Truth out on VA Budget: time to correct the lies

[tinydancer]

To me there is no defense for the indefensible. Like 40 veteran deaths in Arizona. And hopefully the current investigation will get to the bottom of all these scandals.

But to blame the GOP over budget cuts is an out and out lie. Can you liberals ever tell the truth?

GOP Budget and the President's Budget: A Comparison

Total Veterans Spending FY 2013 FY 2013-FY 2022

GOP Budget* $134.635 B** $1,510.938 B

President’s Budget* $135.651 $1,494.309 B

FY 2013 Budget: The Facts for Veterans | House Committee on Veterans' Affairs

 

[tinydancer]

And more truths.


FY 2013 Budget: The Facts for Veterans
Issues: Veterans

Several media outlets are reporting that the GOP Budget cuts funding for veterans. These same outlets charge that the GOP budget doesn’t even mention the word “veterans.” Both charges are wrong.

These reports stem from a misreading of the GOP Budget and by comparing the CBO scoring of the GOP Budget and the President’s Budget, with that of OMB’s score of the President’s Budget. Using CBO scoring for both budgets, the GOP Budget exceeds the funding levels for veterans over the next 10 year as compared to the President’s budget (see chart below).

The Facts

FACT: The GOP Budget Keeps Discretionary Spending for Veterans Exactly the Same as Proposed By President Obama: $61.342 Billion. Using CBO numbers (which, by law, every Congressional budget resolution must use), the GOP budget assumes discretionary spending (i.e., VA medical care, construction, claims processing and national cemetery administration, etc.) on veterans in FY 2013 at exactly the amount requested in the President’s Budget.

In both budgets, this translates to a 4.3% increase above the FY 2012 funding level for VA, as recommended in the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs’ bipartisan Views and Estimates letter.

FACT: The GOP Budget Fully Funds VA Entitlement Programs in FY 2013 and Beyond.

Again, using CBO numbers, the GOP budget fully funds VA entitlement programs (i.e., disability compensation, pension, GI Bill, etc.) this year and beyond. The only difference between the GOP Budget and the President’s Budget under mandatory spending is the exclusion of the President’s $1 billion Veterans Jobs Corps proposal, on which the Administration has yet to produce any details.

The exclusion of the Veterans Jobs Corps in FY 2013 spending is supported by all 11 House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs’ Democrats and Senator Patty Murray of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs (see SVAC V&E letter).

FACT: The Word “Veterans” Appears 41 Times in the GOP Budget. FY 2014 advanced appropriations for veterans’ medical care is dictated by Section 501(c) of the GOP budget resolution, which permits advance appropriation not exceeding $54.462 Billion “for the following programs in the Department of Veterans Affairs – (A) Medical Services; (B) Medical Support and Compliance; and (C) Medical Facilities accounts of the Veterans Health Administration.” The word “veterans” clearly appears in the GOP Budget.

FY 2013 Budget: The Facts for Veterans | House Committee on Veterans' Affairs

 

[waltky]

Obama gonna fix it...

Obama: 'I Know People Are Angry'
May 21, 2014 -- Amid increasing pressure from both Democrats and Republicans for President Obama to say something about the unfolding scandal at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the president finally did so on Wednesday.

"I know that people are angry and want swift reckoning. I sympathize with that," Obama said. "But we have to let the investigators do their jobs and get to the bottom of what happened. Our veterans deserve to know the facts; their families deserve to know the facts. Once we know the facts, I assure you, if there is misconduct it will be punished." Obama gave his statement after meeting with Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki at the White House Wednesday morning. This was the president's first public statement on the issue since CNN reported three weeks ago that as many as 40 veterans died while waiting for medical appointments at a veterans hospital in Phoenix.

Obama said meeting with injured and maimed troops is one of the most "searing" experiences of his presidency. "So when I hear allegations of misconduct -- any misconduct -- whether it's allegations of VA staff covering up long wait times or cooking the books -- I will not stand for it, not as commander in chief, but also not as an American. None of us should. So, if these allegations prove to be true, it is dishonorable, it is disgraceful, and I will not tolerate it, period." As of Tuesday, the VA inspector general said the number of VA facilities under investigation for falsifying records and long wait times had more than doubled in recent days, to 26.

