[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 3]
[House]
[Page 4297]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1215
                   IMPROVING VETERANS' ACCESS TO CARE

  (Mrs. ROBY asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. ROBY. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that the House this week is 
taking action to bring much-needed accountability and improvement to 
the VA.
  Two and a half years ago, in the wake of the veterans waitlist 
scandal, Congress rightfully passed legislation giving the VA Secretary 
greater authority to fire senior managers responsible for those 
failures. I was glad to support the bill. In fact, the director of our 
own scandal-ridden central Alabama VA became the first fired under the 
new law.
  But, Mr. Speaker, we all know that law did not go far enough. 
Responsibility for failures at the VA doesn't just lie with senior 
managers. We need to provide the VA Secretary increased authority to 
swiftly remove, demote, or suspend any VA employee for poor performance 
or misconduct. That is why I urge my colleagues to support the VA 
Accountability First Act.
  The problems at the VA may have left the front page for now, but the 
problems are still very present. The work of improving veterans' access 
to care is far from over, and I will not stop until it is done.

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