VA Secretary to Report on Current Issues & Say "Goo

[boardman]

Chairman House Veterans Affairs Committee


NEWS FROM…

CHAIRMAN BOB FILNER

HOUSE COMMITTEE ON VETERANS’ AFFAIRS

335 Cannon HOB 

Washington, D.C. 20515                                      

http://veterans.house.gov

For more information contact

Kristal DeKleer (202) 225-9756

VA Secretary Jim Nicholson to Report on Current Issues – and to Say “Goodbye”!

Washington, D.C. – Bob Filner (D-CA), Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, held a hearing on Tuesday to appraise the current state of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).  The hearing provided outgoing Secretary Nicholson the opportunity to give his assessment of the VA and discuss the future challenges for the department.  The Secretary provided testimony on the many successful programs within the Department, addressed specific challenges facing the VA, and answered questions from the Committee panel. 

Secretary Nicholson will step down as head of the VA on October 1, 2007. 

“The VA must rise to the challenge of providing excellent care for the growing number of returning servicemembers, while continuing to provide care for the veterans of previous conflicts,” said Chairman Filner.  “I want to thank the Secretary for his leadership in providing quality care for all veterans.  The VA-run health care system has been commended for the excellence of its care, its innovative electronic medical records system and its response to emergencies and disasters.”     

The Department of Veterans Affairs is the second largest agency in the federal government, and one of the most essential.  The country’s 25 million veterans are served by the VA’s 245,000 employees.  The VA oversees the largest integrated health care system in the country.  The Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) directs compensation for veterans, including educational benefits, home loan guarantees, life insurance programs and employment programs.  The VBA also administers the veterans’ pension system and the disability compensation system. 

The Secretary provided testimony on the programs within the VA that address the issues facing today’s veterans, including the Advisory Committee on Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom Veterans, VET Centers, Mental Health Initiatives and the transformation of the Information Technology structure. 

The Secretary also addressed the challenges at the VA, including the backlog of disability and pension claims.  “VA can influence the output (claims decided) of its work product, but it cannot control the input (claims filed).  And, in the midst of a war, more claims for service connected disabilities are being filed.   To control the output, VBA is hiring additional staff.  VBA is also working to consolidate suitable components of its work – as has been recommended by a number of Government Accountability Office reports – to achieve efficiencies, more consistent claims decisions, and better control over work processes and product,” said Secretary Nicholson. 

The issue of health care delivery was also discussed during the hearing.  “The VA must rise to the challenge of addressing access to care issues, especially in the areas of Traumatic Brain Injury, Post-traumatic Stress Disorder, and the specialized services relied on by many of our nation’s veterans,” said Chairman Filner.  “These are challenges that the Secretary and I have worked on together, and will be left to Secretary Nicholson’s successor.  The Committee has worked diligently to address this issue with proposed legislation and I have high hopes for meeting these very real needs of our veterans.”