The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "US Department of Veterans Affairs" ...
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Returning Home to Battle
While the Obama administration declared care for returning U.S. military personnel to be a top priority, reporter Aaron Glantz found something entirely different when he drilled down in the San Francisco Bay Area – home to more than a quarter-million veterans. In a series of stories for The Bay Citizen, which is part of the Center for Investigative Reporting, Glantz exposed an alarming failure inside the Department of Veterans Affairs, where mistakes and massive delays in processing disability claims for ailing veterans were the norm, sometimes leading to tragic consequences. Glantz was the first to detail this trend, finding that tens of thousands of Northern California veterans had been waiting an average of 313 days for a decision from the Oakland office on compensation claims for conditions as serious as traumatic brain injury. The Oakland regional office ranks fifth in the nation for number of veterans served – nearly 1 million veterans from the Oregon border to Bakersfield. The story was so shocking it prompted 16 members of Congress to demand immediate help for veterans filing through Oakland. More action quickly followed. Glantz had found through his reporting that the problem was not limited to the Bay Area. Next he set out to show it. The decision to dig deeper – to go beyond the local story – helped bring greater context to such a critically important issue. Through rich storytelling and clear writing, Glantz ably captured the plight of our veterans in his series, Returning Home to Battle.
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Agent Orange: A Lethal Legacy
This investigation reveals the high costs and consequences of herbicides, such as Agent Orange, used by the US military during the Vietnam War. Not only are the veterans suffering from the consequences of herbicides, but also the children of these veterans. These children suffer from multiple cancers, birth defects, and other conditions. The conditions have increased the financial compensation for the US veterans and their families. Furthermore, the US government has neglected to discover the impact of these herbicides on health and environmental conditions.
Tags: US military; Vietnam War; US government; government; health; birth defects; defoliants; financial compensation; disability; veterans; families; US Department of Veterans Affairs
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How The VA Abandons Our Vets: Denying care, delaying benefits, deceiving the public
The investigation uncovered unethical and criminal behavior by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' top brass. It tells the story of Sgt. Juan Jimenez, who was struck by a roadside bomb in Iraq. In seeking disability benefits from the VA, Jimenez was told he had to prove his injuries came from war. Desperate after a three and a half year battle, he joined with other Iraq veterans who had been denied benefits and sued the VA.
Tags: veterans; Iraq; benefits; disability; war; medical care; lawsuit
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Federal Tax Cheats
This investigation found tens of thousands of employees of the federal government did not pay their taxes. This accounts for $2 billion in unpaid taxes. Employees worked for the house of representatives, the senate, the department of veterans affairs, the department of homeland security and even in the white house. 32 thousand employees of the U.S. Postal Service alone owed more than $200 million.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; FOIA; taxes; federal employee; house of representatives; senate; department of veterans affairs; department of homeland security; white house; tax evasion; postal service
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Duty, Honor, Betrayal: How the U.S. turned its back on poisoned WWII vets
Zeman did months and months of research to tell the stories of U.S. army veterans who were exposed to poison gases as part of government experiments before and during World War II. In the early nineties, these stories came to light and the VA promised to help the affected veterans file claims and fight for compensation, but the agency never came through. This report found that the VA never fulfilled its pledge, and that many sick and dying veterans, affected by chemical experiments decades before, were left to handle their illnesses completely on their own.
Tags: military; mustard gas; Nuremburg; Anthony Principi; Pentagon; lewisite; gas chambers; Edgewood Arsenal; Department of Defense; Veterans Affairs
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Never Let Go
Phil Burton, a 22-year veteran investigator with D.C.'s Metropolitan Police Department, was forced from his job in October 1997. But for more than three years since then, he has continued to pursue convictions for his last major corruption case: For more than a decade, city plumbers from the Water and Sewer Authority were "taking bribes in exchange for performing private side jobs during their regular work hours." Over that time, "crews had been bilking the city out of an estimated $1 million a year in lost revenue, stolen equipment, torn-up streets, and overtime abuses." But after an extensive investigation, Burton had no luck convincing the MPD or the U.S. Attorney's Office to prosecute the alleged racketeers. "By the end of 1999, only 11 out of some 30 city workers he believed were guilty had been prosecuted. Although it was the biggest investigation in the IAD's recent history, Burton insists that it's only partially complete." Today, Burton keeps 30 boxes worth of paperwork at his home. He keeps them around in the hopes that somebody will prosecute the remaining suspects before the statute of limitations expires, in one year.
Tags: Phil Burton; Metropolitan Police Department; internal affairs; WASA; U. S. Attorney's Office; Water and Sewer Authority