GOP senator to block Obama’s VA watchdog
Sen. James Inhofe is pledging to block President Obama’s nominee to be the Department of Veterans Affairs’ top watchdog over concerns about facilities in his home state.
The Oklahoma Republican said Monday that he is placing a hold on Michael Missal’s nomination to be the next VA inspector general until the office pledges to hold new investigations into two Oklahoma VA facilities in conjunction with an outside agency.
{mosads}“It’s time for heads to roll for the lack of progress that Oklahoma’s VA medical facilities have made since Congress passed a sweeping VA reform bill in 2014,” Inhofe said in a statement. “I have asked the VA’s Office of Inspector General (IG) to do investigations before and am not pleased with their paltry findings that have failed to bring about change.”
Inhofe wants the department to give him a timeline on when it will start investigations into VA medical centers in Muskogee and Oklahoma City. As part of those probes, he wants VA investigators to conduct unannounced visits to the facilities and a “thorough examination” on a range of issues including appointment wait times, quality of care and work environment.
He noted that after he previously requested an investigation at the Muskogee facility intermediate surgeries were stopped because of “alarming practices.”
VA Secretary Bob McDonald is expected to meet with Inhofe over the next few weeks, and the Oklahoma Republican pledged to discuss “next steps” for every VA facility in Oklahoma.
Obama nominated Missal last year after Richard Griffin, the VA’s acting inspector general, stepped down last year amid criticism from lawmakers that he was too close to the department his office was in charge of investigating.
The VA has been continuously under the congressional microscope since 2014 over allegations that officials manipulated data on how long veterans were waiting for an appointment. The scandal led to Congress passing legislation overhauling the Veterans Health Administration and the resignation of then-Secretary Eric Shinseki.
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