Thursday members of the Democratic Chamber found extensive disruptions throughout the agency’s health care system.
“There are real dangerous consequences for veterans,” said Chris Deluzio from Pennsylvania, citing the information organization.
This week, Propublica reports dozens of letters sent from hospital staff and outpatient clinics, at the Kvavator headquarters, warning how cuts can, and in some cases, the agency’s ability to provide about 9 million veterans who rely on it.
Having freezing and other Edikh from the White House left medical professionals who moved and short -term areas amid a permanent series of political steps, including the abolition of contracts with companies that support cancer registration, according to emails. VA staff in Pennsylvania warned that the cuts caused “serious and immediate consequences”, including “rescue cancer”.
“Enrollment in clinical trials stops,” – writes one, that means that veterans lose access to therapy. “Hospital staff warned that more than 1000 veterans will lose access to the treatment of diseases, ranging from metastatic head and neck disease, to the cranial injuries.
On Thursday, members of the House of Representatives, several of whom are veterans, demanded that VA provide more details on how the cuts affect the work in which the members of the service often receive treatment to which they do not have access.
“We all want to reduce waste, fraud and abuse, but what we see today is when you cancel a contract, it means the end of the clinical trial that will save someone’s life,” said Maggie Goodland spokesman from New Gampshire.
In particular, Deluzio, a veteran of the Iraq war, whose Pittsburgh area includes VA, and other lawmakers said they had learned about the influence for the first time from the propublica. On Thursday, they accused the secretary of the Colinzo Agency of being laid in their efforts to find out what positions were fired, what contracts were abolished and what future cuts would look.
“We want the country to understand that this administration is hiding what they do, not only from us and the congress, but also the veterans and the American people,” Deluzio said.
“And the worst thing is, we don’t know if he died,” he added.
President Donald Trump has long said that his administration will prioritize veterans and threaten their care.
Violations in the VI came even when the department fired only a few thousand employees – a small part of the employees, in which she stated that she would eventually be deleted. Collins said the agency is developing plans with the Elon Musk Department of Government efficiency to reduce at least 70,000 employees – the number he emphasized is a “goal”. “It may be less, there may be less,” he told the legislators this week.
On Thursday, in the message on xCollins pushed away from criticism, calling the propublica report “misleading” and stated that it is based on “some outdated reports from the VA internal system to quickly identify and correct the problems in the department.”
In his statement, VA press secretary Pitt Kasrovich said Collins was working to fix a “broken bureaucracy”, which has long had problems with patients’ security and access to help, among other issues. “Unfortunately, many in the media, the heads of the state union and some in the congress are fighting to maintain a violated status of -kua,” he said. “Our message is simple to veterans: despite the main opposition of those who do not want to change anything in VA, we will reform the department to make it better for veterans, families, caregivers and survivors.”
Earlier, Kasrovich told the information organization that the problems in Pennsylvania were solved, although the locals there, knowing the problems, said it was not and that the impact was ongoing. Kasrovich also said in relation to the contracts for maintaining cancer registers that “does not affect patients”. He added that VA was moving to create a national contract for their management.
According to some providers, even temporary disruptions damaged the care of veterans. One clinical test for the treatment of veterans for apioid addiction was completed by temporary dismissal. “We couldn’t give veterans a tool that could save their lives,” said Eli Gordon, CEO of Startup, who test the biosesari to warn veterans about the risk of recurrence.
On Tuesday, on Tuesday, before the Veterans Committee, Collins advertised the reductions in the time of hearing.
“We are going to maintain VA missionary jobs, such as doctors, nurses and claims processors while stopping the main roles such as interior designers and Dei staff,” he said in the opening of the statement. The saved funds will be transferred to immediate medical care and veterans’ benefits, he added.
Some Republicans defended the proposed reduction administrations at the hearings. “VA has become a fused bureaucracy,” said Senator Tommy Tuberville, who represents Alabam. “I think most of us will agree with that.”
But Senator Richard Blumenthal, de-kon. “You can’t cut and break VA without eliminating the important positions that provide access and healthcare,” he said. “It’s just impossible to do.”
Others at the hearing took Collins to the task for lack of transparency. Senator Angus King, I-Main, called on the secretary for refusing to provide a list of 538 withdrawn contracts since his appointment. Collins said he would provide information but only after completion.
“We look at every step we can, but I’m also not going to play in the public arena,” he said.
J. David Maxine contributed to the report.
