Under pressure, top VA official steps down

A Veterans Affairs administrator who came under fire for the agency's mishandling of benefits to millions of vets and has since become entangled in a probe of a key manager in Philadelphia resigned on Friday.

In a letter sent to agency employees, Allison Hickey, the undersecretary for benefits, said she was leaving a job that allowed her to make "a big difference to many millions." She made no mention of the problems coinciding with her tenure.

"I came here as a calling to transform [the Veterans Benefits Administration] and to help so many Veterans, Service Members, their families and Survivors. My heart and passion will always be focused on that aim," Hickey wrote in the letter, obtained by The Inquirer. "After 4.5 years of this blessed honor, it is time to serve others and you in a different way."

It was unclear Friday when the resignation takes effect and if Hickey had another job. An agency spokesman declined to elaborate and said Hickey was unavailable for comment.

Since June 2011, she had overseen more than 20,000 employees and the distribution of benefits to more than 12 million veterans. She also led a multibillion-dollar project to improve how quickly vets get their benefits.

Her work was widely praised by colleagues, including VA Secretary Robert McDonald, who on Friday said he accepted Hickey's resignation with "regret," calling her an "exceptional colleague and an even better friend."

But Hickey's tenure was also defined by intense scrutiny. As undersecretary, she found herself entrenched in the nationwide outrage over long wait times for veterans to get benefits or treatment.

She also had ties to problems that have beset the Philadelphia benefits office, deemed in April the VA's "most problematic" site, according to the VA's Deputy Inspector General Linda Halliday. Emails made public this fall suggested Hickey had a role in - or at least supported - the appointment of Diana Rubens as director of the Philadelphia office last year.

Rubens' appointment has since drawn scrutiny from the agency's inspector general and members of Congress, who are examining if she broke the law by orchestrating her own reassignment to a job with fewer duties but the same pay.

As Rubens allegedly made it clear she pined for the Philadelphia post, Hickey wrote to her, "I think the world of you and will support you any way you need," according to the inspector general's report.

A congressional hearing on those allegations is scheduled for Wednesday.

Rep. Jeff Miller (R., Fla.), chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, said that Danny Pummill, principal deputy undersecretary for benefits, has been asked to testify in Hickey's place. Any senior VA officials who refuse to testify could be subpoenaed, he said.

"I will not allow bureaucratic foot-dragging to interfere with Congress' role in this process," Miller said in a statement. He also called on the Department of Justice to conduct its own investigation and determine whether criminal charges are warranted.

Hickey's resignation comes after the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs called on the agency to hold accountable high-ranking administrators who they said participated in "shockingly unethical practices" by "unnecessarily relocating executives."

That call echoed one last month from the national commander of the American Legion, who called on Hickey to resign.

Some members of Congress on Friday welcomed Hickey's resignation - but were quick to criticize it as not being enough. "The immediate challenge at the VA is not just replacing one person, but repairing a broken culture," said Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D., Conn.), a ranking member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. "The next VBA undersecretary must demonstrate a commitment to changing the culture of the VA."

But even amid their criticism, some acknowledged one of Hickey's accomplishments: reducing the backlog of disability claims for veterans, which reached 600,000 in 2013.

Hickey herself acknowledged these improvements. Her letter said the backlog now hovers at 70,000 - a 90 percent reduction.

She closed her resignation letter by recounting the tale of a woman who tossed starfish back into the water to save them and "make a difference."

"I throw to each of you - the virtual 'starfish' for making such an amazing difference to so many . . . and to this one," Hickey wrote. "I look forward to seeing how you take it to the next level."

cmccabe@philly.com 610-313-8113 @mccabe_caitlin