I want to call attention to several inaccuracies in a recent media “fact check” article that claimed the Trump administration is taking credit for progress made under the Obama administration.

This unfortunate piece went out of its way to misinterpret President Trump and my own words. Worse, it gets basic facts wrong in a way that could create a disincentive for Veterans to seek care at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

We should all be encouraging our Veterans to use our hospitals and clinics, but pieces such as these paint an incorrect picture of the VA that runs the risk of discouraging Veterans from using the benefits they have earned.

For example:

1. The piece criticized President Trump for saying, “we passed VA choice and VA accountability,” and for saying people have been “trying to pass these things for 45 years.” AP concluded Trump was “wrong” because “Trump is not the first president in 45 years to get Congress to pass Veterans Choice.”

The President knows what he was talking about, even if the AP doesn’t. In 2018, President Trump signed into law the MISSION Act, which gives VA the ability to implement the best practices we’ve learned in our nearly 75 years of experience offering community care. It consolidates VA’s community care efforts into a single, simple-to-use program that puts Veterans at the center of their VA health care decisions.

He wasn’t referring to the Veterans Choice Act, which became law under the Obama administration and created a narrow, temporary choice program that wasn’t seen by anyone as a final answer. Either through neglect or willful ignorance, the AP quoted the President as referring to “VA Choice,” with a capital C, as if he meant that Obama-era bill, but he was referring to the concept of choice as defined in the MISSION Act.

Also, the piece conveniently leaves out the fact that President Trump signed the VA Accountability and Whistleblower Protection Act of 2017, one of the most significant changes to civil service laws since the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 was passed more than four decades ago.

2. Along the way to making that flawed argument, the AP misinterpreted a statement made by the VA’s top health official, Dr. Richard Stone, who said implementation of the MISSION Act should “almost be a non-event.” The AP took that line out of context and imagined it to mean that few Veterans will choose care outside the VA because wait times are longer in the private sector, in an apparent effort to dismiss the value of the law the President signed.

That’s news to Dr. Stone. We checked with him, and he said his “non-event” comment referred to the idea that implementation of the MISSION Act would not create any technical problems that would interrupt Veterans’ efforts to seek care at the VA. He made the comment in Senate testimony in March, after being asked whether the MISSION Act would create any drastic changes to how Veterans interact with their VA providers.

3. The piece said the “key to the Choice program’s success is an overhaul of the VA’s electronic medical records,” which will take up to 10 years. It also said I have estimated that full implementation of the “expanded Choice program” is still years away.

This is pure conjecture on the part of AP, plus it’s wrong.

The Choice program will actually cease to exist on June 6, as the MISSION Act will create a new program that consolidates all of VA’s community care programs, including Choice. The AP’s “fact checkers” seem unaware of this crucial fact.

Also, while electronic health records modernization is an important improvement, it’s not central to the success of the MISSION Act. No one from the VA has ever said implementation of the new private care option Veterans will have under the MISSION Act is “years” away because of our effort to modernize health records.

4. The AP quoted me saying I took steps to make sure Veterans are at the center of their health care decisions, and connected that quote to another one in which I said, “One of the things that we’re doing at VA is that we have same-day mental health service.”

But in the Fox News interview, those two comments happened about six minutes apart from each other. The AP ignored the back and forth of the interview for that long and misleadingly made it appear as if this was a single, related thought.

5. Finally, the piece quoted me saying that my effort to put dedicated leaders in our VA hospitals and clinics helped reduce VA wait times, as seen in a Journal of the American Medical Association study.

The AP is correct: that study measured wait times up until 2017, before my tenure. VA is seeing enough signs of improvement that it’s easy to confuse data sources under the hot lights of a TV set.

What I should have said was, we have our own internal data showing that wait times are continuing to improve since President Trump took office.

Our own data show the VA has completed more than 1.2 million more appointments through May 21 in FY 2019 compared to the same period the prior year, a sign our success in hiring more medical staff is bearing fruit for our Veterans.

Wait times for new primary and mental health care appointments have also fallen since President Trump took office.

Any one of us, including me, is capable of speaking imprecisely at times. But it’s another thing entirely when “fact checkers” do it themselves.

