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Chris Coons Demands Assurances from VA Over Scandal

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Senator Chris Coons want the new director of the Wilmington Veterans Affairs Medical Center to certify that there is no effort to disguise the backlogs of patient care – a scandal that has ripped through the agency nationally.

The Delaware Democrat wrote that any neglect or suffering by veterans is appalling and demanded to be assured this was not occurring at VA facilities in the state.

The Wilmington News Journal reports it is not known if the Wilmington facility near Elsmere is one of the 26 centers that are now under investigation by the VA.

The paper reports that Wilmington VA psychotherapist Michelle Washington told a Senate committee in late 2011 that because of a lack of staff veterans needing mental health care were waiting for longer than the VA’s 12-day waiting standard to begin therapy.

The News Journal reports that the new VA Wilmington director Robin Aube-Warren said that the wait times for those in need of mental health assistance had improved.

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.