U.S. SENATE – U.S. Senator Steve Daines sent a letter to the Department of Veterans Affairs calling for transparency and answers on decisions impacting Montana veterans. This includes an investigation which found 1,600 potentially ineligible providers in the VA’s system, the VA quietly consolidating Community Care offices and pending VA health care facility closures.
“As you know, the GAO recently flagged some 1,600 health care providers as potentially ineligible to participate in the VCCP, including many who were deceased, had violent criminal records, and had revoked or suspended medical licenses. Our veterans and taxpayers deserve better. I would like to know how many of these providers were operating in Montana, and what actions will be taken to hold them accountable and to rectify any harm they may have caused,” Daines wrote.
“Equally concerning are rumors of pending VA health care facility closures that serve less than 3,000 patients. If true, this indiscriminate approach would shut down five of Montana’s ten outpatient clinics, requiring many Montana veterans to travel hundreds of miles to receive VA health care and rendering it impracticable for others. Even rumors of such closures significantly complicates your own ability to recruit and retain quality providers,” the letter continues.
To read the letter Daines sent to Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough, click HERE.
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Contact: Rachel Dumke, Katie Schoettler