Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7277, the Improving Oversight of Veterans Community Care Providers Act, as amended, a bill that will take important steps toward ensuring that healthcare providers meet the eligibility requirements and standards of VA's Community Care Program. I thank Representative Chris Pappas, chairman of the Veterans' Affairs Committee's Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, for his work on this bipartisan bill. I was disturbed by a recent Government Accountability Office report requested by Chairman Pappas and Ranking Member Tracey Mann, which identified approximately 1,600 healthcare providers who were deceased, ineligible to work with the Federal Government, or who had revoked or suspended medical licenses, yet were still listed as active providers in VA's Community Care networks. While the number of ineligible providers was a small fraction of the roughly 1.2 million active providers in VA's Community Care networks, they still represented a potential threat to veteran health and safety, and a risk for financial fraud. Congressman Pappas' bill would require VA to implement GAO's recommendations to ensure veterans and taxpayers are not put at risk.…”