VA Official Apologizes For Systemic Retaliation Against Whistleblowers

Veteran’s Health Administration workers spent hours at a Congressional hearing detailing the ways the organization rebuffed employees who raised concerns, and engaged in systemic retaliation on whistleblowers. A federal investigative agency has reported that 67 claims of retaliation are being investigated, in 28 states at 45 separate facilities. Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner told the House Veteran’s Affairs committee that, instead of using whistleblower information as an early warning system, the VA often “has ignored or attempted to minimize problems, allowing serious issues to fester and grow,” and then retaliated against employees rather than investigate their complaints.