Today, VA submitted a plan to Congress to move forward on the Denver Replacement Medical Center.

“The delays and cost overruns that have plagued the Denver Replacement Medical Center campus are inexcusable,” Secretary Bob McDonald wrote in his letter to Congress. “I respectfully request that Congress take action to allow us to move forward so that construction on the Denver Replacement Medical Center in Aurora does not shut down later this month.”  The full text of the letter is included below.

VA is committed to completing the construction of the Denver replacement hospital to serve the 390,000 Veterans and their families of the Colorado area.

In addition to detailed construction and funding plans for the Denver facility, VA also released updates outlining progress made in areas such as accountability, access, homelessness and other priorities, as well as the MyVA Transformational Plan.

“VA is changing. It will take time to fully implement these changes, but we at VA are committed to work with Congress on this and many other challenges and opportunities as we transform VA into the Veteran-centric, customer service-oriented organization Veterans have earned and deserve,” McDonald wrote.

The full text of the documents released are available for download here:

 

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4 Comments

  1. DannyG June 23, 2015 at 17:40

    WOW! All kinds of numbers flying around. I haven’t heard Secretary McDonald say those numbers though. I agree with Mr. Goodwin on several points. I have a personal story about the MSA training program at the VETERANS Administration. From the top down, employees need to be held accountable for their actions, & at this point, WE should be informed of any “public” information. Just my opinion.
    I will double check my records, but I believe Secretary McDonald has claimed to have fired a total of three (3) people. He screwed up in an interview (misunderstood?) & said 60 (?), then got chewed out by the VA news guy & they issued an immediate correction. That’s what I have been told, & believe. He’s only human , too.
    I feel that we have earned the right to ask the gov’t to keep its word to us. I want the VETERANS Administration to get straightened out, & I want it to happen on Secretary McDonald’s watch! THE SOONER, THE BETTER!
    I’m not “entitled”, but I am honest..,,, without veterans, there would be no America!

  2. Norman Peacock June 11, 2015 at 12:09

    One life after another.Of all the employees he claimed to have fired,almost all retired.According to the National news,only a hand full were terminated.
    Another example of waste were the kiosk machines installed in all VA facilities.Not used,probably cost taxpayers 100s of million dollars.
    The system has worsened since the liar took over as VA Secretary,he should be back’counting beans at Proctor and Gamble’.
    Apparently we veterans are not as stupid as you think we are!
    Norman Peacock
    Daytona Beach,Florida

  3. Hermon June 5, 2015 at 20:08

    Unfortunately as long as the Congress demands that all government agencies accept the LOWEST bid instead of the BEST bid there will always be excessive cost over runs. You see this in DOD and you see it in the VA.

  4. Lawrence Palmer Goodwin June 5, 2015 at 19:48

    If VA has terminated 1495 employees since Bob McDonald’s appointment, how many of those were terminated or even disciplined in DIRECT connection with the systematic falsification of appointment lists & Veteran’s appointment records?
    Last I checked, the number was ZERO. I have also read credible recent reports that virtually ALL VA administrators received salary bonuses over this past year. How many of those who received bonuses have been or had been found culpable in the appointments fraud? How does that earn a bonus?
    Exactly what “culture of accountability” is VA now building upon, given the past year’s findings of widespread culpability in the appointments fraud? If VA is indeed “building” then it must have a valid foundation.
    Has VA discovered areas of fault in the construction corruption that has caused such huge cost over-runs & delays in so many projects? How much money has already been wasted, that could have gone to Veteran’s care?
    What has been done about VA hiring freezes that prevent filling positions when an employee leaves VA? These positions aid Veterans in accessing their healthcare, & one monumental problem for Vets is making connection with VA via telephone. Voicemail only works when workers actually return the call, & that far too often simply doesn’t happen. The Veteran is left finally to drive to the nearest VA & stand in front of someone’s desk to be sure he is not ignored. How many miles of travel would VA estimate this problem entails each year? How much gasoline is wasted because someone wouldn’t answer a telephone, or return a call from voicemail?
    Veterans suffer via all of these avenues of inattention, fraud & corruption, & the federal salary bonus system will assure there is incentive for it to begin anew.
    Many of your employees are quite laudable in their competence, caring & sincerety. But without earnest prosecution of criminal charges against those who financially benefited while Veterans healthcare was denied or delayed, we will see all of this happen again, & very soon. Those earnest VA employees suffer right along with your Veterans.
    The only people who can assure this are those at the very top. But Veterans will certainly be watching.

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