Coburn, Colleagues Tout Vet Reforms

Oklahoma Sen. Tom Coburn, GOP colleagues unveil veteran care reform bill
by Chris Casteel

WASHINGTON — Sen. Tom Coburn and three of his colleagues introduced Republican legislation on Tuesday to ensure veterans get timely medical care while the Veterans Affairs Department works through its bureaucratic problems.

The bill would allow veterans who live more than 40 miles from a VA medical center or who can’t get an appointment in a reasonable time to receive care from the doctor or provider of their choice; the VA would have to pick up the tab.

“This bill is very targeted,” said Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C. “It’s focused specifically on fixing a short-term problem, which is how do we get veterans the care they deserve and allow the VA leadership to make the systemic changes that they need to make.”

Recent inspector general and media reports have found that, at some hospitals, veterans have had to wait months for an initial primary care appointment and that some appointments were lost in bureaucratic mistakes and manipulations.

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