Van Orden Statement on Equipment Quality Control Issues at the Tomah VA Medical Center

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Congressman Derrick Van Orden (WI-03) released the following statement after defects with Prothrombin/International Normalized Ratio (PT/INR) lab equipment were discovered at the Tomah VA Medical Center in Tomah, Wisconsin:

“The findings related to defective medical equipment at the Tomah VA Medical Center are incredibly concerning. When veterans visit a VA facility, they should receive the highest quality of care possible – no exceptions. Inaccurate test results can be life threatening and therefore must be addressed immediately. Once this issue was brought to my attention, I began discussions with the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs and will be working with VA leadership to identify all patients potentially impacted by the testing defects. I will continue to monitor this and provide updates as my office receives them.”

Background:

On December 13, 2023, laboratory staff at the Tomah VA Medical Center identified an issue with PT/INR values on their lab equipment, which failed to meet acceptable quality control parameters.

The PT/INR is a measure of a patient’s blood clotting ability, particularly significant for those undergoing treatment with blood thinners such as coumadin. Concern arose when it appeared that the reported PT/INR laboratory levels were inaccurately high, meaning blood samples may have appeared thinner than would normally be anticipated. 

VA has not currently identified harm to any patients. This is an ongoing investigation.