This story (published when?) by Hope Yen and Matthew Daly for The Salt Lake Tribune talks about the $2.1 billion to continue funding the Veterans Choice program. President Trump has made this program, that allows veterans to receive private medical care paid by the government, a priority. Veterans who would have to wait more than 30 days or drive more than 40 miles to receive medical care could receive government funded, private medical attention through this program. According to VA Secretary David Shulkin, the program would have run out of funds by mid-August had it not been for the $2.1 billion.
Trump signs law allowing VA workers to be fired more easily
Trump signed (when, and who says?) the Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act which speeds up the process of firing and rescinding bonuses from all employees who have committed felonies related to their jobs. This is a response to the 2015 VA wait-times scandal and adds on to a 2014 law that allowed for managers to be fired to now include all employees.
Flake Bill Prohibits VA from Paying Employees for Union Work While Wait Times Continue
“The VA should not pay employees for union work while veterans are forced to wait for medical care,” said U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake, (R.-Ariz.). The article ((when, and who says?) cites the Office of Personnel Management with saying that the VA spent $50 million on official union time during the 2014 fiscal year. The article also provides some facts on VA wait-times and veteran deaths due to lack of medical attention.
Duda, J. (June 29, 2017 Thursday ). Flake Bill Prohibits VA from Paying Employees for Union Work While Wait Times Continue. Yellow Sheet Report, Retrieved from http://0-www.lexisnexis.com.library.uark.edu/lnacui2api/api/version1/getDocCui?lni=5NY6-HYR1-F053-W2YC&csi=270944,270077,11059,8411&hl=t&hv=t&hnsd=f&hns=t&hgn=t&oc=00240&perma=true
Mauriell, T. (June 24, 2017 Saturday ). TRUMP SIGNS LAW ALLOWING VA WORKERS TO BE FIRED MORE EASILY. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Retrieved from http://0-www.lexisnexis.com.library.uark.edu/lnacui2api/api/version1/getDocCui?lni=5NVW-M901-DYRS-T4K6&csi=270944,270077,11059,8411&hl=t&hv=t&hnsd=f&hns=t&hgn=t&oc=00240&perma=true
Yen, H., Daly, M. (July 28, 2017 Friday ). House moves to extend choice program, end VA budget crisis; Veterans Choice allows vets to receive private medical care at government expense.. The Salt Lake Tribune, Retrieved from http://0-www.lexisnexis.com.library.uark.edu/lnacui2api/api/version1/getDocCui?lni=5P4B-P321-DYT5-M2KB&csi=270944,270077,11059,8411&hl=t&hv=t&hnsd=f&hns=t&hgn=t&oc=00240&perma=true
I do not think it is specified anywhere in the Audit Findings Report if the questionnaire was anonymous or if employees knew about any repercussions they might face based on their answers. Is it possible this could have affected answers and this does not show an accurate portrayal of how things are happening? They also specify that “the Access Audit was by necessity a rapidly deployed, system-wide assessment of scheduling practices across VA, and was not intended as a formal investigation of individual staff or managers. Site survey teams were not able to interview all employees.” So even if the employees interviewed were truthful in their statements, it still only reflects a portion of employees’ scheduling practices.
Put your name in the headline of the blog posts, as I have asked multiple times.
The questions are interesting and get to the depth of the investigation. I think the broader issue involves the actual findings and what the VA is doing to help veterans, rather than the details of how employees were interviewed.