The woke Veterans Administration official who tried to ban the iconic WWII “V-J Day in Times Square” photo from all VA facilities – because it didn’t meet the VA’s “no-tolerance policy towards sexual harassment and assault” – has a terrible history with the VA.
In short, RimaAnn Nelson’s tenure as head of the VA hospital in St. Louis led to some veterans getting HIV because of improperly sterilized equipment.
Nelson’s memo removing the iconic photo was also rescinded by the the VA Director.
Here’s more via Fox News:
A Veterans Department official who sent a since-rescinded memo calling for the removal of an iconic photo of a Navy sailor kissing a woman in Times Square has been at the center of previous controversies in the past.
Assistant Under Secretary for Health Operations RimaAnn Nelson sparked a firestorm, including calls for her to be fired, last week when she sent a memo to VA employees calling for the historic photo of a Navy sailor kissing a woman in Times Square on V-J Day in 1945 to be removed from all VA medical buildings because it does not fit with the department’s “no-tolerance policy towards sexual harassment and assault.
The incident is not the first time Nelson has faced scrutiny during her tenure at the VA.
Nelson was appointed to be head of the Phoenix VA in 2016, which prompted outrage from then Democratic Rep. and now Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, along with former Republican Rep. Matt Salmon, who wrote a letter to then-President Obama calling for a reconsideration of Nelson’s appointment due to her previous tenure at the St. Louis VA hospital.
“When I first heard of the VA’s latest appointment in Phoenix, I immediately felt it must be some sort of a cruel joke,” Salmon wrote at the time. “After working with the Phoenix veteran community for years, I know they deserve better.”
“To think that Ms. Nelson, with her less-than-impressive past, is the best possible candidate to provide crucial leadership for the facility equated to ‘ground zero’ of the VA scandal is unequivocally offensive to us and each of the veterans we represent.”
Nelson served as the director of the St. Louis VA hospital from 2009 to 2013, during a time when veterans were reportedly exposed to HIV and hepatitis. CNN reported that an investigation found that “staff in St. Louis had not been trained to sterilize equipment, and according to a whistleblower, the poor sanitation contributed to infections.”
According to a report from AZ Central, investigators followed up to see if the problem had been addressed at the facility, and they had not. The Daily Caller reported that conditions were so bad that veterans were left sitting in feces for “days.”
Despite the documented problems at the hospital, Nelson reportedly received more than $25,000 in bonuses.
And now she sits on a perch as an official in the VA in DC instead of sitting on her couch eating Doritos as she tries to find another job.