Rep. Rick Larsen, WA-02, released the following statement regarding the resignation of Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Eric Shinseki.

Shinseki resigned after an interim independent report by the VA Inspector General confirmed that employees at the Phoenix, Ariz. VA Health Care System used inappropriate scheduling practices to hide how long veterans waited to receive care.

“General Shinseki served our country in the Vietnam War and knows what it is like to be a veteran. That is why he was appointed as Secretary of the VA. I know he is angry about the falsified waiting lists and length of time our veterans were forced to wait for health care.

“While I believe General Shinseki could have made progress toward eliminating deceitful scheduling practices and reducing patient wait times, the country needs to shift its focus to providing our veterans with timely health care. Congress also has the responsibility to fix these problems that have been raised several times in recent years by the VA Inspector General. My primary concern is that veterans who served our nation honorably get access to the timely care they deserve,” Larsen said.

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