VA Probe Confirms Long Wait List, Manipulation

By Walter F. Roche Jr.

An internal  investigation has confirmed that the Veterans Administration facility in Pittsburgh had 700 veterans waiting for appointments in 2014 and that staffers routinely manipulated data to hide the actual number of veterans facing unacceptable delays.
In a 22 page report on its probe of the allegations, the VA's Inspector General said it confirmed media reports that more than 700 veterans were on a New Enrollee Appointment Request (NEAR) list in May of 2014.
The "Administrative Summary" of the probe was made public late last week.
In addition after interviewing some 40 current and former employees and reviewing emails and other records, the IG found widespread evidence that staffers were manipulating data to hide the fact that veterans were not getting appointments within acceptable 30 day time periods.
In fact some staffers reported being told to make it appear that a veteran had no wait at all.
"Medical Support Assistant (MSA)  #1 confirmed he had been directed to schedule appointments in a manner that did not accurately reflect accurate wait times," the report states.
A former senior leader told investigators "it was her understanding that MSAs were being directed to manipulate appointment entries so that it appeared that performance standards were met when in reality standards were not being met."
According to the report some current and former staffers interviewed said they were not aware of any wait time manipulation. In some of those cases, however, investigators found emails and other evidence showing the same staffers did alter data despite the denials.
According to the report, a supervisor said "she became aware of a way to reset the 30-day time frame for scheduling appointments so that they did not exceed the 30 day requirement.
Another staffer said "she shortened wait times on her appointment only because those above her wanted her to do it.
Yet another staffer reported that she shortened wait time about 20 times from December of 2013 to March of 2014.
The cause of the lengthy delays, according to the report, were multiple and ranged from a shortage of medical professional to a logjam when a single staffer was assigned to set appointments for all veterans on the NEAR list.
The IG also looked into but did not confirm allegations that some staffers were given bonuses as a reward for manipulating data. The data showed one service chief received more than $45,000 in extra pay.