Should VA Secretary Eric Shinseki Be Fired/Resign?

[tinydancer]

Is responsibility really this hard to understand. He heads the system and has allowed this to go on. It is irrelevent when the problems started. It is irrelevbent who else might have been or is a part of this. It is even irrelevent if he knew about it or how deep this rabbit hole actually goes. The fact is that this shit storm broke out on his watch and that means he is accountable for it. Period. That is what they are there for or do you all think that he is paid six figures to look pretty and issue the occasional statement.


HE allowed this to go on and now he is gone because of it. Hopefully the replacement get it and fixes the issues. Unlikely but hopefully.

Unfortunately, his departure will do little to fix the broader problems in the massive VA health care system—and may even set the leaderless agency back as it waits for a new secretary to be appointed and confirmed which will probably be an extended political sideshow.

The VA is the nations largest healthcare provider, the only true socialized medicine in the US, something most republicans and some democrats would like to ignore.

The root causes of the problems are insufficient resources where they are needed, poor organization, and obsolete technologies. Many of the VA resources are not located where the clients are. There are probably funding problems but there are so many organization problem, it would be difficult to determine what the budget should really be. The 23 regions the VA is divided into lack both leadership and staff. The result is the hospitals run as carefully guarded fiefdoms. Lastly the IT system needs to be totally replaced. It's a 20 year old DOS based system that predates Windows. It's not just obsolete. It's an antique that provides essential no usefully management reporting. In short, the VA needs to be overhauled. Changing the secretary is not going to do this. It's going to take a lot more and I doubt congress is ready to tackle the problem.

Shinseki resigns: Here?s how to fix the VA.
Annual Performance Reports - Veterans Benefits Administration Reports

Good grief, do you understand what this scandal is about? I don't think you do.

 

[paulitician]

Secret waiting lists? Man, this is truly horrible. More than one bureaucrat lackey needs to pay for this one. Some good heroic Vets are dead. Real accountability is the only way forward for the families.

 

[Gadawg73]

Is responsibility really this hard to understand. He heads the system and has allowed this to go on. It is irrelevent when the problems started. It is irrelevbent who else might have been or is a part of this. It is even irrelevent if he knew about it or how deep this rabbit hole actually goes. The fact is that this shit storm broke out on his watch and that means he is accountable for it. Period. That is what they are there for or do you all think that he is paid six figures to look pretty and issue the occasional statement.


HE allowed this to go on and now he is gone because of it. Hopefully the replacement get it and fixes the issues. Unlikely but hopefully.

Unfortunately, his departure will do little to fix the broader problems in the massive VA health care system—and may even set the leaderless agency back as it waits for a new secretary to be appointed and confirmed which will probably be an extended political sideshow.

The VA is the nations largest healthcare provider, the only true socialized medicine in the US, something most republicans and some democrats would like to ignore.

The root causes of the problems are insufficient resources where they are needed, poor organization, and obsolete technologies. Many of the VA resources are not located where the clients are. There are probably funding problems but there are so many organization problem, it would be difficult to determine what the budget should really be. The 23 regions the VA is divided into lack both leadership and staff. The result is the hospitals run as carefully guarded fiefdoms. Lastly the IT system needs to be totally replaced. It's a 20 year old DOS based system that predates Windows. It's not just obsolete. It's an antique that provides essential no usefully management reporting. In short, the VA needs to be overhauled. Changing the secretary is not going to do this. It's going to take a lot more and I doubt congress is ready to tackle the problem.

Shinseki resigns: Here?s how to fix the VA.
Annual Performance Reports - Veterans Benefits Administration Reports

Good grief, do you understand what this scandal is about? I don't think you do.

It is a scandal, decades long one.
The push for incentive bonuses was from the right, not the left.
The fraud is from that and I am no fan of Obama.
But this little if anything to do with individual politics and politics as it is totally ALL POLITICS.

 

[Gadawg73]

Costs for wait time fraud is a drop in the bucket for what is coming down the pike with the disability fraud.
900 billion as of now and rising.
Long term these 2 wars the disability costs will be over 2 trillion or more for the care and the payments.
And the claim rate is 7 times higher than WWII and more than double than Nam.

 

[Gadawg73]

Here's a chance to do the right thing. When more funding is demanded, simply ask where it should be cut from the rest of the budget.

There was an agreement to do that with the Debt Reconciliation Bill.
And Democrats abandoned and ignored it with the last Senate bill that was defeated.
They claimed the costs savings from the pullout of the wars would pay for it yet that was ALREADY in the budget accounting.
Democrats were liars on that Senate Bill 100%.

 

[Kondor3]

VA problems go back decades...

VA fixes come along every few years, they apply a band-aid or two, then neglect it again, until the next time...

Band-aid, anybody?

And, just like the immigration-reform issue...

Both parties are full of shit clean up to their ears, when it comes to concern for veterans...

Both parties...

Both parties have been criminally negligent...

Both parties have blood on their hands...

Both parties...

 

[FA_Q2]

Costs for wait time fraud is a drop in the bucket for what is coming down the pike with the disability fraud.
900 billion as of now and rising.
Long term these 2 wars the disability costs will be over 2 trillion or more for the care and the payments.
And the claim rate is 7 times higher than WWII and more than double than Nam.

you cant compare the claim rates from old wars to these last two. The reality here is that FAR more soldiers live now than used to. MANY injuries that would outright kill a soldier decades ago do not do so anymore.


While good it also means that long term costs are far higher. We go into battle now wearing armor and driving vehicles that keep us alive even if they do not stop injury.

