[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 78 (Thursday, May 22, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E828-E829]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS MANAGEMENT ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2014

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                        HON. SHEILA JACKSON LEE

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, May 21, 2014

  Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, I rise to speak in support of our 
nation's veterans and express my views regarding H.R. 4031, the 
Department of Veterans Affairs Management Accountability Act of 2014.
  This weekend the nation will mark the occasion of Memorial Day the 
time our nation pauses to recognize the valor, and self-sacrifice of 
our nation's veterans.
  We must remember that freedom is not free.
  That is why the timing of the disclosure is especially troubling 
regarding accusations made by a whistleblower about the treatment of 
veterans seeking healthcare at the Phoenix Veterans medical facility.
  Now, more than ever, we must renew our commitment to keep our 
promises to the nation's more than 2 million troops and reservists, 
their families, and 23 million veterans.
  The Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center located in Houston, Texas 
serves the 32,477 veterans who I have the privilege of representing in 
my Congressional District.

[[Page E829]]

  The Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center serves as the primary 
healthcare provider for almost 130,000 veterans in southeast Texas.
  Veterans from around the country are referred to the DeBakey VA 
Medical Center for specialized diagnostic care, radiation therapy, 
surgery, and medical treatment including cardiovascular surgery, 
gastrointestinal endoscopy, nuclear medicine, ophthalmology, and 
treatment of spinal cord injury and diseases.
  DeBakey VA Medical Center provide vital healthcare services to 
Veterans in the Houston area and through the nation. The Medical Center 
houses:
  A Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Clinic;
  Network Polytrauma Center;
  an award-winning Cardiac and General Surgery Program;
  Liver Transplant Center;
  VA Epilepsy and Cancer Centers of Excellence;
  VA Substance Abuse Disorder Quality Enhancement Research Initiative;
  Health Services Research & Development Center of Innovation;
  VA Rehabilitation Research of Excellence focusing on mild to moderate 
traumatic brain injury;
  Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center; and
  one of the VA's six Parkinson's Disease Research, Education, and 
Clinical Centers.
  In late 2012, the MEDVAMC received official designation as a Kidney 
Transplant Center. Including the outpatient clinics in Beaumont, 
Conroe, Galveston, Houston, Katy, Lufkin, Richmond, Tomball and Texas 
City, MEDVAMC outpatient clinics log more than a million outpatient 
visits annually.
  Earlier this week I joined other members of the Congressional Women's 
Caucus for the Wreath Laying Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery to 
remember the contributions of women who served our nation proudly in 
uniform.
  Veterans are told that the care that they need can be found at 
Veteran medical facilities around the nation and we must be certain 
that they have access to the care that is provided.
  The veterans who have served our nation deserve better than what we 
have been made aware of due to the disclosures related to the Arizona 
VA facility in Phoenix.
  It has been reported that physicians at the Phoenix Veterans Hospital 
ignored mandates to prioritize treatment of Iraq and Afghanistan 
veterans.
  The placement of veterans on secret waiting lists who later died is 
unconscionable and should be criminally investigated if proven to be 
true.
  The Veterans facilities serving veterans in Houston, to my knowledge, 
are not under investigation regarding these terrible reports related to 
accusations of mistreatment of our nation's veterans.
  I know that there are concerns regarding the implications of H.R. 
4031 on civil service protection for federal employees at the Veterans 
Administration.
  I am mindful of those concerns, but I am also very focused on making 
sure that our veterans receive the healthcare that they need.
  Should this bill become law, I will make sure that veterans received 
the care they need, while monitoring how the authority provided under 
this bill is used.
  The intent of this bill should not be solely for the removal of 
people from federal service unless there is cause for such action--like 
in the case of the Phoenix reports if proven to be true.
  Falsifying federal records that may lead to the deaths or further 
degradation of health of our nation's veterans if true should 
disqualify a person from federal employment and the receipt of bonuses.
  Our nation's veterans need help now--not later.
  The work that Congress along with the Administration can do today to 
make sure that the promises made to our veterans and their families are 
kept should be done.
  The bill would authorize the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to remove 
any individual from the Senior Executive Service upon determining that 
such individual's performance warrants removal, and remove such 
individual from federal service or transfer the individual to a General 
Schedule position at any grade that the Secretary deems appropriate.
  A part of the important job of our Nation's Secretary of Veterans 
Affairs is to administer a national hospital system for our nation's 
veterans.
  The Secretary of Veterans Affairs needs more than just the power to 
fire, but the authority and means to hire hospital and facility 
administrators at competitive rates when compared to the private 
sector.
  The Secretary of Veterans Affairs needs the ability to make decisions 
regarding distribution of resources and facility management.
  The Secretary must have the ability to make decisions and the power 
to act on whether to open additional facilities or enter into 
agreements with private or other public hospital systems to meet the 
healthcare needs of returning Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans along 
with the needs of our aging veteran population who have increased need 
for healthcare.
  The Veterans Administration needs Congressional intervention by 
making sure that the Secretary can be held fully accountable for how 
the Department functions because they have the authority and the means 
to manage the agency as it should be managed.
  The Secretary of Veterans Affairs would always be ultimately 
accountable to the oversight of Congressional Committees, and must 
provide greater transparency to veterans and their families on what the 
agency is doing to meet the needs of veterans.
  But it is within our power as Members of Congress to make sure that 
our nation's veterans receive the best medical care that modern 
medicine has to offer to them and their families.
  In the State of Texas we have over a million Veterans under the age 
of 65 and nearly a half million who are over the age of 65.
  I believe that a message of unity is critical to the wellbeing of our 
men and women in uniform and those transitioning out of uniformed 
service to our nation.
  Veterans share a kinship in ways that too few Americans who have not 
served can understand.
  Our men and women in the military have fulfilled a commitment to this 
nation and to each other that we should imitate in our actions to work 
to provide for veterans now that their military service has ended.
  Today, I want to renew my commitment to our nation's veterans by 
encouraging my colleagues to act to keep the nation's promises to them.
  Congress must communicate its wholehearted support for the security 
of the nation by addressing mindless cuts created by sequestration.
  I firmly believe that Congress must act to care for our soldiers, 
sailors, airmen, Marines, and Coast Guardsmen, both on and off the 
battlefield.
  I believe that the nation's concern for their wellbeing must be more 
than in words, but must be reflected in deeds.
  Veterans demonstrate a love of country and a measure of devotion 
making us proud as their Representatives, but we must offer to each 
veteran a level of comfort that the promises made to them will be kept.
  Their quiet dignity sets aside concerns for self because their vision 
is broader than the moments of partisanship that we see too often in 
Washington, DC.
  I ask that my colleagues remember the damage done to the budget of 
the Veterans Administration through cuts, sequestration, and the 
government shutdown.
  Mr. Speaker, it is my hope that the passion that I see in the actions 
and words of fellow Members of the House will translate into a long-
term commitment to mend what is broken at the VA and strengthen what is 
working well.
  We should recognize the great work being done by a majority of 
doctors, nurses, therapists, and medical aides at the dozens of 
veterans medical facilities around the nation.
  We must remember that the leadership at Veterans Affairs needs the 
funding and authority to make decisions regarding implementing 
solutions to overcome challenges of providing the best care possible to 
our nation's veterans.
  We should seek reports on the ability of the VA to meet the challenge 
of the returning veterans from Afghanistan and Iraq as well as the 
needs of Veterans from previous wars with the current level of funding, 
personnel, offices, and medical facilities.
  I am in support of our veterans and seek a bipartisan solution to 
resolving the problems with VA backlogs and the treatment of veterans 
and their families.

                          ____________________