Draining the Swamp..Removes Director of Washington DC VA Hospital

Things are a lot different at the VA now that troop hating Obama and the liberals are no longer in charge.  When a VA director is caught in wrongdoing, they are no longer merely transferred or promoted, they are out on their ass.  But it’s still far from perfect.  Under current rules, even though Brian Hawkins is no longer the director, the taxpayers still have to give this incompetent moron his regular paycheck.  Do you think if you totally screwed up your job, your boss would continue paying you for a year or more as you appeal your firing?

A statement from the VA says:

“The Department of Veterans Affairs thanks the OIG for its quick work reviewing the D.C. VAMC.  The department considers this an urgent patient-safety issue. Effective immediately, the medical center director has been relieved from his position and temporarily assigned to administrative duties.”

“VA is conducting a swift and comprehensive review into these findings,” the statement continued. “VA’s top priority is to ensure that no patient has been harmed. If appropriate, additional disciplinary actions will be taken in accordance with the law.”

Dan Caldwell, policy director for Concerned Veterans for America, said in a statement:

“It is completely unacceptable that veterans have been subjected to such dangerous conditions at the Washington DC VA.  The VA did the right thing by relieving the DC director from his position, but he’s still being paid by taxpayers and under current law it will be very difficult to terminate him. Secretary Shulkin himself has said he wants Congress to pass legislation that will make it easier for him to quickly fire bad employees in situations like these.”

From The Daily Caller:

Investigators found the hospital has been storing important equipment in dirty areas and has had issues with lacking the tools necessary for certain surgical procedures.

For example, when investigators looked at 25 sterile storage areas, they found 18 were dirty.

The preliminary report also determined that there have been 194 reports about patients being placed at risk over the last three years. Surgeons had to cancel operations multiple times because they didn’t have the right tools.

Moreover, the Veterans Health Administration knew about the issues and did not fix them.

 

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