In addition to the IG investigation, Shinseki has ordered his own review of the allegations, and President Obama -- at Shinseki's request -- has sent Deputy Chief of Staff Rob Nabors to help with that review. Nabors was traveling to Phoenix today (Wednesday) to meet with officials there as part of the review ordered by Shinseki. "The president looks forward to the results both of the review and of the independent investigation that is underway and is being conducted by the inspector general," White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters on Tuesday.

Asked when Obama expects to get the results of that review, Carney was vague: "The president obviously wants both of these two inquiries to proceed efficiently and quickly, but to be comprehensive and effective. So he's not setting an arbitrary deadline. He expects both of them -- or hopes that both of them will be, again, comprehensive and effective." Obama told reporters on Wednesday that while he's waiting for the results of the ongoing investigations, he wants to take immediate action on appointment scheduling and wait times for veterans.

Obama: 'I Know People Are Angry' | CNS News

See also:

Obama: 'We All Know It Often Takes Too Long for Veterans to Get the Care They Need'
May 21, 2014 -- "Even if we had not heard reports out of this Phoenix facility or other facilities, we all know that it often takes too long for veterans to get the care that they need," President Obama said Wednesday in his first public comments on the growing scandal at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

"That's not a new development. It's been a problem for decades. And it's been compounded by more than a decade of war. That's why, when I came into office, I said we would systematically work to fix these problems, and we have been working really hard to address them." The president noted that he served on the Veterans Affairs Committee when he was a U.S. senator -- "and it was one of the proudest pieces of business that I did in the legislature."

Bringing the VA system into the 21st Century "is not an easy task," Obama said. He also touted the "progress" made during his presidency -- including record levels of VA funding, expanding the number of veterans eligible for disability benefits, improving care for women veterans, reducing homelessness among veterans, and helping millions pursue higher education, training, and jobs.

"The point is, caring for our veterans is not an issue that popped up in recent weeks," Obama said. "Some of the problems with respect to how veterans are able to access the benefits that they've earned -- that's not a new issue, that's an issue that I was working on when I was running for the United States Senate. "Taking are of our veterans and their families has been one of the causes of my presidency, and it's something that all of us have to be involved with and have to be paying attention to."

Obama said his deputy chief of staff -- who's been dispatched to the Phoenix veterans facility on Wednesday -- will help him understand what is working, what is not working -- "and I want specific recommendations on how VA can up their game." Obama also said he welcomes Congress as "a partner" in oversight, to address the current controversy and to make sure the nation is living up to its obligation to veterans across the board.

Obama: 'We All Know It Often Takes Too Long for Veterans to Get the Care They Need' | CNS News

 

[waltky]

Granny says dey oughta fire the whole lot of `em...

Growing evidence points to systemic troubles in VA health care system
May 20, 2014 — Three years ago Edward Laird, a 76-year-old Navy veteran, noticed two small blemishes on his nose. His doctor at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Phoenix ordered a biopsy, but month after month, as the blemishes grew larger, Laird couldn’t get an appointment.

Laird filed a formal complaint and, nearly two years after the biopsy was ordered, got to see a specialist — who determined that no biopsy was needed. Incredulous, Laird successfully appealed to the head of the VA in Phoenix. But by then, it was too late. The blemishes were cancerous. Half his nose had to be cut away. “Now I have no nose and I have to put an ice cream stick up my nose at night … so I can breathe,” Laird said. “I look back at how they treated me over the years, but what can I do? I’m too old to punch them in the face.”

The Phoenix VA Health Care System is under a federal Justice Department investigation for reports that it maintained a secret waiting list to conceal the extent of its patient delays, in part because of complaints such as Laird’s. But there are now clear signs that veterans’ health centers across the U.S. are juggling appointments and sometimes manipulating wait lists to disguise long delays for primary and follow-up appointments, according to federal reports, congressional investigators and interviews with VA employees and patients. The growing evidence suggests a VA system with overworked physicians, high turnover and schedulers who are often hiding the extent to which patients are forced to wait for medical care.

The 1,700 hospitals and clinics in the VA system — the nation’s largest integrated health care network — now handle 80 million outpatient visits a year. Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric K. Shinseki promised to solve growing problems with patient access when he took over in 2009, and he has been successful in some respects: Iraq and Afghanistan veterans are using VA health care at rates never seen in past generations of veterans, and a growing number of Vietnam veterans are receiving VA care as they age. The agency reports it also made substantial progress in reducing wait periods last year, 93 percent of the time meeting its goal of scheduling outpatient appointments within 14 days of the “desired date.”

