VA could have saved, in 2004, about $1.4 billion over 5 years

Most people assume since the men and women veterans in this country, served this one country, their care as veterans would be the same regardless of where they live. It is appalling when they find out this assumption is totally wrong.

If you live in an area of the country, like Boston, there are many facilities to go to including clinics, but if you live in the Orlando area, the only place to go is the VA Clinic in Winter Park. If you need to have surgery along with many other procedures, you have to travel to Tampa. There is a hospital being built in Lake Nona. The ground breaking was in October of 2008 but the hospital won't be open until 2012. (If you're guessing it was because it was an election year, you guessed right.) If you live in rural area of the country, then your services are even harder to get to.

That's the biggest problem of all. When they are in the military, they are assigned to various bases and they receive the same kind of care no matter where they are from. All of them are treated equally until they leave the military. Then it does depend on where they live. Their claims are processed depending on where they live with some parts of the country harder to have claims approved and the rating decisions are different. Some parts of the country are more able to treat PTSD than others are just as some are better equipped to take care of serious illnesses better than others. Then you have to add in the communities as well. When the VA can't take care of all the needs of the veterans, most of the time they rely on the facilities in the area to take care of what is needed. Some communities are better than others.

Just as this report points out, some VA's do their own thing when it comes to being able to make purchases, leaving some of us scratching our heads wondering why they are not all the same no matter where they happen to be.

Clear Need for Procurement Reform at VA

House Committee Taking Steps to Fight Fraud, Abuse and Waste
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 16, 2009

Washington, D.C. – On Wednesday, December 16, 2009, the House Veterans’ Affairs Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, led by Chairman Harry Mitchell (D-AZ), conducted a hearing to examine the processes and needs of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) acquisition system and procurement structure. The Subcommittee reviewed recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) and VA Inspector General (IG) reports that detail unfairness and inefficiency in VA contracting.

“We all know that the acquisition system within the Department of Veterans Affairs has failed to develop a process that is both transparent and fiscally responsible,” said Chairman Mitchell. “Our hearing will hopefully determine the extent of the reform needed in order to ensure that the acquisition process within the VA is one that is fair, fiscally responsible, and effective. And, most importantly, serves veterans.”

Reports indicate that VA does not consistently acquire the best available price at a detriment to the taxpayers and veterans for several reasons. Most notably, most medical centers have negotiated and purchased medical healthcare services through contracts that individual VA medical centers have negotiated. This erodes the federal government’s leverage of its tremendous buying power. A 2004 GAO report stated that though VA had implemented policies and procedures that required medical centers to purchase medical products and services through VA’s contract programs, a VA IG report found that the medical centers continued to make many less cost efficient purchases from local suppliers. The VA IG estimated that, with improved procurement practices at medical centers, VA could have saved, in 2004, about $1.4 billion over 5 years.
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Clear Need for Procurement Reform at VA