Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in an interview broadcast Friday that the focus of an investigation into alleged delayed treatments and deaths in the Veterans Administration's health care system should be to "fix the problem" rather than to fire Virginia Secretary Eric Shinseki, The Associated Press reported.
The growing controversy surrounding the Department of Veterans Affairs centers on allegations of treatment delays and preventable deaths at VA hospitals, according to the AP.
Hagel said the government has "no higher responsibility" than to provide top-shelf medical care to servicemen and women who have worn the country's uniform, the AP reported.
Hagel said more facts need to be learned and that it would be premature to oust Shinseki, a retired Army general, according to the AP. "There does have to be accountability, right up and down the line," said Hagel.
Twenty-six facilities are being investigated nationwide, including a Phoenix hospital facing allegations that 40 people died while waiting for treatment and staff kept a secret list of patients in order to hide delays in care, the AP reported.
"We know things went wrong," Hagel said, according to the AP. "Somebody's got to be accountable here, like in any institution."
President Barack Obama said during a White House news conference earlier this week that allegations of misconduct at VA hospitals will not be tolerated, the AP reported. Obama also said there is a possibility that Shinseki could be held accountable.
"I will not stand for it - not as commander in chief but also not as an American," Obama said following an Oval Office meeting with Shinseki, according to the AP.
