Recently in Veterans Category

Source: BY SCOTT ANDRON, Miami Herald (FL), Wed, Aug. 13, 2008

The state is taking over direct management of nurse's aides and food workers at three veterans' nursing homes, including one in Pembroke Pines. The 208 employees now work for a contractor, North Carolina-based PhyAmerica Government Services. But as of Aug. 29, PhyAmerica is laying them off, according to a notice filed Tuesday with the state labor department.

...... The PhyAmerica employees can apply for the new state jobs, said Courtney Heidelberg, a spokeswoman for the Florida Department of Veterans Affairs.

....... ''It's more cost effective, it's better quality of care for our residents, and our employees get better benefits,'' she said.

Source: Tomah Journal, January 3, 2006

Ah, the wonders of privatization.

On Dec. 10, locked doors greeted veterans seeking treatment at Veterans Administration clinics in Rice Lake and Hayward. Corporate Wellness & Fitness, the Kentucky company contracted to operate the clinics, cut and ran after just six months in Hayward and three months in Rice Lake. The company said it was losing $26,000 a month and that the VA reneged on promises to guarantee the venture's profitability. The Rice Lake clinic reopened Dec. 26 with VA personnel, but the Hayward clinic remains closed.

The fiasco raises numerous issues. Business Week magazine reported Corporate Wellness & Fitness "agreed to accept a fixed sum per month instead of having the VA reimburse it dollar for dollar ... It quickly felt pressure from the government to spend more on supplies and equipment than it had budgeted and could pay."