The Tennessean - TN Lawmakers Seek Murfreesboro VA Probe

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Members of Tennessee's congressional delegation are calling for an investigation of the Veterans Affairs hospital in Murfreesboro for "delays and denials in patient care" after it stopped providing acute care inpatient services.

U.S. Rep. Diane Black, R-Tenn., in a press release called for an Inspector General investigation after "stunning reports of mismanagement and inefficiencies" at the Alvin C. York campus of the VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System. She noted veterans have reported the emergency room closes at 8 p.m. and functions as an urgent care center.

"As the mother, wife and daughter of veterans, I am outraged by this blatant disrespect for those who have worn the uniform of our country, and I will not relent in my fight to get answers and demand accountability," Black said in the press release.

She sent a letter to Secretary of Veterans Affairs Robert A. McDonald with a list of questions about the Murfreesboro hospital. The letter was co-signed by Rep. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.; Rep. Scott DesJarlais, R-Tenn.; Rep. Chuck Fleischmann, R-Tenn. and U.S. Rep. Phil Roe, R-Tenn.

In December, the Murfreesboro hospital began referring patients who required hospitalization to the VA medical center in Nashville and to other hospitals, but it has continued providing inpatient rehabilitation and extended care services, said Jessica Schiefer, a spokesperson for VA Tennessee Valley. She described the arrangement as a temporary situation due to staffing.

"The Health System plan moving forward is to return the Emergency Department and other acute care areas to their previous level of service in the very near future," Schiefer said in a statement.

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