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16 Comments

  1. J D Cannon June 19, 2019 at 09:26

    If you are to improve the “concept” of healthcare, start by not using Vets as a political football. Communication is key when you are dealing wit Vet lives and “misspeaking” leaves room for misinterpretation. Instead of apologizing and moving on, you used this platform to push blame for your own speaking error. No one really cares about the history of mistreatment when it is ongoing and continuous, but when the ball is in your hand you are responsible. So you are now responsible! Changes to processes before thy are worked through is never good. An Organization as large as the VA can not withstand massive overhauls with each new administration… that’s common sense, something that is lacking in the handling of VA healthcare. It’s easier for vets to use the money they get from compensation to pay for private insurance which seems like that is the goal of this administration all along. Vets are not a burden. We have served honorably and only expect dignified care in return.

  2. WILLIAM BUHLER June 17, 2019 at 14:29

    Bay Pines VHA is understaffed in the Veterans Community Care administration.
    When I checked on the status of my May 25 VA Community Care referral, I was informed that the referral is in the system that but they were currently processing referrals dated April 22. At least a 30 days wait for the referral to be acted on. And this is supposed to be the cure for access to medical care?
    W.B. Lee County Florida.

  3. Charles Fleenor June 16, 2019 at 00:19

    I’m glad you finally know what it’s like, the VA takes everything you say and twists it to mean whatever they need it to mean to fit the agenda, which lately for me it’s been to take away anything that they can twist words and turn them into a reason to take.

  4. game of thrones toys target June 15, 2019 at 21:35

    And the struggle for the Iron Throne begins.

  5. Drew Emmett June 10, 2019 at 19:33

    Leave it to the Trump administration to turn the VA into a political football

    • Johnnie Martin June 12, 2019 at 17:46

      Do you feel better now by bring politics into it? Find another forum to spew your hate in…

  6. Terry Penn June 6, 2019 at 21:22

    Choice with Tri-West was a disaster. Took them months to set up an appointment for a colonoscopy and endoscopy. I’m 100 miles from the Dallas VA. They set it up in Texarkana 80 miles away. Then Longview 50 miles away. Finally in Tyler 20 miles which I originally requested. Then they only paid half the bill. I got stuck with the other half. VA said I could appeal and ask for reimbursement.
    Next procedure I drove to Dallas VA and stayed overnight since they won’t release without a driver.
    VA Doctors said Choice had been problems from day one. Glad it’s gone.
    Hopefully this new program will be better. Personal opinion is it should be set up like Medicare. Go to any doctor or hospital willing to accept without the “mother may I” permission slip from the VA.

  7. fw June 6, 2019 at 11:48

    Somehow it seems i f VA would put time/effort in to fixing what alll is wrong with VA/Choice et al med care then doing administration propaganda, things would be a lot better for the vets. Real world is the medical program of any kind for VA is way to overloaded with to many people with hands on it, doing nothing but obstructing. Fix that not administration [propaganda. We all have moreissues then bone spurs to be treated.. For to long VA has been someones political organization, not the vets.

  8. Georgie Kelley June 6, 2019 at 09:40

    The Choice program is managed by TRIWEST. It is both good and bad. I get authorizations and make appointments or they make appointments…. good…. getting them to pay for authorized services …. not so good. Customer service is bad …. once they put a person in place that I could communicate with directly over e-mail and send them the wvidence things improved but is not perfect. Choice Champions SUCK! They never call back in a timely manner.. two weeks to a month is not timely. When they do call back it is all platitudes and no actions!

  9. Michael T Youngblood June 5, 2019 at 09:38

    How about removing the division between veterans that served boots on the ground and those that weren’t chosen to go into combat, I myself volunteered for Vietnam but was never chosen. Does that make My service insignificant ??

    • Kimberly Duff June 6, 2019 at 15:57

      I just got on board as a mental health provider. I have called Triwest and am waiting on a call back..where do I go to better understand the process for providers?

  10. Jm June 5, 2019 at 09:32

    I agree with Chanie, why is this on a VA site?

    The VA is supposed to be non-political and support Veterans first. Yet this reads like a bully that got their feelings hurt. Is that more important than putting Veterans first? This is just sad.

