A veteran died after a 30 minute wait for an ambulance outside of a VA facility in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
The man collapsed on Monday inside the hospital’s cafeteria, which is located 500 yards away from an emergency room hospital in another building, according to the Associated Press.
VA spokeswoman Sonja Brown told the AP that CPR was performed on the veteran.
“Our policy is under expedited review,” said Brown on Thursday, adding that personnel followed policy by calling 911 after the man collapsed.
Emergency medical services departments are generally held to an ambulance response time of eight minutes for 90 percent of the calls it receives. It is unclear whether the VA holds the ambulatory services it uses to the same standard.
The Department of Veterans Affairs has been rocked by scandal after system-wide delays in veteran care were discovered. Dozens of hospitals have been found cooking the books by placing veterans on secret waiting lists and delaying the amount of time that veterans are able to receive primary care. Approximately 40 veterans’ deaths at the Phoenix VA were blamed on the practice.
By placing the veterans on secret waiting lists, hospitals are able to appear to be meeting standards mandated by VA policy. Often, the bonuses for individual hospitals administrators are tied to the amount of time veterans remain on the lists.