But several VA employees have said the agency has been manipulating the data. “The performance data the VA puts out is garbage — it’s designed to make the VA look good on paper. It’s their ‘everything is awesome’ approach,” said Dr. Jose Mathews, chief of psychiatry at the VA St. Louis Health Care System. “There’s a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy. Those who ask tough questions are punished, and the others know not to tell.” Mathews was put under administrative investigation in September after he alleged that long wait times led to poor patient care and what he said were two preventable deaths. He said a suicide attempt by a veteran at the facility was covered up by the hospital after a VA psychiatrist failed to provide follow-up treatment.

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See also:

IG: VA investigations expanded to 26 facilities
May 20, 2014 WASHINGTON — The number of VA facilities under investigation after complaints about falsified records and treatment delays has more than doubled in recent days, the Office of Inspector General at the Veterans Affairs Department said late Tuesday.

A spokeswoman for the IG's office said 26 facilities were being investigated nationwide. Acting Inspector General Richard Griffin told a Senate committee last week that at least 10 new allegations about manipulated waiting times and other problems had surfaced since reports of problems at the Phoenix VA hospital came to light last month. The expanded investigations come as President Barack Obama's choice to help carry out reforms at the Veterans Affairs Department was set to travel to Phoenix to meet with staff at the local VA office amid mounting pressure to overhaul the beleaguered agency.

Obama announced last week that White House Deputy Chief of Staff Rob Nabors would be assigned to the VA after allegations of delayed care that may have led to patient deaths and a cover-up by top administrators in Phoenix. Similar claims have been reported at VA facilities in Pennsylvania, Wyoming, Georgia, Missouri, Texas, Florida and elsewhere. Nabors met Tuesday in Washington with representatives of several veterans' organizations, including the American Legion and Disabled American Veterans, among others. He will meet Thursday with leadership at the Phoenix Veterans Affairs Medical Center, including with interim director Steve Young, White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

Young took over in Phoenix after director Sharon Helman was placed on leave indefinitely while the VA's Office of Inspector General investigates claims raised by several former VA employees that Phoenix administrators kept a secret list of patients waiting for appointments to hide delays in care. Critics say Helman was motivated to conceal delays to collect a bonus of about $9,000 last year.

A former clinic director for the VA in Phoenix first came out publicly with the allegations of secret lists in April. Dr. Samuel Foote, who retired in December after nearly 25 years with the VA, says that up to 40 veterans may have died while awaiting treatment at the Phoenix hospital. Investigators say they have so far not linked any patient deaths in Phoenix to delayed care. The allegations have sparked a firestorm on Capitol Hill and some calls for VA Secretary Eric Shinseki's resignation. The VA's undersecretary for health care, Robert Petzel, has since stepped down. However, Republicans denounced the move as a hollow gesture, since Petzel had already been scheduled to retire soon. And several lawmakers are proposing legislation to take on VA problems.

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[tinydancer]

Bump because I am so sick of liberal lies.

 

[waltky]

'Sacred obligation' to take care of veterans...

Hagel: US has 'sacred obligation' to take care of veterans
May 24, 2014 ~ Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel said Saturday that the United States has a "sacred obligation" to take care of veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and their families "for however long is necessary."

"It is part of the compact that we make with those who step forward to safeguard our freedom," Hagel said at a ceremony to begin the reading of the names of all those who have been killed in the recent conflicts. "Caring for these returning veterans — those who bear the visible and the invisible scars and wounds of war — is a solemn responsibility for America." Hagel said the Vietnam veterans he works with every day "consider themselves ordinary people. They view themselves that way because they are humble, they are patriotic, and they are selfless. But those who marched off to serve their country are far from ordinary. They never asked for nor expected anything in return for their service other than respect and dignity. "Unlike many in my generation, today's veterans return to a country that truly, truly appreciates their service and recognizes the sacrifices they've made for all of us. They are treated with dignity, respect and appreciation that they have earned and they deserve. As the United States winds down the longest period of sustained combat in our nation's history, America's obligations to those who answered the call to serve — more than two million Americans — are only just beginning."

The reading of names by about 450 people a few feet from the Vietnam Veterans Memorial was to take about nine hours. Hagel and other speakers said the location of the event was fitting. "This wall records the names of a previous generation that fought and died on a distant battlefield," Hagel said. "Whether they patrolled the jungles of Vietnam, the streets of Fallujah or the mountain paths of the Korengal Valley, they are the quiet heroes who served and died in the service of something greater than themselves — the service of their country."

