Beyond A Failed Nominee: Whistleblower Retaliation Another Problem At The VA [View all]
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Source: NPR
Dan Martin is chief of engineering services for the Department of Veterans Affairs' Northern Indiana Health Care System, but for more than a year, he hasn't had much to do. He says he has been designated to work at a remote VA office with no work assignments, ever since he raised the alarm on what he believed were fraudulently awarded contracts for new water filtration systems in local VA hospitals.
Martin tells Here & Now that the filtration system was like "a several hundred pound paperweight" that didn't abide by VA regulations to reduce the spread of waterborne diseases in the hospitals. He reported the problem to the Office of the Inspector General, which he says took his allegations seriously.
Last year, the Trump administration tried to solve this problem by creating a new VA office designed to shield whistleblowers from retaliation. The problem of whistleblower retaliation further shines a light on the growing dysfunction inside the VA, which still awaits a permanent chief after Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson withdrew his nomination this week.
The VA's Office of Accountability and Whistleblower Protection has taken on dozens of new cases of alleged whistleblower retaliation. The controversy over how the VA handles reports of wrongdoing from its own employees highlights the challenge of overhauling the troubled agency. Some employees who are flagging fraud, waste and abuse are skeptical that the new office will be able to protect them...
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Read more: https://www.npr.org/2018/04/27/606461746/beyond-a-failed-nominee-whistleblower-retaliation-another-problem-at-the-va
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