Eric Shinseki, the Veterans Affairs Secretary, explained that the capacity of their VA clinics will be extended in order to help veteran patients get care sooner. This move was anticipated as lawmakers have insisted to change the policy after rumours about falsified records and delays in treatments surfaced. The Phoenix VA hospital and 25 other VA facilities are being investigated after 40 veterans died waiting for treatment.
What makes the case even worst is that investigators found that the veteran patients’ deaths were covered up as details regarding delays in treatment have been removed from their files. Last year alone the department of Veterans Affairs has spend around $4.8 billion on medical care for non-VA clinics and hospitals. This represents close to 10 percent of their total health care costs.
