U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (NJ-04) hailed the passage of The Veteran’s Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014 (HR 3230) late today to address the shocking misconduct uncovered at Veteran Administration hospitals and to greatly improve health care access for our veterans, including at the VA clinic in Brick, N.J.
“There is no one in America today—either individually or collectively—who commands deeper respect, admiration and gratitude than our nation’s veterans,” said Smith, a former chairman of the House Veterans Affairs’ Committee. “I am deeply disturbed and angered by the unacceptable state of affairs and possible corruption that had recently taken hold at the VA. America’s veterans deserve real accountability and a cultural change at the VA. The Veteran’s Access, Choice and Accountability Act of 2014 will accomplish this by targeting nearly $17 billion to significant reforms inside the VA and by allowing veterans to seek care at non-VA facilities if the veteran is unable to secure an appointment at a VA facility within 30 days.”
The VA Inspector General’s findings substantiated claims that 40 veterans died while awaiting care at the Phoenix VA clinic in Arizona and that another 57,000 veterans nationwide have yet to be seen by the VA for an initial visit. HR 3230 will provide veterans with options to receive the care they need as soon as possible in a convenient, easy access setting. The bill also gives the VA the flexibility to fire those individuals who falsified records, kept secret waitlists, and deceived inspectors all while receiving bonuses and not providing care.
“While a criminal investigation is necessary and prosecutions should follow where warranted, in the short-term we can and must send a clear signal to the VA’s leaders—and those throughout the entire department entrusted with the sacred task of caring for our veterans—that anything less than timely and quality care will not be tolerated,” Smith said.
HR 3230 targets $5 billion of the new funding to increase access to care within VA hospitals by hiring new doctors, nurses and other critical medical staff and by improving the VA’s infrastructure.
The bill includes previously House-passed provisions to authorize new leases for full-to-capacity, space-deficient VA outpatient centers such as clinic in Brick, N.J. HR 3230 also extends the Access Received Closer to Home (ARCH) pilot program which currently permits certain veterans who live at notable distances from a veterans’ hospital to receive some primary care, secondary care or acute care near their homes. It also extends the pilot program to provide rehabilitation, quality of life and community integration services for veterans with severe traumatic brain injuries and improves the delivery of care to veterans who have experienced military sexual trauma.
The VA’s Ocean County Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) in Brick is in need of more space and repair. The facility is now handling three times as many appointments as it was intended to serve when Smith first introduced legislation back in 1985 to establish a VA facility to meet the needs of the growing veteran’s community in and around Ocean County.
Over the years Smith successfully spearheaded and supported the efforts to locate accessible three VA clinics in Hamilton (Mercer), Fort Monmouth/now in Tinton Falls (Monmouth) and Brick (Ocean), as well as both the Vet Center and its Mobile Vets Center in Lakewood.
“Properly located VA facilities can provide convenient, cost-effective primary care for millions of veterans. Unfortunately, Ocean County’s clinic has outgrown its space,” Smith said.
While the VA was on track to enter into a new lease for a larger Ocean County facility last summer, a policy shift at the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) put the lease in jeopardy.
Since then, Smith worked to reverse the decision and find alternative solutions to provide the VA with leasing authority to advance leases caught in the policy change—including the Brick VA lease. The House passed the Department of Veterans Affairs Major Medical Facility Lease Authorization Act (HR 3521) in December 2013, but the Senate did not take any action until recently, after the horrific reports of neglect, mismanagement and possible corruption at other VA medical centers.
The legislation passed today includes an authorization for a new Brick clinic, as well as 26 other VA facilities across the country.
“Our local veterans will soon have access to a new facility, with additional space and services, including more parking, to help ensure they receive the care they have earned in a timely manner,” Smith said.
The Ocean County VA clinic project is expected to cost about $7 million.
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