I am deeply troubled by allegations of wrongdoing at Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care facilities around the country. The allegations of gross mismanagement and fraud are alarming and describe conduct that is reprehensible. The Inspector General’s investigation and findings are a call to action.
When the problems were uncovered, I organized a conference call with representatives of Veterans Services Organizations (VSOs) in Maine. Their message was that the Togus VA facility generally provides good care for our veterans. Nevertheless, it faces challenges – particularly the difficulty of attracting and keeping specialty doctors in our state.
The good news is that the U.S. Senate is taking action. I am an original cosponsor of bipartisan legislation that recently passed the Senate that addresses many of the concerns raised by Maine veterans. The bill, introduced by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.), will accelerate the hiring of doctors and other medical professionals necessary to meet the needs of veterans nationwide. It also establishes a two-year pilot program providing veterans with a choice to seek VA-covered services through providers outside of the VA network if they have to wait more than two weeks for an appointment or live more than 40 miles away from a VA facility.
Increasing access to health care for veterans, especially those in rural areas, remains a top priority of mine. Northern Maine has been one of the five pilot sites for the VA’s Access Received Closer to Home, or ARCH, program, which I have championed.
The program improves access to health care for veterans, especially those in rural areas, by connecting them to local health care services. For example, this past winter a veteran in Aroostook County broke his hip in a fall. Without ARCH, he would have had to make a 250-mile trip in an ambulance over hazardous winter roads to the VA hospital at Togus. Especially for our ailing and elderly veterans, such a trip can be physically taxing, painful, or detrimental to their health. Because of ARCH, he was able to be treated at Cary Medical Center in Caribou with his family there to support him through his hospitalization and rehabilitation.
The ARCH program is a model for the nation. As a member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans’ Affairs, I am pleased that the Committee has approved my request for $35 million to extend this pilot program.
I have also long been concerned with claims by Maine veterans they have suffered from health problems as a result of being exposed to Agent Orange during military training at Gagetown, New Brunswick. At my request, the VA funding bill directs the VA to improve its efforts to research the residual health impacts of Agent Orange, and it urges the VA to conduct a study on the feasibility of establishing a registry of U.S. veterans who served or trained outside of Vietnam and who may have been exposed to Agent Orange. The VA must report back to Congress on this issue.
Sen. Angus King and I also have introduced legislation that would establish a registry of veterans who have served or trained at Gagetown and who have subsequently experienced health problems. That registry will then be used by an independent commission to investigate possible links between those health problems and toxins like Agent Orange.
The Subcommittee also included provisions to address the unacceptable wait times for VA patients. One provision allows the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to hold senior VA officials accountable for poor performance or mismanagement that has undoubtedly harmed some Veterans and may have even contributed to patient deaths. Another provision requires the VA Inspector General to conduct a nationwide audit of access to care and prohibits bonuses to certain VA officials until the audit is completed and its recommendations implemented.
My commitment to our veterans is due in large part to the opportunities I’ve had to meet with our troops overseas, in South Korea, Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq. It has been a particular honor to meet with the sons and daughters of Maine serving in freedom’s cause.
My commitment to veterans is also a deeply personal matter. My father is a World War II veteran who fought at the Battle of the Bulge. He was wounded twice, and awarded two Purple Hearts and the Bronze Star.
Recently, I had the pleasure to meet another truly remarkable veteran, Louis Roberge, a member of the American Legion in Lewiston, and to present him with the Bronze Star and other medals and commendations he earned in World War II but never received. He took part in some of the greatest battles in the Pacific – the liberation of the Philippines and the invasion of Okinawa. Then he did what truly distinguishes the American character – he came home, quietly and modestly, raised a family, worked hard, and contributed to his community.
From patriots like Louis Roberge, my father, and the troops serving today, I know that the heroes who wear the uniforms of America’s armed forces are peace-loving men and women who advance the cause of freedom with courage, devotion to duty, and sacrifice. Our nation is grateful to them.
