CONTACT: Gretchen Andersen (212) 982-9699 or press@iava.org
New York, NY (June 27, 2014) – As Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Acting Secretary Sloan Gibson and Deputy Chief of Staff Rob Nabors plan to update President Obama on the VA scandal this afternoon, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA) urges the President to meet with Veteran Service Organizations to discuss restoring confidence within the VA. Earlier this week, the VA came under fire after the Office of Special Counsel (OSC) sent a report detailing systemic problems of veterans care to the White House.
Gibson was named Acting Secretary nearly four weeks ago after Eric Shinseki resigned following reports of wrongdoing and mismanagement at several VA hospitals and clinics across the country.
In early June, IAVA unveiled a “Marshall Plan” for veterans: eight steps the Obama Administration and Congress can take now to restore confidence in the VA. Among the steps are recommendations from IAVA’s 2014 Policy Agenda. IAVA urges Congress and the President to enact all of the recommendations from the plan.
“For nearly a month the President has been publicly silent on this growing controversy,” said IAVA CEO and Founder Paul Rieckhoff. “Especially on PTSD Awareness Day, it is even more urgent that the Administration lead on enacting real change into the VA. This is not a one-man solution. The President needs to hear firsthand from leaders within the VSO community and meet with vets outside the Beltway to hear the challenges our community is facing. A well-informed leadership is key to rectifying the egregious corruption plaguing the VA. We hope to work with the Administration to help lay the path forward for a 21st Century VA our veterans deserve.”
Note to media: Please contact press@IAVA.org to schedule an interview with IAVA leadership.
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (www.IAVA.org) is the nation's first and largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization representing veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan and has more than 270,000 Member Veterans and civilian supporters nationwide. Celebrating its 10th year anniversary, IAVA recently received the highest rating - four-stars - from Charity Navigator, America's largest charity evaluator.
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