INSIDER
V-J Day 'Kiss' photo stays on display as VA head reverses department memo that would've banned it
Read full article: V-J Day 'Kiss' photo stays on display as VA head reverses department memo that would've banned itThe Veterans Affairs secretary is reversing a department memo that aimed to ban VA displays of the iconic “V-J Day in Times Square” 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.
Dallas, El Paso veterans’ facilities will get $442 million in upgrades
Read full article: Dallas, El Paso veterans’ facilities will get $442 million in upgradesThe funds will help expand the Dallas facility into a long-term spinal cord injury treatment center and pay for a new health care facility in El Paso.
Fourth of July fireworks can be a trigger for veterans with PTSD, these apps can help
Read full article: Fourth of July fireworks can be a trigger for veterans with PTSD, these apps can helpDuring the Fourth of July weekend, the fireworks can be a trigger for people who suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Biggest vets groups step up pressure on Trump to fire Wilkie
Read full article: Biggest vets groups step up pressure on Trump to fire WilkieFILE - 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 Trump’s second VA secretary after David Shulkin was fired in 2018.
American Legion, Pelosi joining calls for VA chief's ouster
Read full article: American Legion, Pelosi joining calls for VA chief's ouster“It 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 Trump’s 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 Obama’s White House chief of staff, to be VA secretary.
Vets groups demand Wilkie's dismissal after scathing audit
Read full article: Vets groups demand Wilkie's dismissal after scathing audit“The accountability, professionalism and respect that our veterans have earned, and quite frankly deserve, is completely lost in this current VA leadership team,” 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 Trump’s second VA secretary after David Shulkin was fired in 2018. “VA can and must do better,” said Randy Reese, executive director of Disabled American Veterans’ Washington headquarters. He has selected Denis McDonough, who served as President Barack Obama’s White House chief of staff, to be VA secretary.
Watchdog faults VA chief over handling of sex assault report
Read full article: Watchdog faults VA chief over handling of sex assault report“The response of Secretary Wilkie and senior VA officials to the veteran’s complaint of sexual assault was troubling,” Missal said in a statement. “The tone set by Secretary Wilkie appears to have influenced aspects of the initial VA police investigation and the conduct of other VA employees,” the report said. On Thursday, Biden said he will nominate Denis McDonough, who served as President Barack Obama’s 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
Read full article: Explosion kills 2 steam pipe workers at veterans hospitalWEST HAVEN, Conn. – 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. “Our 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 hospital’s labor shops, such as carpentry and plumbing, a spokesperson for the hospital said.