All articles tagged with #va
Originally Published 6 months ago — by Federal News Network
The Department of Veterans Affairs is reducing its IT workforce by nearly 12% through voluntary separations, reallocating over $89 million of its budget to other priorities, and pausing new IT procurements to focus on core missions and improve efficiency, while seeking legislative flexibility to enhance agility in IT spending.
Originally Published 7 months ago — by The Guardian
New VA hospital rules, influenced by Trump's executive order, allow medical staff to refuse treatment to veterans based on personal beliefs, political affiliation, or marital status, raising concerns about discrimination and ethical standards in veteran healthcare.
Originally Published 7 months ago — by TechCrunch
Sahil Lavingia, founder of Gumroad, recounts his 55-day stint working as a volunteer software engineer for Elon Musk's DOGE, a government initiative, where he was tasked with identifying wasteful contracts at the VA. He was surprised by the strict rules and lack of organization within DOGE and was abruptly dismissed after discussing his work with the media. His experience highlights the challenges of modernizing large government agencies with Silicon Valley volunteers.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by The Hill
The Biden administration announced a record low in veteran homelessness since 2009, with a 55.6% decrease from 2010. In January 2023, 32,882 homeless veterans were counted, down from previous years. The "Housing First" approach has helped house nearly 48,000 veterans, and efforts continue to provide stable housing for all veterans. Despite progress, veterans still make up 13% of the homeless population. The VA and HUD are working on various initiatives, including grants and increased income eligibility for housing vouchers, to further reduce veteran homelessness.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by NPR
Thousands of veterans, including Army vet Natalie Donaldson, have been left struggling with increased mortgage payments due to a flawed VA home loan program intended to provide COVID-19 relief. The program's mismanagement led to higher interest rates and payments, leaving many vets unable to afford their homes. Although the VA has introduced a rescue plan offering low-interest loans, it excludes those who accepted previous loan modifications, like Donaldson. Critics argue the VA could extend its authority to help these veterans.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by Federal News Network
VA Secretary Denis McDonough admitted to "massive mistakes" in awarding nearly $11 million in improper bonuses to ineligible executives, as revealed by a VA inspector general report. McDonough has recouped 92% of the bonuses and implemented new procedures to prevent future errors. Despite calls for firings, McDonough defended his team, taking personal responsibility for the oversight. The VA continues to justify bonuses for field executives as necessary retention incentives.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs
The Department of Veterans Affairs is set to launch the Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) program on May 31, 2024, aiming to assist over 40,000 Veterans facing severe financial hardship in avoiding foreclosure and retaining their homes. Through VASP, VA will purchase defaulted VA loans from mortgage servicers, modify the loans, and place them in the VA-owned portfolio as direct loans, offering a fixed 2.5% interest rate to eligible borrowers. The program is part of VA's efforts, along with the Biden-Harris Administration, to prevent foreclosures for Veterans and their families, with an anticipated government subsidy spending reduction of approximately $1.5 billion from 2024 to 2033.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs
In one of the largest-ever expansions of Veteran health care, all Veterans exposed to toxins and other hazards during military service will be eligible for VA health care beginning March 5, 2024, years earlier than called for by the PACT Act, as directed by President Biden. This expansion covers Vietnam Veterans, Gulf War Veterans, Iraq War Veterans, Afghanistan War Veterans, and more, as well as Veterans who were exposed to toxins or hazards while training or on active duty in the United States. The decision aims to make it quicker and easier for millions of Veterans to enroll in VA care, and VA is executing a nationwide campaign to ensure as many Veterans as possible enroll.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by USA TODAY
Denis McDonough, former Obama chief of staff, now leads the Department of Veterans Affairs, aiming to restore trust in the agency and improve care for veterans. Facing challenges such as benefit claim backlogs and mental health care, McDonough emphasizes transparency and accountability. Under his leadership, the VA has made strides in addressing veterans' needs, including expanding benefits, tackling backlogs, and modernizing records. Despite facing criticism over policies regarding abortion and transgender care, McDonough remains focused on delivering quality care and benefits to veterans.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by Military.com
About 250,000 veterans are at risk of receiving incorrect medication due to issues with the Department of Veterans Affairs' new electronic health records system, which has led to incorrect medication records and potential drug interactions. The faulty medication records are the latest problem in the troubled rollout of the Oracle Cerner Millennium system, prompting lawmakers to express frustration and concern over patient safety issues. The VA has paused further implementation of the system while working to address the network's problems, and the VA's inspector general has raised concerns about patients not being adequately informed of their individual risk.
Originally Published 1 year ago — by Military Times
The Department of Veterans Affairs plans to expand disability benefits for veterans exposed to Agent Orange in the United States, following the passage of the PACT Act. This move will provide fast-track disability benefits to veterans suffering from illnesses dating back to the Vietnam War era, including those who served in locations where herbicides were tested, used, or stored outside of Vietnam. The new rules will take several months to go into effect and will benefit veterans who may have been exposed to Agent Orange in various states and foreign locations. This expansion aims to provide easier access to benefits for veterans exposed to toxic chemicals during their military service.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Marca
The VA COLA increase for single veterans in 2024 is 3.2%. This means that single veterans who receive VA disability benefits will see their benefits increase by 3.2% in January 2024. The amount of the increase will vary depending on the veteran's individual disability rating. The increase will be automatically calculated and applied by the VA for the first payment of the new year. Single veterans may also be eligible for additional benefits such as increased disability compensation, assistance with activities of daily living, housebound allowance, and dependent parent benefits.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by POLITICO
The Veterans Affairs Department's troubled rollout of a new electronic health records system has caused anger among lawmakers, leading to proposed legislation to shut down the project or increase oversight. The system, which is billions over budget and linked to veterans' deaths, has been put on pause indefinitely. While some lawmakers are giving the VA another chance to fix the issues, others are pushing to end the program. The problems with the system include a lack of leadership, poor preparation, and resistance from VA clinicians. The future of the project remains uncertain, but lawmakers are demanding reforms to prevent similar problems in the future.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Military.com
The Department of Veterans Affairs has expanded its Veterans Legacy Memorial project to include former service members interred at 27 cemeteries managed by the Air Force, Navy and Army, including Arlington National Cemetery. The expansion adds more than 300,000 veterans to the online memorial, which now contains landing pages for roughly 4.8 million veterans. Each memorial page includes a veteran's dates of birth and death, dates or eras of military service, grave location and photo of grave, as available. The site is fully interactive, allowing family members, friends and colleagues to share photos, documents and memories.
Originally Published 2 years ago — by Federal News Network
The Department of Veterans Affairs has renewed its multibillion-dollar contract for a new Electronic Health Record (EHR) with Oracle-Cerner, with new terms meant to hold the vendor accountable for persistent outages. The renegotiated contract includes larger fines Oracle-Cerner will need to pay VA if the EHR doesn’t meet performance targets. The new contract includes 28 performance metrics for Oracle-Cerner to meet or exceed and includes a higher standard for reliability and uptime. The VA has obligated about $9.4 billion on the EHR modernization program since fiscal 2018.