“At a June 20 House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs hearing, legislators considered H.R. 3083, sponsored by ranking member Phil Roe (R-TN). One of the architects of the VA MISSION Act of 2018, Roe is an ardent supporter of shifting the care of veterans from the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) to the private sector.”
“H.R. 3083 will accelerate privatization of the VHA by changing the launch date of one of the most problematic parts of the VA MISSION Act—the Asset and Infrastructure Review Commission.”
“The VA MISSION Act mandates the creation of an Asset and Infrastructure Review Commission whose nine members are appointed by the president. These appointments are supposed to include at least three members of veterans service organizations (VSOs), as well as health-care industry representatives and other key stakeholders. At the signing ceremony for the MISSION Act, President Trump insisted he would not be bound by this provision, while simultaneously praising the legislation.”
“The president is expected to submit nominations for Senate approval by May 2021, and the commission is supposed to meet during 2022 and 2023. Whatever its composition, the commission will compile a list of facilities to “modernize or realign”—shorthand for closing, consolidating, or reconfiguring VHA facilities…” Read the full article here.
Source: VA Privatization Bill Threatens Closure of Key Facilities – By Suzanne Gordon and Russell Lemle, June 25, 2019. The American Prospect.
