VA Scheduling Accountability Act

Mr. Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to express my strong support for the significant package of the veteran's bills that we considered in the House both yesterday and today.

As the former Chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee (2001 through 2005), I am acutely aware of the challenges our veterans face, especially as they transition from military to civilian life. As Chairman, I authored more than a dozen laws to expand health, education, job training and homelessness benefits for the men and women who served in uniform. Thankfully these laws continue to help our veterans today.

Still, there are new problems and new issues that urgently need our attention. Massive wait times, forged documents by VA officials, ineptitude, lack of equipment and under-staffing at VA medical facilities are just a few of the significant transgressions that have been exposed and are undermining the quality of service and the treatment our veterans receive.

In 2014 and 2016 Congress passed the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act (P.L. 113-146) and the Faster Care for Veterans Act (P.L. 114-286), respectively, to usher in a complete overhaul of VA systems and to institute new technological services for scheduling and in order to secure more timely appointments. Some, but not nearly enough, progress has occurred. Much more must be done.

I commend Chairman Phil Roe, MD and his team at the Veterans Affairs Committee on the package of bills before us this week. All seven will help improve the benefit programs and the delivery of healthcare service for our veterans.

For instance, The Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017 (H.R. 2288) will empower veterans who have been denied benefits to have more options as they pursue their appeals. Under the new bill, vets will be able to waive a hearing and submit additional evidence, pursue a hearing and submit additional evidence, or transfer the jurisdiction of their case to the Board of Veterans Appeals. The new options should help cut through some wait time.

The VA Scheduling Accountability Act (H.R. 467) would require an annual certification of compliance with scheduling directives. Additionally the bill blocks awards and bonuses to any leadership personnel at any medical center that fails to comply with the scheduling directives. Another bill before us, H.R. 1005 would allow the federal government to enter into agreements with state veteran's homes to pay for adult day health care for certain eligible veterans.

The No Hero Left Untreated Act (H.R. 1162) will create a one year pilot program at the VA to use innovative therapy to treat veterans who suffer from invisible wounds, which include post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injury (TBI), military sexual trauma, chronic pain, or opiate addiction. As the author of the Veterans Health Programs Improvement Act (P.L. 108-422) which authorized regional veteran polytrauma centers for multiple injuries including TBI, I fully support H.R. 1162 as a way to ensure that the VA is able to adapt to the newest and best practices for treating veterans with these unique traumas and conditions.

The Quicker Veterans Benefits Delivery Act of 2017 (H.R. 1725) will require stronger reporting requirements from the Department of Veterans Affairs regarding the necessity for in-person disability examinations; and the Veterans' Compensation Cost-of-Living Adjustment Act of 2017 (H.R. 1329) will increase the cost-of-living-adjustment for disabled veterans who receive compensation to equal the same rate of increase for citizens who receive Social Security in 2018.

Finally, the VA Prescription Data Accountability Act (H.R. 1545) will help combat drug addiction among our veterans by creating better information and data sharing between the Department of Veterans Affairs and the states' recording programs.

Mr. Speaker, let me remind my colleagues that while this package of veterans bills marks another step forward, we cannot be lulled into thinking that the Department of Veterans Affairs and the delivery of veterans' benefits and healthcare will be forever fixed simply with the enactment of new legislation, no matter how well written.

Good legislation is the necessary, minimum first step. But equally important is the full and consistent implementation of the new laws, along with regular and aggressive oversight by this Congress. We must be vigilant and continue to push to ensure that all veterans get the care they have earned--at the time they need it--not months or years later.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairman Roe and Ranking Member Walz. What an honor it is to work with these two gentlemen on veterans' issues.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 467, the VA Scheduling Accountability Act.

This commonsense legislation codifies an important measure of oversight and accountability of VA facilities to prevent scheduling manipulation or, in the vernacular, ``cooking the books,'' that has harmed veterans for so long.

Hearings held by the House VA Committee and investigations by the VA inspector general and the GAO have, unfortunately, confirmed many of the allegations of cooking books and falsified wait-time data at facilities around the country.

