House Veterans Affairs Committee
The House Veterans Affairs Committee voted today to subpoena Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki in the wake of his department being accused of deadly delays in health care at some of its hospitals.
The Shinseki subpoena will cover e-mails that allegedly discussed the destruction of a secret list, first reported by CNN, of veterans waiting for care at a Phoenix VA hospital. Ref. CNN
Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki has ordered a "Face-to-face audit" At all Department of Veterans Affairs clinics, a spokeswoman tells CNN.
The announcement follows months of CNN exclusive reporting about U.S. Veterans who have died while they waited for treatment at VA hospitals across the country.
VA spokeswoman Jessica Jacobsen said in a statement that the purpose of the review is "To ensure a full understanding of VA's policy and continued integrity in managing patient access to care."
The audits will be conducted over the next several weeks "At all clinics for every VA Medical Center," The statement said. Ref. CNN
VA has 41,500 unfilled medical jobs, thwarting timely care for vets
The vacancies, uncovered in VA documents obtained and analyzed by USA TODAY, are forcing vets to see private doctors at an added cost of $7.7 billion. Ref. USAToday