(Photo: Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs)
Assembly Democrats are calling for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to investigate conditions at the Wisconsin Veterans Home in King.
The request was prompted by an investigative report in Madison’s Cap Times, which revealed concerns about staffing shortages and conditions at the state-run home. State Representative Katrina Shankland (D-Stevens Point), one the 35 Democrats who signed the letter, says “the gravity of these reports is so clear that it merits a call for an outside investigation.”
The governor has indicated the state Department of Health Services will review the allegations, but Shankland contends it needs to be done by someone not connected to the administration. “It’s important to find an outside entity, not related to anyone within the administration, to take a look at these serious issues.”
In a statement, state Department of Veterans Affairs spokesman Dan Buttery noted that the King facility has undergone eight inspections since January of 2015, and noted that three of the four buildings on the property have a five star rating, while the fourth received a four star rating. He also noted that “the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs found our facilities at King to be in full compliance with all VA standards during its 2016 survey which was just completed in June and its 2015 survey.”