One speaker who knows more than most people about sacrifice is Ruth Stonesifer, a Gold Star mother whose son, Pfc. Kristofor T. Stonesifer, became one of the first casualties of the Afghanistan war when he was killed in a helicopter crash on October 19, 2001. Ruth Stonesifer recalled that after the 9/11 attacks, her son predicted that "a lot of good men are going to die. He knew instinctively what was going to happen in the struggle against terrorism." Soon after the war began, Stonesifer was watching the news on TV, and "at the bottom of the screen, it said two Rangers had been killed in a helicopter accident in support of the mission. My thoughts went out to those two poor families of the first to be killed in action. The next morning, when the man in the green uniform came to our door, I knew Chris had been right in his prediction."

Heather Penney was an Air Force F-16 pilot on September 11, 2001. She took to the air when reports came in that Flight 93 might be headed for Washington. The daughter of a Vietnam veteran, she spoke about what makes American servicemembers special. "Courage, service, dedication, sacrifice ... it's in our DNA as Americans. This is who we are. This is our heritage. I know this, because I know the veterans who served before me. And I know the young servicemen and women who have joined our military service since. I am but one of hundreds of thousands who have pledged my life to defend our country, our constitution and our way of life. I'm not the first, and I am not the last. "We are here today to honor those who have given the most, in courage, service, dedication and sacrifice. Not to mourn, but to remember and commemorate. Let their stories inspire us. For what they did was great. And let us in the course of the ceremony and the speaking of their names remind ourselves that the greatness that lived in them resides in all of us."

Hagel: US has 'sacred obligation' to take care of veterans - U.S. - Stripes

See also:

Lawmakers call for tighter grip on VA hospitals
May 25, 2014 ~ The chairmen of House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees on Sunday decried long waits and backlogs at the nations VA hospitals but stopped short of calling for the resignation of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki.

"You've got an entrenched bureaucracy that exists out there that is not held accountable, that is shooting for goals, goals that are not helping the veterans," said Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of the House panel "I think some people may by cooking the books" to suggest waiting times are shorter that they actually are, said Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Vermont independent who chairs the counterpart Senate committee. Both chairmen were interviewed on CNN's "State of the Union."

Meanwhile, Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said on CBS' "Face the Nation" that the Justice Department "has to be involved." He said there is "credible and specific evidence of criminal wrongdoing across the country" at VA hospitals. "We're not rushing to judgment. But the Department of Justice can convene a grand jury, if necessary," Blumenthal said. Lawmakers from both parties have pressed for policy changes and better management as the Department of Veterans Affairs confronts allegations about treatment delays and falsified records at VA centers around the country. The program serves nearly 9 million veterans.

President Barack Obama did not mention the VA issue in a speech on Sunday to U.S. troops in Afghanistan during a surprise visit. "The VA really didn't factor into the planning for the trip at all," said Ben Rhodes, the deputy national security adviser. "The VA is obviously something he's going to continue to work on very hard in the coming days and weeks back home as well."

Meanwhile, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in a pre-recorded interview broadcast Sunday on ABC's "This Week," called the VA's current problems "outrageous - if the allegations are documented and proven. And I suspect some of them will be." "They've got to be held accountable," Dempsey said, adding that Shinseki "has made it very clear that they will be held accountable," The department's inspector general says 26 VA facilities are under investigation, including the Phoenix VA hospital, where a former clinic director says as many as 40 veterans may have died while awaiting treatment.

Officials also are investigating claims that VA employees have falsified appointment records to cover up delays in care. An initial review of 17 people who died while awaiting appointments in Phoenix found that none of their deaths appeared to have been caused by delays in treatment. The allegations have raised fresh concerns about the administration's management of a department that has been struggling to keep up with the influx of veterans returning home from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and Vietnam veterans needing more care as they age. "You know, if we are going to send people off to war, we have a solemn promise to make sure that when they come home, we are going to take care of them," Sanders said.

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[Plasmaball]

Bump because I am so sick of liberal lies.

but the left isnt lying, they are playing politics, just like the GOP is doing.
The bottom line is that nothing has been done for decades, and just throwing money at the issue won't solve it.

 

[whitehall]

Who do we see about (taxpayer funded) bonuses for federal administrators?