[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9306]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      RESTORING TRUST WITH OUR VETERANS THROUGH VA ACCOUNTABILITY

  (Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to 
address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. THOMPSON of Pennsylvania. Mr. Speaker, disclosures of abuse and 
neglect at our VA hospitals have been absolutely intolerable. This 
week's release of the interim report from the VA inspector general 
highlights the urgency in identifying the full scope of these tragic 
and potentially deliberate abuses and the need to hold officials at all 
levels to account for these failures.
  Since elected, I have remained in close contact with the VA hospitals 
serving the Fifth District of Pennsylvania, and I want to thank the 
committed public servants who work so very hard to provide the best 
possible care and support to our veterans in those facilities in this 
region of the country.
  Last week, the House, with bipartisan support, passed H.R. 4031, the 
VA Management and Accountability Act, and I am a proud cosponsor of 
that bill. While I am glad the House came together to pass this 
important reform, I encourage the Senate to do the same. So much more 
must be done to correct these specific abuses and impose accountability 
and trust across the VA system moving forward.
  Mr. Speaker, the brave men and women who have served our country in 
uniform deserve nothing less.

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