Did you know the VA paid almost $150 million in bonuses inspite of poor management?

2015-11-11T10:44:18-05:00

VA pays $142 million in bonuses amid scandals

WASHINGTON – The Department of Veterans Affairs doled out more than $142 million in bonuses to executives and employees for performance in 2014 even as scandals over veterans' health care and other issues racked the agency.

Among the recipients were claims processors in a Philadelphia benefits office that investigators dubbed the worst in the country last year. They received $300 to $900 each. Managers in Tomah, Wis., got $1,000 to $4,000, even though they oversaw the over-prescription of opiates to veterans – one of whom died.

The VA also rewarded executives who managed construction of a facility in Denver, a disastrous project years overdue and more than $1 billion over budget. They took home $4,000 to $8,000 each. And in St. Cloud, Minn., where an internal investigation report last year outlined mismanagement that led to mass resignations of health care providers, the chief of staff cited by investigators received a performance bonus of almost $4,000.

As one of his final acts last year before resigning, then-VA secretary Eric Shinseki announced he was suspending bonuses in the wake of revelations that VA employees falsified wait lists to meet wait-time targets — ostensibly as part of efforts to secure the extra pay. But he only curtailed them for a sliver of VA executives -- those in senior levels of the Veterans Health Administration, which oversees health care.

The agency has continued to pay performance-based bonuses to nearly half of agency employees, including in health administration, according to data provided to USA TODAY by the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee. In all, some 156,000 executives, managers and employees received them for 2014 performance.

Response by Sgt Spencer Sikder made Nov 11 at 2015 10:56 AM

2015-11-11T10:56:14-05:00

Bonuses becomes a tricky issue. Not all employees who received bonuses were responsible for the failures. Ignoring those good employees is also a disservice to us veterans. As those good employees then become complacent or worse yet, leave the agency to seek employment where they are valued.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 11 at 2015 12:47 PM

2015-11-11T12:47:59-05:00

And people say crime doesn't pay.

Response by LTC John Shaw made Nov 11 at 2015 2:21 PM

2015-11-11T14:21:19-05:00

SSgt Alex Robinson I know where we can save $142M dollars...

Response by LTC Marc King made Nov 11 at 2015 4:52 PM

2015-11-11T16:52:18-05:00

I see what Sgt Skider said about the good employees but if they where on their game the whole organization would function better than it does. Continuing to hand out bonuses continues to feed the problematic beast and does not provide the necessary incentives to fix the defects.