The Veterans Affairs Department says it has cut positions at its central office in Washington DC by 10% while also consolidating mental health, primary care and geriatrics policy, and operations functions. This comes as part of the departments’ efforts to eliminate...
A few years back, a VA Medical Center in Phoenix, AZ created a “secret wait list” to make it appear the hospital was filling appointments and meeting the demand. This prompted Congress to examine VA’s hiring practices and empowered the departments’ secretaries to...
It seems lately there is a lot of news coming from the VA. For years now, publicity and scandals have plagued the department. Another bill recently introduced by Congressman Phil Roe (R-TN) looks at replacing the Veterans Choice Act. The Veterans Choice Act passed in...
The Department of Veterans Affairs is looking at the possibility of merging its health system with the Pentagon’s as part of its effort to expand private health care. Curt Cashour, a VA spokesman, said the plan is a potential “game changer” that would “provide better...
The VA Management Alignment Act would require the department to report to Congress on its organizational structure, including details on the “roles, responsibility, and accountability” of its “elements and individuals”. This report would also include results from...
VA Secretary, David Shulkin, is calling for a new way of thinking about veterans’ benefits. “I want to see an ongoing dialogue with stakeholders about rationalizing veterans’ benefits—a veteran benefit advisory board that can bring clarity to what we’re trying to do...
Even with agencies hiring fewer new veterans to fill government jobs, veterans still had a stronger presence in the federal workforce in FY2016. Veterans made up 31.1 percent of the federal workforce in FY2016; the previous year they made up 30.9 percent of the...
Despite the title, when President Trump signed the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act at the end of August, some important assistance evaporated. In the past, when filing a claim for VA disability compensation, the VA was obligated to help the veteran...
Official time describes a practice where the federal government pays federal employees their regular salary and benefits while representing a union. The Use of Official Time at the VA David Shulkin, Secretary of the VA, wants to change the number of employees using...
Congressman Tom Rice (R-SC) wants to conduct a nationwide survey of veterans to find out if services need reforming at the Department of Veterans Affairs. He recently introduced the Survey Our Servicemembers Act, legislation that would establish a nationwide, annual...
Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin presented his diagnosis of the department and it’s not pretty. In his assessment, he outlined many areas that need improvement and the legislative and administrative fixes it needs to see. Shulkin and his team reviewed 137...
The Department of Veteran’s Affairs Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act is a bipartisan bill. This bill is in response to problems encountered by the VA over the last few years. It’s intended to reform the Department of Veteran’s Affairs by allowing the...
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