Originally published on May 3, 2021 1:32 am
Gov. JB Pritzker on Friday expressed regret over hiring former Illinois Department of Veterans Affairs Director Linda Chapa LaVia as critics lash out after a scathing report examining what led to the massive COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans Home last fall, which left 36 residents dead.
The investigation, which Pritzker ordered a few weeks into the deadly outbreak in November, found systemic organizational problems and failures to communicate in both the LaSalle Home and the state’s Department of Veteran Affairs, which runs the facility and three other veterans homes in Illinois.
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Along with inconsistent and confusing COVID protocols that led to lax enforcement among staff, the report also found former agency Director Linda Chapa LaVia “abdicated” her responsibilities to her chief of staff, who in essence performed three jobs. The failure to fill crucial vacant jobs inevitably left the chief of staff and other
Congressmen Lou Correa (D-CA) and Peter Meijer (R-MI) reintroduced The VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act of 2021. The bipartisan and bicameral legislation directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to perform clinical research on the safety and efficacy of medical cannabis in treating veterans’ post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and chronic pain. An identical version of this legislation was introduced by Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Jon Tester (D-MT) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK). Additionally, the legislation has the support of the House Veterans Affairs Chairman Mark Takano.
Rep. Lou Correa said, “With the opioid crisis raging across America, it is imperative to the health and safety of our veterans that we find alternative treatments for chronic pain and service-related injuries. Throughout my district, I consistently meet veterans who depend on cannabis to manage their pain. Numerous veterans attest to the treatment benefits of medical cannabis. It’s time the V
Gov. JB Pritzker is under fire from critics after the administration published a long-awaited report examining what led to the massive COVID-19 outbreak at the LaSalle Veterans Home last fall, which left 36 residents dead.
The investigation, which Pritzker ordered a few weeks into the deadly outbreak in November, found systemic organizational problems and failures to communicate in both the LaSalle Home and the state’s Department of Veteran Affairs, which runs the facility and three other veterans homes in Illinois.
Read more:
Along with inconsistent and confusing COVID protocols that led to lax enforcement among staff, the report also found former agency Director Linda Chapa LaVia “abdicated” her responsibilities to her chief of staff, who in essence performed three jobs. The failure to fill crucial vacant jobs inevitably left the chief of staff and other managers in IDVA and at the LaSalle home “with too many responsibilities to effectively lead.”
Sweeping health and benefits changes could come soon for vets suffering toxic exposure ills April 28 A service member watches over a the burn pit in Al Anbar Province of Iraq in May 2007. (Cpl. Samuel D. Corum/Marine Corps) Lawmakers on Wednesday launched their latest effort to piece together comprehensive legislation on veterans’ toxic exposure illnesses with the goal of providing a clear path forward by the start of the summer. At a hearing on the issue before the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Chairman Jon Tester, D-Mont., said he wanted to mark up the package “before Memorial Day” and promised a “bold” new approach to getting more medical care and benefits to veterans suffering from illnesses connected to burn pits, chemical exposure and other potential poisoning while on duty.
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