    • Lawrence C. Elliott June 6, 2019 at 12:40

      Michael Youngblood

      Absolutly not! You do not need to be in combat to help the cause. (the ultimate mission) . The cause of combat is not what happens on the battle field, it is what happens at the end of the war. The cause is not to kill as well it is not to destroy the enemy’s country. The cause is the reason the fight is taking place. It usually is a politically motivated event that one side wants and the other does not. Those on the battle field , however, their primary goal is to survive. The gun carriers do not have time, nor the need to be politically engaged (during the battle). Now in this great nation of ours, “We the People” which is, I believe one of the most important phrases entered into our history, leads to the guarantee that, “we, the people “…’reserve the right to decide on the “cause” indirectly by voting, directly by speaking out for or against, or in some instances judicial over watch, of any proposed “cause”. While we were on the battle field we found many things that needed to be changed, but it could only be presented “to the people” by those not on the battle field. I could go on about RVN, in fact I wish I could find the “soap box” to stand on and speak out but I can’t! Consequently the same mistakes are presenting in other conflicts around the globe! Forgive me, I almost digressed beyond the hope of return. The combat soldier is concerned with the soldiers on the left and right of him. He will instinctively protect them,(thus begins the age old adoption process that bring more brothers into your family). It is a full time job which leaves little to no time for involvement in politically initiated causes. It is like this, if, there were no none combatants we would be in an absolute monarchy, a dictatorship, if you will, because we would not be able to discuss the “cause” knowledgeably. Current events were essentially not current by the time they reached my bunker at my A team. So, to cut through the rhetoric to the important answer to your blog, You my friend may have missed the (place adjective of your choice for…) battle field. What you did was far more important than you may know. You had an opportunity to participate in the substantiating the “cause” or changing it. You had a job that I would not have wanted regardless of the reward. You had to “look after” our future direction because we did not have time nor the knowledge. God bless you, for what you did, but, your work is not over. Your other question concerning dividing line, well I never gave it much thought. I thought it was to determine type of injuries received. I never thought of it as a politically created demarcation. I will study it and hopefully give you an answer in the next few days.

  11. Ford Greene June 4, 2019 at 13:06

    Thank you for this information! It has become very difficult to get true factual reporting in any format!!! When did it become opinion reporting versus report the facts!!

    Again, Thank You!!

  12. Robert W Galbraith June 1, 2019 at 10:35

    If things are going so damned well, then why, oh why are 22 Veterans a day committing suicide still. It seems that there is still something brkken in the VA System. Whether it be the znotty secretaries or not using thd moneys set aside fkr Suicide Prevention being used of being allocated for something completely different and thats BULLSHT. BUT IT IS HAPPENING IN THE VA SYSTEM STILL TODAY… In some Hospitals and Ckinics there are ztaff there who dont give a DAMN about we Veterans, they are only there to colkect a Government Check and Fuck the Vets, yeah I said it and its so true. In some places, we Vets get treated like trash, disposable and recyclable, they just dont care, and because of that, 22 of my Brothers are committing suicide daily and no matter how hard i try to help them and try to show them how to beat a system thats working against them by using a few choice words, theyre still killing themselves because of the way they are being treated by the VA staff… THIS SHIT HAS TO END NOW BECAUSE IM TIRED OF CRYING OVER MY LOST BROTHERS DIEING OVER SOME SNOTTY UNDERLING GIVING THEM THE OLD HEAVE HO.IT CHANGES NOW OR IM GONNA START VISITING THESE HOSPITALS AND CLINICS AND KICKING ASS AND TAKING NAMES THERE WILL BE A RECKONING AND THERE WILL BE ASSES ON THE FIRING LINE AND I MEAN THEY WILL BE FIRED WITH PREJUDICE AND I DOMEAN PREJUDICE. BLACKBALLED AND ALL FOR CAUSING VETERAN DEATHS AND IF I CAN SPIN IT RIGHT, ARRESTED FOR SAID CHARGES. I HAVE SPOKEN…. DOC G OUT!!!

  13. Craig manner June 1, 2019 at 08:33

    Secretary of State Robert Wilkie along with Donald Trump are doing everything possible to disassemble the country’s largest nationalized medical system – VA. Any military veteran who served should clearly see Loser Donald Trump trying to dismantle the United States of America. He is an evil man who bankrupted every company he touched, and now the USA is his next victim. He is angry because no bank in the country can lend the money to his company. After all, if you could not even manage a gambling company and make money? Little. businessman. What I can’t understand is how politicians allow it to go on. What is your agenda to support this president with the support of Russia? Does he really hire the smartest people? Robert Wilkie, resigned; You are an absolute loser, like your president.

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