Following the release of a scathing report that found Washington D.C.'s VA Medical Center is putting patients at risk through deficiencies and staffing shortages, the VA union president has spoke out, calling the conditions created by the mismanagement "absolutely wrong" and "unconscionable."
The American Federation of Government Employees National President J. David Cox Sr. said leaders should address the issues, not make excuses. He also said it is up to the Veterans Health Administration to fix the issues.
"For those who care about the welfare of veterans, this is not a moment to score political points. It's a moment to get to work to solve these issues immediately. The very best problem-solvers and the most ardent allies of veterans are the VA's frontline workers who care for veterans despite management failures," he said.
[Also: Gross deficiencies, supply shortages put VA hospital patients at 'unnecessary risk,' OIG says]
There are 250,000 employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs represented by the American Federation of Government Employees, and 85,000 are veterans themselves. Cox said this is a time to engage the VA workers and seek solutions, and the report should not be used as fuel for those who favor privatizing the VA.
"Some politicians and outside groups will inevitably try to exploit this situation to justify their privatization agenda. Others will use it to further their interest in politicizing the VA by installing political cronies rather than competent managers to fix the problems that have been identified. Neither privatization, nor putting political hacks in charge of hospitals is the answer to the crises the IG has identified," Fox said.
[Also: VA finally gets transparent on veteran wait times, clinical care quality]
The interim report was issued by the Department of Veteran Affairs Office of the Inspector General, and chronicled widespread staffing and management deficiencies, especially when it came to medical equipment and supplies. The report detailed canceled surgical procedures due to lack of equipment or supplies, and even an instance where expired supplies were used by a surgeon on a patient. It also listed dirty storage areas and millions of dollars of equipment and supplies that had not been inventoried and was unaccounted for.
The OIG said the investigation, which began with the deployment of their Rapid Response Team on March 29, is still ongoing and a final comprehensive report will be released soon.
Twitter: @BethJSanborn