Congressman Frank J. Mrvan, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, has recently introduced H.R. 1256, the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Leadership Transformation Act.
The purpose of this legislation is to support veterans and improve leadership stability within the VHA, address governance challenges that have impeded oversight and accountability, and empower VHA to more effectively address veterans’ healthcare needs.
Specifically, the VHA Leadership Transformation Act extends the term of VA’s Under Secretary for Health to 5 years, so VHA and its 380,000 employees will not have to experience leadership turnover with every change in a presidential administration. The bill would also remove certain statutory restrictions on the qualifications of senior leaders and provide VA with flexibility to determine the organizational structure of the VHA.
Rep. Mrvan stated, “As the Ranking Member of the House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, I am proud to introduce this legislation to support veterans and improve the ability of the VHA to provide veterans with the healthcare benefits they have earned. I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues to provide adequate oversight of the executive branch and ensure that VA is doing its very best to provide healthcare and benefit services to our veterans.”
Ranking Member of the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Rep. Mark Takano, stated, “I fully support Representative Mrvan’s bill, which will help prevent leadership gaps like those we have seen at VHA over the last decade and enable the agency to recruit senior leaders with more diverse professional backgrounds.”
Last week, Rep. Mrvan joined members of the House Veterans’ Affairs Subcommittee on Health for a legislative hearing on the VHA Leadership Transformation Act. To see a video of the Congressman’s testimony visit http://bit.ly/3Kbdgy1 and his statement as prepared for delivery is below:
I am pleased to be here today to discuss my recently introduced bill, H.R. 1256, the VHA Leadership Transformation Act.
This legislation will extend the term of appointment for VA’s Under Secretary for Health to five years. It also removes existing statutory restrictions on the number of Assistant Under Secretaries for Health that VHA can have, and it eliminates the requirement that all but two of them be physicians or dentists.
The intent of this legislation is to provide greater leadership stability at VHA by shielding the agency from leadership turnover with every change in a presidential administration. It will also help address governance challenges that have impeded oversight and accountability, and empower VHA to more effectively address veterans’ healthcare needs.
Now, I know what you may be wondering: why should VA make these changes? And wouldn’t this cause VHA to operate differently from other federal agencies?
For answers, we only need to look back at the last 6 years or so.
With the confirmation of Dr. Elnahal in July 2022, VHA got its first Senate-confirmed Under Secretary for Health since January of 2017. Between January 2017 and July 2022, six different individuals rotated through this office, either “acting as” or “performing the delegable duties” of the Under Secretary for Health.
Longtime observers of VA healthcare will recall the incredible transformation that occurred between 1994 and 1999, under the leadership of Dr. Kenneth Kizer. He was a visionary who led VHA away from being a system heavily focused on delivering inpatient care in old, often underutilized hospitals to one that is now largely focused on delivering primary care and preventive care through a vast network of outpatient clinics. The VA that so many veterans and employees know and love today simply would not be what it is, were it not for the steady leadership of Dr. Kizer.
I’ll also add that there are a number of other positions across the federal government with 5-year terms, including the Social Security Administrator, the Federal Aviation Administrator, and the IRS Commissioner.
If any incoming president wants to replace any of these officials prior to the expiration of their term, the President has the authority to do that, and my bill would allow the same for VA’s Under Secretary for Health. Removing statutory restrictions on how many Assistant Under Secretaries for Health VHA can have and what their professional backgrounds may be will allow VA’s healthcare system to adapt to the way healthcare is delivered today and enable VA to recruit and attract the best-qualified candidates.
As the new Ranking Member of the Oversight & Investigations Subcommittee, I firmly believe that strong, stable leadership is the foundation upon which accountability is built. I was pleased to see in VA’s recent testimony that the department is quite receptive to my legislation and the potential it has to provide VHA with continuity of operations.
I look forward to continuing to engage with you and additional stakeholders to advance this important legislation.
