ICYMI: Whistleblower Details How Oakland VA Hid and Manipulated 13,184 Claims
Washington, DC – On Wednesday the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs held a hearing on systemic failures and mismanagement at the Oakland Veterans' Affairs (VA) Regional Office, where investigations determined that at least 13,184 veterans' benefit claims were hidden and that veterans had died without receiving a response. Mrs. Rustyann Brown, a veteran of the U.S. Navy and former employee at the Oakland VA Regional Office that worked on the 13,184 claims, testified during the hearing about VA management's efforts to conceal the claims. Mrs. Brown contacted Rep. Doug LaMalfa in 2013, while she was still employed at the Oakland VA, to blow the whistle on the outrageous cover-up within the Oakland VA.
"We realized that a substantial portion of these veterans were now dead and their claims had never been answered; nothing had been done to help them," Ms. Brown testified. "If we determined they were dead or had never filed a claim, we were instructed to mark them ‘No Action Necessary'."
In addition, Mrs. Brown added that no efforts were made to contact surviving spouses or families, some of whom may have been entitled to benefits. By simply marking claims "No Action Necessary", they were kept out of the benefits system and set aside.
When Mrs. Brown and other members of the team that was tasked with reviewing these claims spoke out, they were reprimanded by their supervisors and removed from the project. In Mrs. Brown's case, the retaliation for speaking up on behalf of veterans was shockingly cruel.
"I began to see Military Sexual Trauma claims show up in my work assignments. These claims are supposed to be developed by the Special Ops Team because of the sensitive nature of the claim. But, when I would take the claim to my mentor or supervisor and tell them what I had and that it needed to be moved to the Special Ops Team, I was told to just do the next action and move it on. This was a huge problem for me as I am a survivor of military sexual trauma and service-connected for PTSD due to this. For me, simply reading the statements would bring back all the memories I had tried for years to forget. I would spend time in the restroom crying or hiding in a stairwell so I could be alone and not have anyone see the physical reaction I would have to these claims."
Rep. LaMalfa, who has repeatedly challenged the VA to produce records proving the 13,184 claims were addressed, thanked Mrs. Brown for traveling to the Capitol to testify.
"Rustyann Brown proudly served her country in the U.S. Navy for ten years and decided she wanted to continue to serve by helping her fellow veterans," said Rep. LaMalfa. "She was a hard-working employee, dedicated public servant, and a tremendous asset to the Oakland VA. The way she was treated by her managers in Oakland is disgraceful and represents a culture of bullying and intimidation that cannot be tolerated. I applaud Rusty's courage in speaking out and thank her for all her efforts to help our nation's veterans."
Following Mrs. Brown's testimony and Rep. LaMalfa's participation in the hearing, the VA Office of the Inspector General testified that it has reopened an investigation into the Oakland VA Office.
Video of Wednesday's hearing may be viewed in two parts at the following links:
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/61409440
https://www.ustream.tv/recorded/61414904
Congressman Doug LaMalfa is a lifelong farmer representing California's First Congressional District, including Butte, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou and Tehama Counties.
###