VA Continues to Hide Hines Wait Time Investigation
Watchdog Found IG Investigation “Failed to Address … Legitimate Concerns,” Showed “Hostility Toward” Whistleblower
McDonald Agrees to Meet with Illinois Whistleblower Germaine at Hines VA Hospital
WASHINGTON, DC – At a hearing chaired by U.S. Senator Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Robert McDonald refused to say whether he still stands by the VA’s determination that an Inspector General investigation “thoroughly addressed” whistleblower allegations about scheduling manipulation at Hines VA in Illinois after the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) called the investigation “incomplete” and “inadequate.”
“Nearly two years after Germaine Clarno exposed secret wait lists at Hines, the VA is still hiding the details instead of improving veterans’ care,” Senator Kirk said. “This is the third time I have put Germaine in front of the VA Secretary. Since the February report vindicated Germaine and said inspectors demonstrated ‘hostility’ toward her, there is no excuse for ignoring her any longer.”
Asked by Senator Kirk whether he stands by the VA’s Office of Accountability Review (OAR), which determined the Office of Inspector General (OIG) investigation into Clarno’s allegations was sufficient, Secretary McDonald declined to answer but said the VA’s Office of Medical Inspector is looking into the discrepancies between the OIG investigation and the OSC report that said OIG “failed to address the whistleblowers’ legitimate concerns about access to care for mental health patients at Hines” and “demonstrate[d] hostility toward Ms. Clarno, apparently for having spoken publicly, as well as an attempt to minimize her allegations.”
At Senator Kirk’s request, Secretary McDonald agreed to visit Edward Hines, Jr., VA Hospital near Maywood, Ill., and again meet with Germaine Clarno, the whistleblower who exposed the scheduling manipulations and excessive wait times there. Clarno, a social worker and employees’ union president at Hines, was in the audience during the hearing of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs.
Senator Kirk also shared the stories of two veterans who fell victim to scheduling manipulation and excessive wait times at Hines VA. Veteran Army Specialist Tom Young, a 30-year-old father of two girls who served two tours in Iraq, took his own life last July after being turned away from Hines on three separate occasions. Michael Swan, an Army veteran, waited more than a year to see a neurologist and a year and a half to see an endocrinologist. He received a clear colonoscopy report from the VA, but after visiting a private doctor who found 130 polyps, Swan had to have his colon removed.
BACKGROUND:
When Germaine Clarno went public in May 2014 with allegations of secret wait lists and excessive wait times harming veterans at Hines VA, Senator Kirk immediately called for an OIG investigation and received assurances from then-Secretary Eric Shinseki that all VA hospitals in Illinois would be thoroughly investigated. Over the next 22 months, Senator Kirk and Clarno kept up the pressure on the VA, uncovering cases of veterans harmed by the ongoing scandal. As the chairman overseeing VA funding, Senator Kirk held numerous hearings to demand answers and accountability from VA and OIG officials.
In the meantime, the OIG conducted an investigation that the OSC found was “incomplete,” “inadequate,” and “not responsive to the serious allegations of significant wait times and delays in veterans’ access to care at Hines.”
On January 26, 2015, the OIG submitted its investigation report to the VA’s Office of Accountability Review (OAR), which exists to “ensure leadership accountability for improprieties related to patient scheduling and access to care, whistleblower retaliation, and related matters that impact public trust in VA.” The OAR determined the investigation “thoroughly” addressed Clarno’s allegations and no further investigation was necessary. VA Chief of Staff Rob Nabors agreed and submitted a summary of the investigation to the OSC. After the OSC found the summary deficient, Nabors submitted a second summary, prepared by OIG, on September 8, 2015.
On February 25, 2016, the OSC sent a letter to President Obama outlining the flaws in the OIG investigation. On March 3, 2016, the OIG released a third summary of its investigation. Despite a provision authored by Senators Kirk and Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.) that was included in the Omnibus funding bill signed into law last December requiring the OIG to “submit the work product” of investigations to the Appropriations Committee, the OIG has not yet released the full investigation report.
TIMELINE:
April 23, 2014: Whistleblower exposes Phoenix VA wait list scandal. CNN reports at least 40 veterans died waiting for appointments at the Phoenix VA while managers used secret wait lists to hide the long wait times.
May 8, 2014: Hines VA Director admits scheduling manipulations. Hines VA Director Joan Ricard issues a memo to employees acknowledging that “various steps that can make the reported wait times look good without actually improving the timeliness of appointments,” calling these practices “not appropriate.”
May 13, 2014: Clarno exposes wait list scandal at Hines. CBS News reports allegations made by Germaine Clarno, a social worker at the Edward Hines, Jr., VA Hospital near Maywood, Ill., and VA employee union president, that employees at Hines used secret wait lists to hide long wait times in order to receive bonuses.
May 14, 2014: Kirk calls for OIG investigation. Senator Kirk calls on the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) to expand its ongoing investigation into scheduling practices to include Hines VA.
May 15, 2014: OIG launches investigation. The VA OIG notifies Senator Kirk that it opened an investigation into Clarno’s allegations regarding Hines VA.
May 16, 2014: Shinseki expands investigation. Senator Kirk speaks on the phone with VA Secretary Eric Shinseki regarding the Hines VA allegations. Secretary Shinseki agrees to Senator Kirk’s request to expand OIG investigation into all VA hospitals in Illinois.
May 21, 2014: Kirk requests updates on OIG investigation. Senator Kirk sends a letter to the VA Acting Inspector General Richard J. Griffin requesting an investigation into specific claims of scheduling manipulations, bonuses and delays in treatment at Hines VA, and asks for frequent updates on the status of the investigation and expected date of completion.
