V-J Day 'Kiss' photo stays on display as VA head reverses department memo that would've banned it
The Veterans Affairs secretary is reversing a department memo that aimed to ban VA displays of the iconic โV-J Day in Times Squareโ photograph showing a Navy sailor kissing a woman he did not know on the streets of New York at the end of World War II.
Biggest vets groups step up pressure on Trump to fire Wilkie
FILE - In this July 7, 2020 file photo, Secretary of Veterans Affairs Richard Wilkie speaks at the National Press Club in Washington. Confronted with a sexual assault allegation at a veterans hospital, Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie repeatedly sought to discredit the female congressional staffer who made the complaint. The groups pressed Trump to act in the last weeks of his administration since Wilkie had refused to accept responsibility and was refusing to resign. Wilkie and other senior officials had declined to fully cooperate with the investigation by VA Inspector General Michael Missal. Wilkie is Trumpโs second VA secretary after David Shulkin was fired in 2018.
American Legion, Pelosi joining calls for VA chief's ouster
โIt is unfair to expect accountability from the nearly 400,000 VA employees and not demand the same from its top executive. Wilkie and other senior officials had declined to fully cooperate with the investigation by VA Inspector General Michael Missal. Wilkie is Trumpโs second VA secretary after David Shulkin was fired in 2018. President-elect Joe Biden has pledged to rebuild trust in the VA when he takes office on Jan. 20. He has selected Denis McDonough, who served as President Barack Obamaโs White House chief of staff, to be VA secretary.
Vets groups demand Wilkie's dismissal after scathing audit
โThe accountability, professionalism and respect that our veterans have earned, and quite frankly deserve, is completely lost in this current VA leadership team,โ said B.J. Wilkie and other senior officials had declined to fully cooperate with the investigation by VA Inspector General Michael Missal. Wilkie is President Donald Trumpโs second VA secretary after David Shulkin was fired in 2018. โVA can and must do better,โ said Randy Reese, executive director of Disabled American Veteransโ Washington headquarters. He has selected Denis McDonough, who served as President Barack Obamaโs White House chief of staff, to be VA secretary.
Watchdog faults VA chief over handling of sex assault report
โThe response of Secretary Wilkie and senior VA officials to the veteranโs complaint of sexual assault was troubling,โ Missal said in a statement. โThe tone set by Secretary Wilkie appears to have influenced aspects of the initial VA police investigation and the conduct of other VA employees,โ the report said. On Thursday, Biden said he will nominate Denis McDonough, who served as President Barack Obamaโs White House chief of staff, to be VA secretary. VA officials did not examine the information, the report said. A study released by the VA last year found 1 in 4 female veterans using VA health care reported inappropriate comments by male veterans on VA grounds.
Explosion kills 2 steam pipe workers at veterans hospital
WEST HAVEN, Conn. โ Two workers were killed in an explosion Friday while repairing a steam pipe in a maintenance building at a Veterans Affairs hospital in Connecticut, officials said. Alfred Montoya Jr., director of the VA Connecticut Healthcare System, said the men were in the basement of the small outer building and had just finished routine maintenance on a leaky pipe. He said the explosion occurred just after 8 a.m. as the pipe was being refilled with steam. โOur prayers are with the families of the victims of this explosion," VA Secretary Robert Wilkie said. The explosion occurred in a building that houses the hospitalโs labor shops, such as carpentry and plumbing, a spokesperson for the hospital said.
Bill calling for sweeping VA mental health care changes heading to presidentโs desk
Statistics like these prompted a bipartisan group of U.S. senators to draft a bill that would bring sweeping changes to the Department of Veteran Affairs' mental health services. Senate Bill 785, also known as the Commander John Scott Hannon Veterans Mental Health Care Improvement Act, has now passed the Senate and House and is headed to President Donald Trumpโs desk for approval. The bill does the following:establishes increased accountability over the departmentโs mental health and suicide prevention programs;expands VA tele-health capabilities to better serve rural veterans;bolsters and expedites federal research capabilities;directs the VA to embark on a precision medicine initiative that will improve how mental health conditions are diagnosed and treated;makes necessary improvements to the VA mental health workforce. โMental health is widely misunderstood, and thereโs a negative culture associated with it, especially in the military. โNot everyone that they see will fit the parameters they need to see or allow them into a mental health provider.