Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this important hearing on VA Health Administration Contracting and Procurement Practices.  I appreciate the attention that is being given to this topic and hope that today’s hearing provides insight into contracting and procurement practices that are working and suggestions on how to improve those that are ineffective.

In July, the House Committee on Veterans Affairs held a much needed field hearing in St. Louis, to address safety lapses at the John Cochran VA Medical Center, after 1812 veterans throughout the St. Louis and Illinois area received notification that they could have been exposed to blood borne pathogens such as Hepatitis B, Hepatitis C, and HIV while receiving dental care at the medical center. Since the hearing, I have been encouraged to hear that the Veterans Health Administration has implemented some new and more stringent oversight measures for reusable medical equipment and expendable medical supplies (like those used in dental clinics and endoscopy clinics).

However, it is painfully clear that much more work is needed.

It is critical that the VA identify and rectify any existing problems in regards to the purchasing and tracking of reusable medical equipment and expendable medical supplies.  Yes, contracting and procurement are just small pieces of a much larger issue.  But the VA must make considerable improvements to all policies and procedures at every step of the process, to make sure that incidents like the one at John Cochran Medical Center never happen again, and take whatever steps needed to ensure that our veterans are receiving the best health care.

To all the witnesses today— thank you for taking time out of your busy schedules to appear before us.  I look forward to hearing your testimony.