May 22, 2014: Kirk calls for Ricard to resign. Senator Kirk calls for resignation of Hines VA Director Joan Ricard in the wake of the wait list scandal.
May 27, 2014: OIG interviews Clarno. VA OIG interviews Clarno about her allegations.
May 30, 2014: Kirk meets with Hines VA whistleblowers. Senator Kirk meets with Hines VA whistleblowers – social worker Germaine Clarno, a physician, and a clinician – who outline specific allegations of misconduct and corruption at the hospital. They discuss the allegations of secret wait lists, falsified reports, and ongoing corruption within the VA that may have contributed to the sickness and possible deaths of Illinois veterans.
June 5, 2014: OSC refers allegations to OIG. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel refers Clarno’s complaints to the VA OIG for investigation.
June 13, 2014: Kirk demands answers on veteran’s delay. Senator Kirk demands Hines VA release records on how long retired Army Private Michael Swan waited for care after Swan says Hines doctors missed 130 polyps in his colon and he waited 284 days for an appointment while the VA claims he only waited five days.
July 24, 2014: Kirk requests meeting with Nabors. Senator Kirk sends a letter to White House Deputy Chief of Staff Robert Nabors, who the White House appointed to investigate VA backlogs and mistreatment of veterans, requesting that he join in on a meeting with Hines VA whistleblowers – including Hines VA’s Germaine Clarno – in his Chicago office to discuss their experiences as employees at the Hines VA.
July 25, 2014: Nabors meets with Kirk and whistleblowers. Senator Kirk convenes a meeting with Nabors and whistleblowers in Chicago to discuss misconduct and corruption at Hines VA, including long wait times for veterans and mold discovered in the facility. They meet with hospital whistleblowers, including Clarno.
July 31, 2014: Kirk tells McDonald of retaliation against Clarno. Senator Kirk sends a letter to newly-confirmed VA Secretary Robert McDonald addressing the retaliatory actions – including restricting access to computer hardware needed to perform her job – that Germaine Clarno suffered.
October 7, 2014: Hines VA Director Ricard resigns. Following Senator Kirk’s calls for dismissal, Hines VA Director Ricard steps down.
January 26, 2015: OIG submits report to OAR for further review. VA OIG submits its completed investigation report to the VA’s Office of Accountability Review (OAR), which the VA “established … to ensure leadership accountability for improprieties related to patient scheduling and access to care, whistleblower retaliation, and related matters that impact public trust in VA.” Secretary McDonald directs OAR to review the report and investigate Clarno’s allegations.
April 21, 2015: Kirk questions McDonald about Hines scandal. Senator Kirk chairs a hearing of the MilCon/VA Appropriations Subcommittee and questions VA Secretary Robert McDonald about cases of inadequate care at Hines VA.
July 23, 2015: Illinois veteran turned away by Hines takes own life. Illinois veteran Tom Young, a 30-year-old father of two girls, takes his own life after being turned away from Hines VA on three separate occasions.
July 28, 2015: VA OAR determines OIG investigation sufficient, no further inquiry needed. VA submits a summary of the OIG report prepared by the OAR, which determined the OIG investigation “fully” and “thoroughly” investigated Clarno’s allegations. OAR determined no additional investigation was necessary.
July 30, 2015: Kirk chairs hearing on whistleblower retaliation. On National Whistleblower Day, Senator Kirk chairs a hearing of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs. Along with Dr. Lisa Nee, witnesses include Dr. Katherine Mitchell, the whistleblower who broke the Phoenix VA scandal; Danielle Brian, executive director of the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), a nonpartisan watchdog group that investigates corruption and misconduct within government agencies; Linda Halliday, Deputy Inspector General and acting head of the VA OIG; and Carolyn Lerner, Special Counsel at the OSC. POGO director Brian calls VA’s OIG the “worst” inspector general in the federal government.
August 14, 2015: OSC finds summary “deficient,” requests full report. OSC determines the OAR summary of the OIG investigation “was deficient and not responsive to all of the allegations referred” and requests that the VA provide the OIG’s full investigation report.
September 8, 2015: VA submits new summary of OIG investigation. VA submits to the OSC a second summary of the OIG report, prepared by OIG.
November 6, 2015: Kirk chairs whistleblower hearing in Chicago. Senator Kirk chairs a field hearing in Chicago with Germaine Clarno and Dr. Lisa Nee to detail whistleblower allegations and patient and employee abuse at the Hines VA.
February 25, 2016: OSC finds OIG investigation ignored allegations of harm to veterans and sought to discredit Clarno. The U.S. Office of Special Counsel releases a report finding the investigation by the VA OIG into Germaine Clarno’s complaints of schedule manipulations and secret wait lists at Hines VA was willfully inadequate, ignored allegations of excessive wait times for veterans, failed to hold senior leaders responsible for the improper practices, and attempted to discredit whistleblowers. Senator Kirk blasts the VA culture of “attack[ing] whistleblowers instead of protecting vets” and calls on “the VA to conduct a real investigation into whistleblower allegations at Hines, determine how many veterans were harmed and if any died as a result of this scandal, and fire those responsible for covering it up.”
March 3, 2016: OIG releases summary of investigation. VA OIG releases an administrative summary of the investigation that OSC said failed to meet statutory requirements. OIG does not release the full investigation report or address OSC’s findings.
March 4, 2016: Kirk calls for OIG to provide full investigation report. Senators Kirk and Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) send letters to VA Secretary McDonald and Deputy Inspector General Halliday requesting the VA and VA OIG provide investigation reports and documents related to its investigation into the allegations made by Germaine Clarno and Shea Wilkes.
