Former VA Secretary Lobbies for Closely Tied VA Contractor

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

A company founded by a former U.S. Veterans Affairs Secretary has won a major share of contracts worth more than $6 billion, even as that same firm is being investigated for charges that it wrongly denied some veterans of medical benefits.
Winning the major share of the recently awarded contract was QTC Medical, now a subsidiary of Lockheed Martin, but founded by former VA Secretary Anthony J.  Principi. Since selling his company in 2011, Principi's lobbying firm has taken on Lockheed as a client, specifically to deal with the VA and its need for medical exams.
The contract awarded to QTC of Diamond Bar, Calif. in late March is under challenge with multiple protests filed with the the U.S. Government Accountability Office.
VA spokesman Henry Huntley said that because of the protests the new contract would be put on a 100 day hold. That hold, however, means that QTC will continue providing medical exams under its old contract.
Congressional lobbying records show Principi's firm, The Principi Group, registered as the lobbyist for Lockheed Martin in 2014.
The firm listed its assignment as: "Determine the benefits and medical affairs requirement of the Department of Veterans Affairs."
In an email response to questions about his lobbying efforts and the recent bids, Principi wrote, "I have not lobbied for QTC on its rebid nor do I have any knowledge or information on any of your other questions."
Even as the bid was being awarded and protests filed, a U.S. House committee  has launched its own probe into allegations that QTC routinely denied benefits to veterans suffering from the aftereffects of exposure to Agent Orange.
A spokesman for U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller, a Florida Republican, said that an investigation is underway into allegations that QTC under an existing VA contract failed to properly evaluate claims by veterans claiming disabilities from exposure to Agent Orange.
Citing a whistleblower lawsuit filed by a former QTC employee, Miller said, "This lawsuit raises a number of serious questions. That's why our committee has launched an investigation into this matter."
The suit filed by former QTC employee David Vatan was dismissed on a technicality when Vatan was unable to prove he knew the exact language of the QTC contact and, thus, could not cite specific provisions.
The suit charged that QTC required its employees to process so many claims for Agent Orange injuries in such a short time, it was impossible for them to complete a thorough examination.
Lawyers for QTC denied the allegations.
Under the new contract, which is under challenge, physical exams of thousands of applicants for VA disability benefits will be performed by QTC personnel.
It was in late March when the VA announced that it had awarded a dozen contracts for disability exams to QTC and two other firms, VetFed Resources and Veterans Evaluation Services. According to the announcement, the contracts include four one year renewal options pushing the total potential value to $6.8 billion.
In seeking bids for the contracts, the VA disclosed that it intended to have the contractors compete against each other, with the firm with superior performance getting a greater share of the examinations.
One of the firms, however, VetFed Resources, states on its website that it  is a partner of QTC's and has relied on the California firm to fulfill its requirements under an existing contract.
 "In partnership with QTC, VetFed locates, subcontracts, and trains a wide range of General Medicine and Specialty medical professionals in performing medical disability examinations for Veterans and separating service members within the Western Region (San Diego and Los Angeles Regional Offices), " VetFed states on its website.
Meanwhile QTC has also come under scrutiny for lengthy delays in completing disability exams and evaluations. Under its existing contract QTC has been completing exams withing 38 days, but under the new contract a 20 day turnaround is required.
QTC's performance has been the subject of critical testimony before Congressional panels.
Yet in announcing the bid awards, Acting VA Under Secretary for Benefits Tom Murphy stated, "The goal will be to reduce veteran's wait times for examination as much as possible thereby providing faster claims decisions and enhancing veterans' experiences in a positive way."
QTC also has been the subject of critical audits by the VA's Office of Inspector General. A 2008 report concluded that QTC had overcharged the VA by $6 million.