Press Releases
House Passes Bills to Increase Accountability at VA, Give Veterans More Health Care Choices
Washington, DC,
March 2, 2015
Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed two veterans related bills: · H.R. 280, introduced by Chairman Jeff Miller, would give the Department of Veterans Affairs secretary the authority to recoup for cause bonuses paid to VA employees. · H.R. 294, introduced by Chairman Jeff Miller, would authorize the Department of Veterans Affairs for three years beginning October 1, 2015, to enter into a contract or agreement with a certified medical foster home to pay for long-term care for up to 900 eligible veterans. The bills now await consideration by the Senate. Following House passage of the bills, Chairman Miller released the below statement: “Congress has once again found common ground in support of bringing much-needed accountability to the Department of Veterans Affairs and providing more health care choices to our nation’s veterans. If signed into law, these bills would have a lasting impact on the way VA operates and on the lives of many veterans. I am especially proud of passage of the urgently needed H.R. 280. As we learned last Congress, behind nearly every VA scandal, there’s a bonus. Given that the department paid more than $380,000 in cash bonuses to top executives at 38 hospitals that are either under investigation for falsifying medical care wait times or where there have been long treatment delays, we need to give the VA secretary the authority to recoup any bonuses department employees collected based on false claims or exaggerated performance. Ideally, VA employees and executives who collected bonuses under false pretenses should be subject to prosecution when warranted, but at a minimum their bonuses should be paid back in full. I applaud my House colleagues for supporting these important measures and I urge the Senate to pass them without delay.” – Rep. Jeff Miller, Chairman, House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Related |