Veterans Have Right To Audit Details: Blumenthal Calls For Immediate Release Of Site-Specific Reports On Veterans Medical Facilities, Announces Support For Bill To Improve Access To Care For Veterans

(Hartford, CT) - U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) today called on Acting Veterans Affairs Secretary Sloane Gibson to immediately release 216 site-specific audits detailing widespread falsification of waiting list records and delays in treatment at VA health centers nationwide.

Blumenthal also announced he will co-sponsor and help lead legislation with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Chairman of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, that would give veterans facing delays ability to seek private care outside the VA, would authorize emergency funding to hire new doctors and nurses and provide scholarships and loan forgiveness for those who choose to work at VA facilities, and would grant the VA additional latitude to fire personnel. Blumenthal is a member of the Veterans Affairs Committee.

On Friday, the Veterans Administration released results of an audit of 216 VA health centers nationwide that found the 14-day target for new appointments “simply unattainable” due to a lack of available medical providers. Inability to meet unattainable deadlines resulted in widespread falsification of records, secret waiting lists, and unreported delays in treatment at facilities across the country.

While the audit relies on information aggregated from 216 site visits at facilities nationwide, including Connecticut, the Veterans Administration has yet to release any site-specific data. In a letter sent Monday to Acting Veterans Affairs Secretary Sloane Gibson, Blumenthal called for the immediate release of all site-specific data, including data pertaining to Connecticut facilities.

Last week, prior to the release of the national audit, the Connecticut Congressional delegation called on the Veterans Administration to release full details of the site-specific audits, including the accuracy and duration of reported wait times for all Connecticut facilities, including the West Haven and Newington campuses, and all six Community Based Outpatient Clinics in Danbury, New London, Stamford, Waterbury, Willimantic and Winsted.

“This information—the basis of the report released to the President on Friday—has been compiled and analyzed, and it must be made available to the public immediately. The American public, most especially our nation’s veterans, deserve and need to see these site-specific details immediately. They have a right to know now what problems have been found, who is responsible, and what will be done to remedy these serious issues,” Blumenthal said. “Non-disclosure does a disservice to all veterans. Full-transparency is the best way to begin a new era of leadership at the VA.”

Full text of the letter follows.

June 2, 2014

Acting Secretary Sloan D. Gibson

United States Department of Veterans Affairs

810 Vermont Avenue, NW

Washington, DC  20420

Dear Acting Secretary Gibson,

Like most Americans, I have been shocked and stunned by the burgeoning scope and scale of abuses involving secret waiting lists, falsified records and delays in treatments within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). The egregious and expanding number of facilities affected by such improper, potentially illegal misconduct is reflected in the report submitted by the VHA to the President on Friday. It is an alarming and astonishing document. And it adds further weight to my call for the Department of Justice to take a leading role in the investigation and potential prosecution of criminal wrongdoing.

I write to urge immediate release of the 216 site audit reports providing the factual basis for this report to the President.  The report is an overall summary of site visits, interviews and other factfinding by the audit teams, but the site audit reports for specific locations and facilities should be made public immediately.  This information – the basis of the report released to the President on Friday – has been compiled and analyzed, and it must be made available to the public immediately. Non-disclosure does a disservice to all veterans. Full transparency is the best way to begin a new era of leadership at the VA. 

The report states, “Of the 216 site audit reports, many were flagged for further review because of concerns identified . . . about questionable scheduling practices signaling lack of integrity. . . .” These “flagged sites will be reviewed,” followed by further data gathering or reporting of “willful misconduct” to the Office of Inspector General (OIG).

The American public, most especially our nation’s veterans, deserves and needs to see these site audit reports immediately. They have a right to know where problems have been found, who is responsible, and what will be done to hold them accountable and fix the problems.  As patients and clients, they also should be informed so they can be alert to questionable practices and provide important information to the auditors regarding their experience scheduling appointments. Advocates likewise have a right to know so they can raise awareness of potential problems, contribute to a better understanding of their scope and extent, and help to solve them.  

The need for transparency is especially important here in Connecticut – where an IG report has found problems in conditions and practices at the West Haven facility.  These issues, although unrelated to secret wait lists and fraudulent scheduling, have undermined trust and confidence.  Without any further information on the auditors’ findings regarding scheduling, that trust and confidence may be further endangered.

Nationally, disclosure of critical information – as much as possible, as soon as possible – is vital to restoring trust and confidence in the integrity and capability of the VA’s health care system.  Concealment, even if only temporary, fuels doubt and mistrust. While the VA may already intend to release these site audit reports at some future time, I urge you to do so now, without delay.

As a member of the U.S. Senate's Veterans Affairs Committee, I offer my help as you begin this profoundly significant new assignment. We share the goal of giving veterans the best health care in America – first-class, world-class medicine for every one of our nation’s heroes, now.

Sincerely,

Richard Blumenthal

United States Senate

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