A few hours after President Barack Obama announced that he had accepted the resignation of Veterans Affairs Secretary Eric Shinseki, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) argued that the only way to fix the problems that resulted in Shineski’s departure is through allowing veterans to opt out of the VA medical system.
The only hope of changing the VA for the better is to allow veterans to have a choice of health care outside the VA system.
— Lindsey Graham (@GrahamBlog) May 30, 2014
Every veteran should have a card they can take to local hospitals and doctors if the #VA is failing to meet their needs.
— Lindsey Graham (@GrahamBlog) May 30, 2014
Shinseki’s departure came as a result of news that veterans were being forced to wait months to see a doctor at a VA hospital in Phoenix, Arizona.
TPM reached out to Graham’s office for more explanation. In response Graham’s office sent a video of the senator saying “the money should follow the veteran.”
“If the veteran wants to go to a VA facility —and there are plenty of fine ones around— let the veteran go there,” Graham said. “But if they don’t get good service, give them a card so they can go to a hospital or doctor in the community of their choice. Create competition for the VA. The VA will get better or it will shut down under my proposal.”
This post was updated.
Easy for you to say what we vets should do.How about funding the agency properly ?
How predictable.
When’s this little bitch’s primary?
Miz Lindsey, as reliable as a water clock and just as current…
I’m not a vet, and certainly can’t speak for our vets, but everything I’ve heard tells me that the quality of care vets receive from the VA is superior to what the rest of us get from the private sector. The current problems involve understaffing, and the consequent long wait times, not the quality of care provided.
Let’s fix the good system we’ve got by funding the agency to meet the demands being placed on it. Given what we ask of our servicemen and women, it’s the least we can do.
Miss Lindsey’s next suggestion: Abolish he VA and give the vets vouchers.