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On Thursday, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Phil Roe (R-Tenn.), House Republican Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) and Congressman Bruce Poliquin (R-ME) introduced the Ethical Patient Care for Veterans Act of 2017.

This legislation requires Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical professionals to report directly to state licensing boards if they witness unacceptable or unethical behavior from other medical professionals at the VA. The legislation is in response to the alarming USA Today article that revealed the VA failed to disclose bad medical practitioners to the public, risking the public’s exposure to these bad actors.  

“The findings of the USA Today investigation are intolerable,” said Chairman Roe. “The committee has long been concerned about VA’s settlement agreements, and even held a hearing on the topic last year. While I can appreciate VA’s recent decision to more closely vet settlement agreements, malfeasance within the department will not be ignored. It certainly cannot be rewarded and hidden from state licensing boards. As a physician, I find this deeply troubling, and I thank Reps. McMorris Rodgers and Poliquin for their leadership on this issue.” 

“These newest reports out of the VA are deeply troubling,” said Chair McMorris Rodgers. “Our veterans deserve the best care imaginable, but as we’ve seen, far too often that’s not the case. This bill will help reform the culture at the VA by holding bad actors accountable and keeping them from continuing these mistakes at the VA or elsewhere. We should be rolling out the red carpet to our nation’s heroes in Eastern Washington and around the country, and that starts with ensuring that the best and brightest are at the VA caring for our veterans.”

“These most recent reports are nothing short of appalling,” said Congressman Poliquin. “Our Maine Veterans depend on their services at Togus and other VA facilities across our State for critical care, and it is absolutely unacceptable for them to ever be subjected to this kind of medical malpractice. We must have accountability at the VA, to ensure our Veterans are always getting the best care possible, and I am proud to be working on the Veterans Affairs’ Committee to do that. I’m now pleased to work with Chairwoman McMorris Rodgers and Chairman Roe to help prevent this unacceptable behavior from occurring again.”

Currently, if the VA receives a report of substandard health care practices, it takes at least 100 days to decide whether to refer the matter to a state licensing board. This legislation will require timely reporting to state licensing boards so there is proper notice of these serious allegations. 

Read more here at gop.gov.