Johanns Statement on Shinseki Resignation

WaSHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Mike Johanns (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, issued the following statement after Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Eric Shinseki resigned amid allegations of veterans’ deaths resulting from delayed care at VA hospitals across the country:

“Sec. Shinseki has honorably served our nation, but faced with the facts released earlier this week, it’s clear the VA is in need of significant changes to provide the care our veterans have been promised,” Johanns said. “Sec. Shinseki’s resignation cannot be the end of this scandal. So many times in Washington the solution is to change leadership and hope the problem gets swept under the rug as the headlines fade away. We must not let that be the case this time.
“As a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, I take seriously the responsibility to care for our veterans. I will press forcefully for the implementation of the inspector general’s initial recommendations and any future recommendations to ensure the corruption is stopped and never repeated.”
Secretary Shinseki’s resignation came two days after an interim report from the VA’s Inspector General revealed that at least 1,700 veterans were left off a health care appointment waitlist at the Phoenix VA medical facility. The report also showed patients there waited an average of 115 days for their initial appointments, and concluded that problems at the VA are "systemic" and not limited to Phoenix.
Sloan Gibson, a VA deputy secretary who was confirmed by the Senate in February, has been named as the interim VA Secretary.