VA moves patients, cites concerns at Pa. hospital

PITTSBURGH (AP) — U.S. Veterans Affairs officials have transferred eight patients out of a Pittsburgh VA hospital because of unspecified concerns about the care they were receiving.

The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports that the VA issued a statement saying, “Last week, VA Pittsburgh leadership were concerned that the services provided on one inpatient unit did not satisfy our commitment to provide effective, safe, and first-rate care to veterans.”

The VA isn’t saying what the problems were. A spokesman says the facility in question is its 146-bed University Drive Division, though the agency isn’t identifying the specific unit.

The patients are now at a hospital run by the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, though officials won’t say which one. UPMC officials say they can’t comment without patient names, which the VA isn’t releasing.