The Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center in Augusta serves tens of thousands of veterans in eastern Georgia and western South Carolina.

It was one of the first VA centers in the country accused of delayed care and long waits for appointments. At least three patients from the hospital’s gastrointestinal clinic died because their procedures didn’t happen quick enough.

Now Charlie Norwood says it’s addressed these concerns and cleared up the backlog.

Wesley Brown is a reporter with the Augusta Chronicle. He’s been covering problems at the hospital since 2013. That includes a key report about the facility that still hasn’t been released to the public. He spoke with On Second Thought host Celeste Headlee.

GPB News asked why the federal government has yet to release a report from the VA’s Inspector General. The hospital provided the following statement:

“The Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center welcomes recommendations from the Office of the Inspector General as an opportunity to further evaluate its programs and identify areas for improvement. At this time the OIG report has not been released, but Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center remains deeply committed to providing timely, quality care for Veterans and will take swift, corrective action to address items identified in the Office of the Inspector General’s report.”

If you’re a veteran needing help, or if you know a veteran who may need help, the VA asks you to call their crisis line. That phone number is 1-800-273-TALK. That’s 1-800-273-8255.

Listen to On Second Thought weekdays at 9am on your local GPB radio station, hear past shows on Soundcloud, or follow the show on Facebook and Twitter.

Tags: Charlie Norwood VA Medical Center, On Second Thought