[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 10 (Wednesday, January 21, 2015)]
[House]
[Page H441]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       FIXING THE VA IS DIFFICULT

  (Mr. LaMALFA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. LaMALFA. Mr. Speaker, earlier this month, the President drove 
right past the Phoenix VA hospital, the facility at the center of the 
biggest scandal plaguing our Nation's veterans, without taking a second 
to stop.
  Last night in his hour-long speech, the President hardly skimmed the 
surface in addressing the major challenges our veterans are facing, but 
he did mention we need to do more to provide our veterans more job 
opportunities.
  We agree. In fact, on this same floor just a few weeks ago, Members 
of the House passed legislation that would do just that: encourage our 
employers to hire more of our heroes.
  Astonishingly, though, our President failed to even mention one word 
about the excessive wait times, second-rate care, fraudulent records, 
destroyed files, and complete incompetence that had been brought to 
light last year in the VA.
  He made no mention on the appeals process or recommendations to 
improve the lengthy process our veterans face to access the care and 
treatment they deserve, a topic the House is scheduled to have a 
hearing on tomorrow.
  Fixing the VA is difficult but not impossible. We are here to provide 
solutions, but we need our leader to be ready to work with us, to be 
ready to help us so we can finally give our veterans a system that 
works for them, not against them, in a timely fashion.

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