VA Secretary Jim Nicholson Resigns
From Talking Points Memo, via the AP:
Veterans Affairs chief Jim Nicholson, who was forced to defend his
agency's performance after revelations of shoddy health care at Walter
Reed Army Medical Center, announced Tuesday he is resigning to return
to the private sector.
I mention this not only because Nicholson presided over the horrific and unacceptable treatment of wounded soldiers at Walter Reed, but it was also on his watch that the VA suffered one of the worst data breaches yet, thanks to an employee who took a laptop home containing personal data that he wasn't authorized to have, and promptly got robbed.
Of course, the Feds claimed that the recovered laptop had not been used for fraud, but in light of news that subsequent breaches followed the same pattern, it's easy to be cynical. I'm sure Nicholson will be happy to return to the private sector where it's okay to cover up data breaches, but in the main, he's let his employees, the people under his care, and the country down, and it's long past due that he beat feet.
I also note that the timing is interesting, given that Nicholson just announced a major initiative to increase treatment and services for soldiers affected by mental trauma and PTSD. Again, given the bad track record, it's tough to be anything but cynical, so we can hope that the new direction fares better with him not guiding it.