Members of Tri-State Delegation Asks VA for Answers About Reduction of Hot Springs Services Despite Superior Rating

PIERRE — U.S. Sens. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.), John Thune (R-S.D.), John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) and Reps. Kristi Noem (R-S.D.) and Adrian Smith (R-Neb.) today wrote U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Robert McDonald to ask about the VA’s preferred alternative to drastically cut services at the Hot Springs VA facility despite it being rated by the VA as one of only 14 “five star” facilities across the country.

“As you continue to overhaul the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) through the MyVA plan, we believe that it is essential to use VA’s top performing facilities as models for others to follow as opposed to targeting them for closure,” wrote the delegation. “Now more than ever, the VA needs to leverage its top medical centers for best practices and lessons learned to replicate their performance throughout VHA. This is critical as the VA continues to rebuild trust with veterans following the high profile scandals of recent years. As one of only 14 rated five-star facilities, we feel that significantly reducing services at Hot Springs would be a grave mistake and a disservice to the veterans it serves.”

Full text of the letter is below:

Dear Secretary McDonald: 

We write to you regarding the recent press publication of the Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) internal quality “star ranking” metrics for its medical facilities. It is with great pride that we note the Hot Springs campus of the Black Hills Health Care System (BHHCS) is one of only 14 “five-star” facilities out of a total of 146 medical centers. As you are aware, the Hot Springs campus takes great pride in the care and services it provides to veterans, a mission that it has admirably accomplished since the U.S. Civil War. It is therefore no surprise for us to learn that Hot Springs is one of the VA’s top performing facilities.

This revelation makes the VA’s proposed BHHCS realignment and corresponding reduction in services at Hot Springs all the more concerning. Since the start of the realignment process over five years ago, we have expressed concern about the VA using this process to accomplish a pre-determined outcome, as opposed to conducting an honest and fair assessment to determine the best way to serve veterans in the Black Hills and surrounding areas. The VA’s release of a preferred alternative that drastically cuts veterans services at Hot Springs at the same time that we learn it is one of the VA’s premier medical facilities casts significant doubt upon the integrity of the entire realignment process.

We therefore ask that you provide our offices with specifics as to the role that these previously unreleased quality metrics play in the VA’s realignment decisions. As you continue to overhaul the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) through the MyVA plan, we believe that it is essential to use VA’s top performing facilities as models for others to follow as opposed to targeting them for closure. Now more than ever, the VA needs to leverage its top medical centers for best practices and lessons learned to replicate their performance throughout VHA. This is critical as the VA continues to rebuild trust with veterans following the high profile scandals of recent years. As one of only 14 rated five-star facilities, we feel that significantly reducing services at Hot Springs would be a grave mistake and a disservice to the veterans it serves.

As you consider the final outcome for the Hot Springs campus and the BHHCS, we hope that you keep these considerations in mind. We look forward to working with you to serve our nation’s veterans and we thank you for your timely consideration of this urgent and important matter.

Sincerely,