May 23, 2016 - Sen. Chuck Grassley today made the following comment on remarks from Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert McDonald comparing wait times for VA treatment to waiting in line at Disneyland. Grassley has worked to improve veterans’ experience at the VA, including pushing for and receiving an acknowledgement from the VA that veterans have experienced problems with the Veterans Choice program and a pledge to improve services to Iowa veterans and veterans across the country. His work also included helping to restore a VA whistleblower to his job.
“The VA secretary sets the tone for the entire agency. He should make amends for such a ridiculous comment. Disneyland is entertainment. The VA is where veterans go for life-saving health care. If customers aren’t satisfied with Disneyland, they can go elsewhere. Veterans have to rely on the VA, except those eligible for the Choice program. And that program is based on the very wait times the VA doesn’t want to count anymore or distance from a VA facility, or those the VA itself decides to send to private care. It’s very troubling that the top official is still downplaying problems at the VA after every scandal and problem there. If the VA secretary is downplaying wait times, how can the public have confidence that wait list scandals are a thing of the past?”
