VA Chief: Stop Using Veterans as Pawns

In an hour-long interview in his office overlooking the White House, Secretary of the VA Bob McDonald expands on the surprisingly sharp critique of Congress he delivered a week earlier while testifying on recommendations of the congressionally chartered Commission on Care. McDonald is upset to see fiscal 2016 expiring with Congress having failed to pass up to two dozen pieces of legislation he labels "essential" for continuing to transform VA to better serve veterans – with faster access to quality healthcare outside VA, breaking a disgraceful logjam of disability claim appeals, shelving archaic statutes that handcuff staff, and more. For more details, see this Military Advantage blog post.