Tomah VA physician accused of misdiagnosing veterans seeking benefits has been fired
A Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center physician accused of misdiagnosing veterans suffering from traumatic brain injury and other neurological disorders has been fired, following a review by the VA of the disability exams she conducted.
Dr. Mary Jo Lanska, a Tomah VA physician who previously performed disability exams on veterans seeking benefits for traumatic brain injury and other service-related injuries, was terminated on May 16, according to an email from Paul Rickert, a spokesman with the VA Great Lakes Health Care System.
"Our top priority is providing every veteran who comes to VA with the world-class care and benefits that they deserve. Anything less is unacceptable," Rickert said in the email.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has launched a review of every disability exam conducted by Lanska, including up to 1,000 veterans' claims, Rickert wrote.
The decision to fire Lanska comes years after county veterans service officers first raised concerns and more than a year after a Minneapolis-based TV station started asking questions.
An investigative reporter with KARE 11 spoke last year with multiple veterans suffering from neurological conditions who said Lanska denied they even had those conditions and that as a result, they were denied disability benefits and, in some cases, medical care. KARE 11 reported that Lanska stopped performing disability exams in 2020.
More: Why the Tomah Veterans Affairs Medical Center is again at center of calls for an investigation
The VA now is promising to review and reconsider all cases in which veterans who received a disability exam from Lanska were denied access to benefits, without making veterans refile a claim, according to Rickert's email. On Monday, Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough was in Tomah, alongside U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, to underscore that the issue is a priority.
Rickert could not say how many veterans seen by Lanska may have been misdiagnosed.
But about 600 veterans who received an exam from Lanska will be able to undergo new disability exams, according to a press release from U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wisconsin, who for months has been calling on the VA to ensure misdiagnosed veterans get a new exam and proper benefits
Baldwin's office has been working with veterans on the issue since 2021, according to the release. Baldwin met with McDonough in March and called on him to investigate any pattern of misdiagnoses at the Tomah VA.
"Our veterans served us and we have an obligation to serve them when they come back home. Unfortunately, many of our Wisconsin heroes did not get the care at the VA that they deserved," Baldwin said in a press release. “I am glad to see that after years of working alongside some of our veterans, hundreds of Wisconsinites who have been wronged by the VA will be getting the care and benefits that they earned.”
In a recent letter by several Republican lawmakers, Van Orden, who district includes the Tomah VA, called on the watchdog agency for the federal VA to conduct a broader review of the accuracy of disability exams by VA providers.
"I don't care what political party you're affiliated with. These veterans and the people in need — that needs to be the focus," Van Orden said.
Veterans who received a disability exam from Lanska are encouraged to call the VA hotline 608-372-3971 ext. 64775 to be considered for a new exam. The VA is also working on a process to proactively reach out to veterans seen by Lanska, Rickert said.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Tomah VA physician accused of misdiagnosing veterans has been fired
