Senator Tim Scott to Go Directly To South Carolina VA Facilities for Answers After Receiving None From Obama Administration

Citing the lack of answers from the Obama Administration’s Department of Veterans Affairs on his request for information about the current status of South Carolina facilities serving veterans, Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) released the following statement:

“Last Friday I fully expected to receive answers from the Obama Administration about the status of South Carolina facilities serving veterans, specifically about the existence of backlogs, official waiting lists, “secret” waiting lists or unauthorized scheduling lists at all 13 facilities currently operated by the Department of Veterans Affairs.

“I am extremely disappointed that two weeks after my original request I have not received answers from the Obama Administration on this basic request for information critical to helping our veterans. Their lack of response is simply unacceptable.

“As a result of the Administration’s failure to respond, I now plan to directly ask the South Carolina’s VA medical centers and community based outpatient clinics the questions Washington, D.C. has neglected to answer. I hope that each facility will be more forthcoming and transparent about their processes, wait times and the scheduling challenges they are facing.

“I’ll continue to press the Obama Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs for answers because getting to the bottom of the problems facing the VA system is vital to ensuring our veterans and families receive the care they have earned.”

On June 12, 2014, Senator Scott wrote Veterans Affairs Acting Secretary Sloan Gibson requesting answers to seven specific questions about the existence of backlogs, official waiting lists, “secret” waiting lists or unauthorized scheduling lists that exist at all 13 Veteran Health Administration facilities – Aiken, Anderson, Beaufort, Charleston, Columbia, Florence, Goose Creek, Greenville, Myrtle Beach, Orangeburg, Rock Hill, Spartanburg, and Sumter – in South Carolina. The answers were due from the VA by close of business day on June 20, 2014.

A copy of Senator Scott’s original letter to Acting Secretary Gibson is available HERE.