Interim director takes over Phoenix VA Health Care System

The Department of Veterans Affairs announced Steve Young, director of the Salt Lake City VA Health Care System, will take over today as interim director of the embattled Phoenix VA, according to Stars and Stripes. He will oversee healthcare delivery to approximately 85,000 veterans and an operating budget of $500 million. The move comes in the wake of reports that the Phoenix organization kept a secret wait list to conceal long wait times, and that as many as 40 veterans died while waiting for an appointment. The department placed Director Sharon Helman and two other employees on administrative leave earlier this month while the agency investigates the allegations. Article