The Department of Veterans Affairs has been under tremendous scrutiny after it was revealed that thousands of veterans were unable to get the healthcare they need—due to long wait times, substandard service, and outright fraud from the federal government.
But, while the VA might claim their problems stem from a lack of funding, it’s clear they had more money in the budget—they just didn’t bother to spend it on sick veterans.
According to a new report, between 2004 and 2014, the VA instead directed more than $20 million in taxpayer funds to “luxury art” projects—even as wait times increased for America’s veterans.
Some of the more ludicrous purchases included:
–$670,000 for a pair of sculptures in California—to decorate a facility serving blind veterans,
–$285,000 on decorative rocks,
–$600,000 in artwork for a VA hospital in Puerto Rico,
–and $21,500 for an artificial Christmas tree in Ohio.
Given the gigantic breadth of fraud and mismanagement at the Department of Veterans Affairs, $20 million would not have been enough to fix the problems. But it’s clear that, as some veterans died waiting for doctors’ appointments, the VA channelled much-needed funds away from healthcare—and instead, spent lavishly on vanity art projects.
AAN Staff
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