<h1>Miller was in dark on Walter Reed</h1><h2>Congressman says his visits didn't reveal conditions</h2>
U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller has been to Walter Reed Medical Center many times over the past several years to visit wounded constituents and other veterans.
But he never witnessed and never was told about the substandard living conditions and poor treatment that recovering service members experienced as outpatients living at the medical center's Washington campus, the congressman said.
"I had never seen anything like what was brought to everyone's attention through the good reporting of The Washington Post," said Miller, R-Chumuckla.
In the three weeks since the newspaper published a series of articles highlighting the neglect and frustration that wounded vets faced as Walter Reed outpatients, the secretary of the Army and two generals have been fired or stepped down.
Some lawmakers did know about the obstacles that wounded vets faced.
Rep. C.W. "Bill" Young, a St. Petersburg Republican and former chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, said he personally told Walter Reed commanders of his concerns about poor patient care.
And Rep. Tom Davis, a Virginia Republican, chaired a hearing of the House Government Reform Committee in February 2005 on treatment problems affecting wounded Guard members and reservists.
The Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, also looked into the matter.
Miller, who serves on the House Armed Services Committee, said lawmakers do not deserve blame for failing to uncover the problems at Walter Reed.
"I don't think it's an issue of congressional oversight," Miller said. "The issue as it's related to Walter Reed clearly comes down to a management issue. I believe it was a failure of Army leadership to manage the facilities appropriately."
Miller said that when members of Congress tour Walter Reed, they typically get special treatment.
"It would not surprise me if there were deficiencies, that the Army would not highlight those to a member of Congress," Miller said.
Officials with veterans' groups were reluctant to criticize members of Congress for not doing more.
"Members of Congress don't run to the press for help," said Joe Davis, a spokesman for Veterans of Foreign Wars, one of the nation's largest and most influential veterans' groups.
"They get straight in the person's face and tell them what's wrong and tell them to fix it."
Peter Gaytan, director of veterans' affairs and rehabilitation for the American Legion, also declined to blame lawmakers, but added, "We hope substantive action will take place now."
Miller said he acted quickly on the few occasions when he was notified of a specific problem encountered by a constituent being treated at Walter Reed. He cited one problem that involved getting pain medication for a wounded soldier.
Miller said he has been working toward finding a solution for broader weaknesses, such as the confusing and sometimes conflicting patient classification systems used by the military and the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Those systems have caused problems for service members making the transition from active-duty health care to the VA.
