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CVA Targets Senate in New VA Accountability Ads

By Concerned Veterans for America

Arlington, VA – Today Concerned Veterans for America (CVA) is releasing a series of web ads targeted at seventeen members of the U.S. Senate, urging them to support the VA Accountability First Act of 2017. Ad targets include Senators Jon Tester (D-MT), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Claire McCaskill (D-MO), among thirteen others, and is part of a six-figure investment surrounding the group’s effort to help VA accountability pass this year.

“How many more veterans will die waiting for care at the Department of Veterans Affairs?” the ad narrator asks. “How many more will be neglected by the people hired to serve them? How many more will suffer before the Senate acts?” The ad then prompts viewers to call their Senators directly in support of the bill.

Click here to view the ad.

The ads come as part of a major CVA grassroots effort to see the VA Accountability First Act of 2017 pass in the Senate this year. The group is making thousands of phone calls to constituents of Senate targets and is promoting a digital tool which connects CVA activists directly with their Senators’ offices via email and social media.

CVA Executive Director Mark Lucas issued the following statement:

“The Senate has a real opportunity to pass strong VA accountability measures this year, and they should take it. The VA Accountability First Act of 2017 will help Secretary Shulkin get rid of the bad VA employees who drive a toxic culture and fail to give our veterans the care they need. Veterans shouldn’t have to suffer at the hands of incompetent or negligent VA employees. We urge the Senate to prioritize sending the VA Accountability First Act to President Trump’s desk.”

President Trump, Secretary Shulkin, and most major veterans organizations support the VA Accountability First Act. Recently, Secretary Shulkin issued a press release explicitly calling upon Congress to enact legislation that would make it easier for him to fire bad VA employees. His statement came in response to a situation where he was unable to quickly fire a VA employee who watched porn with a patient.

The VA Accountability First Act of 2017 passed through the House with bipartisan support last month. The Senate version of the bill, introduced by Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), has not yet been scheduled for a vote.

If passed, the 2017 VA Accountability First Act would drastically shorten the overall termination and appeals process for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) employees who are found to have engaged in misconduct. Currently, that process can take months or even years. The bill also empowers the VA Secretary to recoup bonuses awarded in error or given to employees who were later found to have engaged in misconduct. Additionally, the bill gives the VA Secretary the ability to reduce the pensions of VA employees who are convicted of felonies that influenced their job performance.

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