Donovan Slack

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Bob McDonald said Monday that he believes veterans’ wait times for appointments aren't a valid measure of their experience at the VA and releasing more wait-time data would create negative headlines that would distract people from what really matters.

The VA currently does not release data showing how long veterans wait between scheduling an appointment and being seen.

“So why don’t I also make the measurement of the fit of your prosthetic sleeve public?” McDonald said at a breakfast with reporters organized by The Christian Science Monitor. “I mean, I’ve got so many measures, if I make them all public, you’re all going to write headlines about them and they’re going to distract people from what’s important. I don’t want to do that. I want people focused on what’s really important.”

He said wait-time measures can also create other problems and gave as an example the 14-day wait-time target implemented before the 2014 VA wait-time crisis broke that led schedulers and supervisors to falsify data to try and meet the target. In Phoenix, VA employees kept secret wait lists outside the system, and 40 veterans died awaiting care.

The target has since been relaxed to 30 days. But the Government Accountability Office released a report last month concluding that VA schedulers still are manipulating wait times and recommending that the VA more accurately measure them.

McDonald said the agency is developing a new measure that he hopes will more accurately reflect veterans' experiences with the VA.

“The days to an appointment is really not what we should be measuring, we should be measuring the veterans’ satisfaction,” he said. “When you go to Disney, do they measure the number of hours you wait in line? What’s important? What’s important is: what’s your satisfaction with the experience?”

He said the agency is testing the new measure before releasing it publicly.

Overall, McDonald said much has been accomplished since he took over the VA in July 2014 after the wait-time crisis broke. The VA has hired 1,300 doctors and 3,600 nurses, although McDonald said more still are needed to meet veteran demand.

“We know we have an issue getting people in,” he said.

McDonald’s remarks — particularly his comparing lines for VA health care to those at a Disney theme park — drew withering criticism from Republicans on Monday.

House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., tweeted: “This is not make-believe, Mr. Secretary. Veterans have died waiting in those lines.” Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., chairman of the House Veterans' Affairs Committee, said in a statement that McDonald is “just plain wrong.”

“Wait times are of critical importance to the veterans waiting for VA medical care and they should be to Sec. Bob McDonald as well,” Miller said.

Senate Veterans' Affairs Chairman Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., said he was "extremely disappointed" in McDonald's Disney comparison and that "Quality health care means absolutely nothing if veterans cannot access it in a timely manner."

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., called McDonald’s comments “outrageous and completely inappropriate.”

“Our veterans aren’t in line for a theme park ride — they are in desperate need of timely access to quality medical treatment,” the senator said in a statement, which noted that as of this month, nearly 500,000 veterans were waiting more than 30 days for appointments.

Rep. Martha Roby, R-Ala., said McDonald’s remarks were “beyond absurd,” and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, who chairs the House Republican Conference, said, “When you go to Disney, you aren’t wondering if you’re going to live long enough to make it to Space Mountain.”

Even presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump weighed in, tweeting that “Obama’s VA Secretary just said we shouldn't measure wait times. Hillary says VA problems are not ‘widespread.’ I will take care of our vets!”

The VA, in an attempt to stem the growing criticism, issued a statement late Monday reiterating the agency’s commitment to providing timely care.

“The Department of Veterans Affairs is working to better serve the Veterans we have the privilege of serving. This is a solemn duty that we take seriously,” the agency said. “We know that veterans are still waiting too long for care.”

The VA said they have heard from veterans who have said “wait times alone are not the only indication of their experience with VA and that’s why we must transform the way we do business.”

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