The VA has a procedure for scheduling veterans' medical appointments, which includes 19 different items, such as ensuring that a patient's desired appointment date is not altered and that staff are fully trained. Importantly, the directive requires each facility to certify compliance with all of these 19 items every year.

However, an August 2014 VA inspector general report uncovered that, in May 2013, a senior VA official waived the certification requirement that year, essentially putting the facility on an honor system, allowing them to self-certify.

Without this crucial accountability mechanism, bad actors were given free rein to manipulate wait-time data and ignore the VA's required scheduling practices. Meanwhile, veterans faced significant delays in getting the care they needed while, in some extreme cases, veterans died.

Since that time, the VA has reinstated the certification requirements. However, serious problems remain, as evidenced by a recent VA investigation of a clinic in my own district that I requested after some brave individuals came forward with allegations of wrongdoing.

The VA found that the clinic scheduled appointments for veterans without the veterans' knowledge and canceled them on the day of the appointment in order to fill their schedule for that day. If the VA had conducted proper audits of that facility's scheduling practices last year, this misconduct could have been prevented. The VA's report recommended a review of scheduling compliance for all medical facilities in the region.

The VA's continued inability to reform itself from within is the reason we need to pass this bill. This bill will require each facility director to annually certify compliance with the current scheduling directive or any successive directive that replaces it, and, most importantly, it will prohibit any future waivers. The bill also provides accountability by making a director ineligible for salary bonuses if their facility fails to certify compliance, and it requires the VA to report to Congress a list of these facilities that are not in compliance. This will provide more oversight of the VA, ensure that Congress is aware of noncompliant facilities, and end the reckless practice of self-certification.

Mr. Speaker, our veterans risked life and limb for our freedom, but too often the VA has let them down. It is time to put an end to this scheduling manipulation--the cooking of the books--and the false wait- time data.

Holding every VA facility accountable for following scheduling rules is an important, commonsense step as we work to fix the VA so it works for the veterans in our country.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 467, the VA Scheduling Accountability Act.

Mr. Speaker, I rise to a question of the privileges of the House and offer a resolution previously noticed.

I do, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Speaker, under clause 1 of rule IX, questions of the privileges of the House are those affecting the rights of the House collectively, its safety, dignity, and the integrity of its proceedings. I believe that the dignity of this institution is at risk each day that passes without this body exercising its statutory authority and constitutional duty to operate as a coequal branch of government.

The legislative branch of government has the responsibility and authority to keep a proper check on the executive branch under section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code. Specifically, three committees have jurisdiction to request tax returns: the Committee on Ways and Means, the Senate Finance Committee, and the Joint Committee on Taxation. This provision has been part of our Federal Tax Code since 1924 to facilitate full and complete investigations into scandals that rise to the level of national importance.

Nothing could rise to the level of national importance like the possible financial entanglements our President may have with Russian entities and individuals. This situation is truly unprecedented. It is our sworn duty to uphold the integrity of this institution and examine all the relevant details related to this issue.

Each week we see yet another fact in the growing case of entanglements between our President, his campaign and closest advisers, and Russian officials. The most recent troubling report occurred just last week when we learned that the President himself reportedly made statements directly to Russian officials during an Oval Office meeting regarding the FBI investigation into his campaign ties with Russia. This is the same meeting where the President took it upon himself to reveal highly classified information to Russian officials.

How long can this body allow these types of actions to go unchecked?

I understand, Mr. Speaker. I promise that they relate to the question at issue.

Mr. Speaker, further, the American people deserve to know if President Trump has exploited the Federal Tax Code for improper personal gain.

The personal business endeavors of the leader of the free world should be exercised to the highest possible standard. Specifically, the President's business dealings around the world make him more prone to potential conflicts of interest than any President in history. However, the President did not take adequate steps to mitigate any potential issues. He was advised by the Office of Government Ethics to divest himself of his business entanglements. The President chose to ignore this sound advice.

