[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 8]
[House]
[Pages 11091-11092]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  QUALITY HEALTH CARE FOR OUR VETERANS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 3, 2013, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. 
Austin Scott) for 30 minutes.
  Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I certainly don't intend to 
take that much time, but in a few short minutes, we are going to break 
for the July Fourth recess, and I just wanted to come forward on behalf 
of the veterans of the United States and make the commitment to them 
that the House and the Senate are going to continue to work to resolve 
the issues that we have heard so much about.
  I would like to share, if I could, before we go, two stories from 
veterans of their wait times and neglect that my office has worked to 
try to help resolve.
  I am hopeful, when we come back, we are able to get to a resolution 
for these men and women who fought for and died for this country, so 
that we can have that July Fourth Independence Day.
  The following stories come from my district. They are stories that we 
have worked on in our office. They haven't made national headlines, but 
they are very similar to others that have made national headlines.
  The first is of the gentleman, Mr. Michael Whitley, from Ocilla. He 
was a 100 percent service-connected disabled veteran with cancer. He 
was unable to receive that cancer treatment at the VA medical center 
where he received his primary care, so he had to travel about three-
and-a-half hours to a different facility, even though there was an 
outstanding cancer treatment facility just 30 minutes away from his 
home.
  As his condition worsened and as it became more difficult for him to 
travel, Mr. Whitley's primary care facility promised to approve fee-
based treatment, which would be closer to home. Unfortunately, Mr. 
Whitley died before this care that was closer to home was approved.
  The second story comes from a 12-page letter--a very heart-wrenching 
letter--of a 3-year-long case that our office has been working on to 
resolve. It is of Mr. Willis McCarty, from Moultrie, Georgia.
  He visited his VA primary care provider in February of 2009 for an 
aortic abdominal aneurysm. His doctor found that the aneurysm measured 
7.8 centimeters, requiring immediate surgery. To quote Mr. McCarty, 
``He told me I was a walking time bomb and that I needed immediate 
surgery.''
  Mr. McCarty was referred for a surgery consultation at another VA 
facility, and he went to the appointment under the impression that he 
would be admitted for that surgery.
  The vascular surgeon, instead, sent him home and rescheduled the 
surgery for a later date. Mr. McCarty writes that the doctor said, ``We 
do not see any immediate danger. We think your doctor overreacted, and 
we are going to send you home for 10 days.''
  Upon returning home, the aneurysm ruptured. Mr. McCarty was rushed to 
the hospital for emergency surgery, where he remained hospitalized for 
2 months due to complications.
  To quote Mr. McCarty, ``Before they took me into surgery, they had to 
use the paddles on me two times. My heart stopped for over 2 minutes. 
While in surgery, a ventilator was placed down into my lungs to breathe 
for me. I was in surgery for 6 hours. After the surgery was completed 
and I was rolled into the ICU, the surgeon told the nurses, `This is a 
miracle boy, and I want to keep it that way.' I was in ICU for about 3 
weeks with the ventilator in my lungs the entire time. While in ICU, 
one of my lungs collapsed, and I developed pneumonia. I was going 
through hell and didn't even know I was in this world. I was in the 
hospital about 6 weeks.''
  After his stay, Mr. McCarty received a phone call from the chief of 
staff at the hospital and from a VA representative, apologizing and 
admitting guilt on behalf of the VA, assuring him his expenses would be 
paid and that ``the doctor should have never sent me back home.''
  They advised him to file a tort claim, and they even mailed him the 
forms to use in filing the claim.
  Mr. McCarty writes, ``Just the hospital bill was about $125,000. That 
is not including the bill from the two surgeons, pathology, x-ray, et 
cetera.''
  Mr. McCarty has been paying these bills out of pocket, monthly, since 
2009, for 5 years. The VA continues to deny his claims, and to this 
date, the VA has paid nothing. They also continue to deny Mr. McCarty's 
disability claims, and Mr. McCarty's appeal process will likely take 
another 3 years. Mr. McCarty is 77.
  In his letter, Mr. McCarty writes, ``I feel like the VA is giving me 
the runaround,'' and ``I served my country. I've done my duty and was 
proud and honored to do it.''

[[Page 11092]]

  In return for Mr. McCarty's 8 years of service, he has spent 5 years 
dealing with this medical trauma and now expects to spend another 3 
years in appeals. Every month, he pays the surgeons and the hospital 
for a surgery and complications that the VA is responsible for.
  Mr. Speaker, most of the time, when we are working with these 
veterans, they ask us to fix this for one simple reason: fix it so the 
next soldier doesn't have to go through this--not for me--but so that 
the next soldier doesn't have to go through this.
  We need to resolve these issues for our veterans, and we need to 
resolve them now. They deserve better.
  I want to thank our House VA Committee, under the leadership of 
Chairman Jeff Miller, as well as the Democrats and the Republicans on 
that committee, for the work they have done and are doing to make that 
system better.
  Before we break for the July Fourth Independence Day holiday, I want 
to make the commitment on behalf of my colleagues in the House of 
Representatives that, while we will be gone from Washington for a week, 
we will continue to work on these issues in order to help resolve them 
for our veterans.
  I wish each and every one of you a happy Independence Day. Whether 
you fly the flag in your yard or wear the patch on your shoulder or 
just keep it in your heart, thank you, and God bless America.
  With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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