because they failed to receive care – shocks us all. Congress, as well as the Administration, has a responsibility to root out the problem and reverse this travesty. Last week, the House passed a bill to give the Secretary of the VA the authority to fire senior level employees who fail to put the treatment of our veterans first. This week, the House passed another series of bills to improve conditions for our veterans. Read more information here. And today, VA Secretary Shinseki resigned his post. Before doing so, he removed senior leaders at the Phoenix facility and canceled bonuses for senior VA executives across the Department. Although these are steps in the right direction, I’m afraid the problems at the VA run deeper. I believe a major cultural shift in the VA must take place, and that will take major reform. Funding is not the problem – funding for the Department of Veterans Affairs has grown faster than any other government department in recent years. In fact, since 2000, annual spending has nearly tripled to meet increases in demand for health-care and other costs. Funding has increased far faster than the number of veterans served.Listen below to this week's video mailbox to hear how I hope to get to the bottom of this systemic problem.
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