It is now the duty of this body to restore integrity to the oversight process. Our democracy should be an example to the world. Today we have the opportunity to ensure that it is achieved through taking up this overdue investigation. It is only then we can restore the dignity and integrity of the House through exercise of our constitutional duty.

For these reasons, this resolution raises a question of the privileges of the House and should be allowed a vote.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back.

Mr. Speaker, I appeal the ruling of the Chair.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 467) to direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to ensure that each medical facility of the Department of Veterans Affairs complies with requirements relating to scheduling veterans for health care appointments, to improve the uniform application of directives of the Department, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 467, a bill that would codify the VA's own directives for outpatient scheduling into law.

In June of 2010, the Veterans Health Administration issued VHA Directive 2010-27, VHA Outpatient Scheduling Processes and Procedures. This directive requires VHA facility directors to annually certify that their facility is in full compliance with the scheduling procedures outlined within the directive.

It is important to note that this directive was issued 4 years before the scheduling scandal at the Phoenix VA broke, with no less than 40 veterans dying while being kept on secret lists, waiting for an appointment. I believe this directive was a responsible way for the VA to ensure that veterans were receiving the care that they came to the VA for and were not slipping through the cracks.

Unfortunately, in May of 2013, then-Deputy Under Secretary for Health at the VA waived this requirement for the VA medical facility directors to adhere to the directive. As we now know, this waiver helped cover a practice of malfeasance within scheduling departments at VA medical facilities across the Nation.

As I mentioned before, in 2014, the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, with my friend, former Chairman Jeff Miller at the helm, discovered secret waiting lists at the Phoenix VA, as well as many other medical centers across the country. Had this directive still been in place, I honestly believe the scandal could have been prevented.

Mr. Speaker, it is incumbent upon us to ensure that these scheduling processes do not and cannot be dismissed by VA bureaucrats ever again.

I thank my good friend and former committee member, Representative Jackie Walorski from Indiana, for sponsoring this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 467, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Bilirakis), the vice chair and one of the most active members of the committee.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Indiana (Mrs. Walorski), the sponsor of the bill and a former member of the committee.

Mr. Speaker, once again, I encourage all Members to support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. Speaker, due to the birth of my first child I was unable to be present for votes taken May 18 through 19, 22, and 24 through 25, as well as for some votes on May 23. Had I been present, I would have voted as follows:

Roll Call Vote Number 263 (Previous Question on H. Res. 324): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 264 (Passage of H. Res. 324): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 265 (Passage of H.R. 115, the Thin Blue Line Act): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 266 (Passage of H.R. 1892, the Honoring Hometown Heroes Act): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 267 (Passage of H.AMDT. 117 to H.R. 1039 offered by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 268 (Passage of H.R. 1039, the Probation Officer Protection Act of 2017): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 269 (Passage of H.R. 1862, the Global Child Protection Act of 2017): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 270 (Passage of H.R. 1842, the Strengthening Children's Safety Act): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 273 (Passage of H.R. 2288, the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act of 2017): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 274 (Motion to Table): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 275 (Previous Question on H. Res. 352): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 276 (Passage of H. Res. 352): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 277 (Passage of H.R. 2052, the Protecting the Rights of IndiViduals Against Technological Exploitation (PRIVATE) Act): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 278 (Passage of H.R. 467, the VA Scheduling Accountability Act): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 279 (Passage of H. AMDT. 118 to H.R. 953 offered by Rep. Elizabeth Esty): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 280 (Passage of H. AMDT. 119 to H.R. 953 offered by Rep. Jared Huffman): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 281 (Motion to Recommit on H.R. 953): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 282 (Passage of H.R. 953, the Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2017): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 283 (Passage of H. AMDT 124 to H.R. 1761 offered by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee): NO.

Roll Call Vote Number 284 (Passage of H.R. 1761, the Protecting Against Child Exploitation Act of 2017): YES.

Roll Call Vote Number 285 (H.R. 1973, the Protecting Young Victims from Sexual Abuse Act of 2017): YES.