At today's Senate Veterans Affairs Committee hearing, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) questioned VA Secretary Doug Collins.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Thanks Mr. Chairman. You know I listened to you recite those problems that you
00:06encountered. Not a single one of them will be solved or addressed by slashing
00:13the VA workforce by 83,000 people. Putting those workers on the chopping
00:22block fails to address one single aspect of any of the problems that you have
00:29brought to this committee or that you encountered. Are you aware Mr.
00:35Secretary that the VA changed the way it calculates wait times in 2022? The
00:45information I gave you is as of our firm VA system. The information you gave us is
00:50deceptive and misleading because the VA changed the way it calculates wait times
00:56in 2022. In addition because it begins in 2021 at a time when a lot of VA patients
01:09were coming back to the VA after COVID in 2022. This information is fundamentally
01:18deceptive and misleading. I ask you to go back to the VA and correct it in a written
01:24submission to this committee. Mr. Chairman, I ask that we enter into the record an
01:32article that appeared in the New York Times entitled, What Elon Musk Didn't Budget
01:40For, Firing Workers Costs Money Too. Are you aware, if there's no objection? Without objection. Are you aware of the costs that will result from firing
01:52those VA workers in compensation that has to be paid to them when they have been wrongfully terminated?
02:00Mr. Well, Mr. Chairman and Mr. Ryan, if you look at that from a perspective, there's cost to moving forward. There's been some issues here. I think one of the biggest things is-
02:08You don't have a number for us, do you?
02:10Mr. No, because you haven't calculated what it will cost to fire those workers and then reinstate them when the courts tell you, as they will, that they've been wrongfully terminated.
02:23Mr. We're talking about less than one half of one percent, Mr. Chairman. I mean, Mr. Rankin member. You've thrown out numbers of thousands. This is exactly what I'm fighting against.
02:31Mr. It may be a small part of your workforce, but they are the physicians.
02:36Mr. No, no. Mr. Rankin member, I will not let you do that. I will not let you sit here and scare my veterans and scare my employees because there's been no, I mean, you must have stuff that, you know, again, you're looking at making a prediction in the future because no one has discussed firing doctors or firing nurses. We have always said that we're going to keep frontline health care. Now, if we want to continue this message that these are out there when you have no knowledge of what you've just said.
03:02Mr. Let's begin with facts right now. That is facts.
03:05Mr. Will you submit to us, which you have failed to do, specific positions where workers have been fired already?
03:13Mr. At this point in time, we have submitted to that. You know, you also said something that I need to address real quickly.
03:21Mr. Wait a second. Please answer my question. Will you give us the information? We have requested it again and again and again.
03:27What positions have you terminated and what's your plan for terminating in the future?
03:34Mr. Okay. First off, we will get you the information that you are. Our staff will check back with the plans for the future. This is an interesting thing. You would like for, I think what we're trying to do here is we're going through a process which I talked about in my opening statement that deals with career employees, it deals with professional staff and others outside consultants to see what is the proper size for our VA.
03:54Mr. You know, you are running out of the clock. I know what the tactic is.
03:58Mr. Let me ask the question.
03:59Mr. We both know because you served in the United States Congress too. You can fill the air with words.
04:04Mr. You can as well, sir.
04:05Mr. But what veterans deserve is action and accountability. We've asked for this information repeatedly. You've said you are firing 83,000 people. If you fire the people who have been hired in the last five years, you will be firing physicians.
04:24Mr. Nurses, surgeons, counselors, workers who are frontline. You cannot slash and trash the VA without eliminating those essential positions which provide access and availability of healthcare. It simply cannot be done.
04:43Mr. And you may give us a lot of verbiage here, but you're not giving us facts, and facts are essential to accountability. That's why you're supposed to be here. But you're not giving us the facts that we need. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
04:59Mr. With all due respect, can I answer your question?
05:01Mr. You may answer.
05:02Mr. Thank you. With all due respect, there's verbiage being said from the diocese as well. And diocese that I would like to say, as I have said already in this hearing, that there is a goal of looking at a 15-year bill.
05:11Mr. You have stated on several occasions already that I'm saying we're going to fire 83,000 employees. That is wrong. I would appreciate that being corrected, because that's not true. I said we're looking at a goal of how many employees we have and how many employees that are actually working in the frontline taking care.
05:30I have doctors and nurses right now that do not see patients. Is that helping veteran healthcare?
05:35Mr. Yes, it does.
05:36Mr. No, it does not.
05:37Mr. No, it does not.
05:38Mr. A doctor who consults on a case.
05:40Mr. Not when I need those doctors in a clinic.
05:41Mr. A doctor who consults, a doctor who advises, a doctor who looks at radiology reports.
05:47Mr. You're missing the point.
05:49Mr. A doctor who is overseeing and assuring quality. Absolutely yes.
05:54Mr. Senator Tuberville.
05:57Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you, Secretary Collins for being here and thanks to the veterans that are here today.