United States Senator Thom Tillis visited the Asheville Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) today, July 2, to meet with leaders and patients from the facility. The visit showcased a number of problems including unsuitable wait times at the clinic. Tillis’ visit the the Asheville VAMC is part of a larger effort to improve the function and quality of care offered at VAMCs in North Carolina.
From the United States Senate
Press Release
Today, Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) toured the Asheville Veterans Affairs Medical Center (VAMC) where he met with both executive leadership and patients. The tour comes as the next phase in his fact-finding mission to develop a better understanding of best practices and ultimate failures within the VA facilities across the state of North Carolina. The Senator has previously visited the Fayetteville, Durham and Salisbury VAMCs.
In Asheville, Tillis toured the specialty clinic, inpatient unit, vascular and cardiothoracic unit, and participated in several discussions focused on mental health and plans for expanding the medical center. Tillis spoke on the unacceptable wait times and bureaucratic failures that are continuing to plague patients and called for increased accountability to ensure our veterans receive high quality health care.
“During my time spent at the Asheville VA Medical Center, it became even more apparent to me that the bureaucratic barriers within the VA system must be addressed and in a timely manner. When I took my oath as U.S. Senator, I vowed I would do what I could to ensure we make America great again. Unfortunately, our failed VA system is keeping us from this goal at the expense of the brave men and women who have served our nation,” said Senator Tillis. “I will continue to work across the aisle to fix the current failures at the VA and promote best practices within the VA system that will increase our veterans’ access to the high quality health care they need and deserve.”
A member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, in April, Tillis sent a number of recommendations to VA Secretary Robert McDonald and was tasked by Committee Chairman Johnny Isakson to spearhead a collaborative effort, working directly with the VA rethink the Department’s long-term strategy and identify more efficient practices.
To move forward on the initial steps of this effort, Tillis sat down with Secretary McDonald earlier this month where they discussed Tillis’ recommendations, which include overhauling the VA’s unnecessary layers of bureaucracy, keeping VA clinics open longer, getting new healthcare providers into the VA system faster, and expanding the use of sharing agreements with academic institutions.
Earlier this year, Tillis co-sponsored the Prioritizing Veterans’ Access to Mental Health Care Act, which prioritizes access to mental health care by providing incentives to hire more mental health care professionals at the VA, and the Clay Hunt SAV Act, which directs the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct annual evaluations of mental health care and suicide prevention programs, and was signed into law by President Obama in February.
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