 

[Kondor3]

Costs for wait time fraud is a drop in the bucket for what is coming down the pike with the disability fraud.
900 billion as of now and rising.
Long term these 2 wars the disability costs will be over 2 trillion or more for the care and the payments.
And the claim rate is 7 times higher than WWII and more than double than Nam.

you cant compare the claim rates from old wars to these last two. The reality here is that FAR more soldiers live now than used to. MANY injuries that would outright kill a soldier decades ago do not do so anymore.

While good it also means that long term costs are far higher. We go into battle now wearing armor and driving vehicles that keep us alive even if they do not stop injury.

I think you're on to something here.

I'm reasonably confident that the survival rate for life-threatening battlefield wounds has increased in each successive war since the Revolution.

Survival rates really began to climb during the Vietnam War (widespread high-speed medivac, etc.) and have continued to climb ever since then, I think.

So, for each of those successive wars, we had a higher percentage of returning veterans who were in need of short-, mid- and long-term medical care.

Good catch.

 

[Manonthestreet]

 

[Kondor3]

It's true that the overall VA budget has outpaced the growth of VA Healthcare, but we need to remember how many other types of programming that the VA is into - including disability pensions, GI Bill (educational) benefits, and all the rest of what the VA does for our veterans. I wonder if some other aspects of VA services have been greatly expanded in recent years, accounting for much of the budgeting increase. I am also left with the impression that the VA asked for (and got?) a 'budget cushion' that will allow it to continue to operate for some months, even after one of those Congressional Budget Sequester Clusterphukks (and other similar budget sleight-of-hand) that both the Pubs and Dems inflict upon the agency from time to time.

 

[Manonthestreet]

We need to remember its the taxpayers money and clean house and get people in there that arent going to tolerate this bs. Fear is great motivator and VA needs big dose of it perform or else. Dont tell me there isnt huge waste there just like in every govt agency.

 

[Flopper]

Is responsibility really this hard to understand. He heads the system and has allowed this to go on. It is irrelevent when the problems started. It is irrelevbent who else might have been or is a part of this. It is even irrelevent if he knew about it or how deep this rabbit hole actually goes. The fact is that this shit storm broke out on his watch and that means he is accountable for it. Period. That is what they are there for or do you all think that he is paid six figures to look pretty and issue the occasional statement.


HE allowed this to go on and now he is gone because of it. Hopefully the replacement get it and fixes the issues. Unlikely but hopefully.

Unfortunately, his departure will do little to fix the broader problems in the massive VA health care system—and may even set the leaderless agency back as it waits for a new secretary to be appointed and confirmed which will probably be an extended political sideshow.

The VA is the nations largest healthcare provider, the only true socialized medicine in the US, something most republicans and some democrats would like to ignore.

The root causes of the problems are insufficient resources where they are needed, poor organization, and obsolete technologies. Many of the VA resources are not located where the clients are. There are probably funding problems but there are so many organization problem, it would be difficult to determine what the budget should really be. The 23 regions the VA is divided into lack both leadership and staff. The result is the hospitals run as carefully guarded fiefdoms. Lastly the IT system needs to be totally replaced. It's a 20 year old DOS based system that predates Windows. It's not just obsolete. It's an antique that provides essential no usefully management reporting. In short, the VA needs to be overhauled. Changing the secretary is not going to do this. It's going to take a lot more and I doubt congress is ready to tackle the problem.

Shinseki resigns: Here?s how to fix the VA.
Annual Performance Reports - Veterans Benefits Administration Reports

Changing the secretary is not the fix. It is a step in the fix. You remove the old one that failed and put another who should be empowered with the tools that they need to address the problems.
Look, its rather simple. you are in charge and you fail. Now you get fired.

That's why we have political appointees, to become scapegoats when the shit hits the fan. The problems in the VA are systemic and it's going to take a lot more than a two year political appointment to fix them.

 

[Flopper]

VA problems go back decades...

VA fixes come along every few years, they apply a band-aid or two, then neglect it again, until the next time...

Band-aid, anybody?

And, just like the immigration-reform issue...

Both parties are full of shit clean up to their ears, when it comes to concern for veterans...

Both parties...

Both parties have been criminally negligent...

Both parties have blood on their hands...

Both parties...

The problem with the VA healthcare system is simple — too much money spent on overhead and too little spent on medical care.

 

[paulitician]

The best way to fix this awful problem is to stop sending our kids to far-flung hellholes to be maimed and killed so Globalist Elite bastards can gain more wealth & power. Never forget what one of the most notorious Globalist Elites said about our soldiers...

"Military Men are just dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns in Foreign Policy." - Henry Kissinger

 

[Flopper]

The best way to fix this awful problem is to stop sending our kids to far-flung hellholes to be maimed and killed so Globalist Elite bastards can gain more wealth & power. Never forget what one of the most notorious Globalist Elites said about our soldiers...

"Military Men are just dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns in Foreign Policy." - Henry Kissinger

It looks like that quote is false.

Internet Meme: Falsified Quote: ?Military men are just dumb, stupid animals to be used as pawns in foreign policy.?- Mis-attributed? to Henry Kissinger - Akio's Tumblr

 

[P F Tinmore]

The VA has been plagued w/problems for decades, which pre-dates even the Bush Administration

What would him being fired or having to resign accomplish?

Discuss...

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uinyGHNBrr0]Joyce Riley & Dr. Doug Rokke : Veterans Gulf War Illness, Depleted Uranium, PTSD 1.10.2012 - YouTube[/ame]