Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I rise today to speak on the nomination of Dr. David J. Shulkin to be the next Under Secretary for Health for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. I was pleased that Dr. Shulkin's nomination was confirmed by the Senate last night. The Veterans Health Administration, which he will oversee, has not had a permanent leader for more than 1 year. In my view, it is important to have permanent leadership in place to address a number of ongoing issues at the Veterans Health Administration, including properly implementing the Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act of 2014, to give veterans the option of accessing care in their communities and ensure managers are held accountable for any lapses in customer service; improving care and support for victims of military sexual trauma; helping to eradicate homelessness among veterans; ensuring that veterans have access to timely and adequate mental health care; reducing the systemic problems with over- prescription of opioids; and providing appropriate gender-specific services for the growing population of women veterans. Dr. Shulkin has roughly 20 years of experience serving in leadership roles at hospitals and health care systems. I hope he can use that experience to provide the stability and leadership needed to start overcoming the serious challenges that the Veterans Health Administration continues to face.…”