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A bomb shell report released Tuesday by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., claimed that well over a thousand veterans have possible died during the period of 2001 through 2011 as a result of misconduct and a “culture of mismanagement” at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Sen. Coburn, a physician himself, wrote the introduction to the report by beginning, “This report shows the problems at the VA are worse than anyone imagined.  The scope of the VA’s incompetence – and Congress’ indifferent oversight – is breathtaking and disturbing.  This investigation found the problems at the VA are far deeper than just scheduling.  Over the past decade, more than 1,000 veterans may have died as a result of the VA’s misconduct and the VA has paid out nearly $1 billion to veterans and their families for its medical malpractice.  As is typical with any bureaucracy, the excuse for not being able to meet goals is a lack of resources.  But this is not the case at the VA where spending has increased rapidly in recent years.”

Coburn continued his rebuke of the Department of Veterans Affairs, but also had choice words for Congress and the administration.

“The Administration and Congress have failed to ensure our nation is living up to the promises we have made to our veterans,” Dr. Coburn added.  “As a physician who has personally cared for hundreds of Oklahoma veterans, this is intolerable.  As a senator, I’m determined to address the structural challenges of the Department of Veterans Affairs so we can end this national disgrace and improve quality and access to health care for our veterans.”

“But make no mistake.  Whatever bill Congress passes cannot ignore the findings of this report.  While it is good that Congress feels a sense of urgency we are at this point because Congress has ignored or glossed over too many similar warnings in the past.  Our sense of urgency should come from the scope of the problem, not our proximity to an election.”

The New York Times reported on Monday, that a letter from Carolyn N. Lerner, head of the Office of Special Counsel, sent to President Obama criticized the Department of Veterans Affairs for not digging deeper into widespread allegations made by its own employees of poor or severely delayed patient care for veterans.

Lerner, continued to state in the letter, by asserting that Veterans Affairs officials consistently had used a “harmless error” defense to dismiss as trivial numerous claims of shoddy patient care or long waiting times made by department employees in recent years. Ms. Lerner criticized the department, along with its Office of the Medical Inspector, for a longstanding pattern of refusing to use whistle-blower complaints to fix serious medical problems.

The Veterans Affairs and others cannot continue to stipulate that it’s from a lack of funding when the report identified $20 billion dollars in waste and mismanagement, which should have gone to veteran care.

This report should be a wakeup call for the administration and Congress to take immediate steps to fix the ailing Veterans Affairs department, and not revert to partisan warfare over who is to blame.

The time has come where a truly bi-partisan independent investigation with real power to investigate the abuses at the VA, and then make the necessary recommendation to fix the problems.

This investigation needs to hold individuals responsible for the egregious and despicable treatment of our nation’s veterans.

It’s amazing that the Justice Department has not looked into or began investigation of those individuals who received bonus all the while reporting fraudulent information.

That is a scandal unto itself.

The nation’s veterans deserve better from the nation it has sworn to protect.