Lincy Pandithurai, a Nurse Practitioner with the Dallas, Texas, VA Medical System, told a US veteran who came to her seeking treatment that “the reason you are so upset is because you feel the darkness surrounding you, and you feel guilty about being a homosexual and living in sin.”
The VA Health System is letting Ms. Pandithurai retire and keep her pension, even though she's aticulated her homophobic views and tried to force her religious beliefs onto a patient. This is NOT how health care providers are supposed to act, and letting Ms. Pandithurai keep her pension is telling others that it's okay to say hateful, bigoted things to GLBT veterans because you'll still be allowed to keep your pension. EVERY veteran, regardless of sexual orientation, deserves to be treated with respect and dignity in their health-related issues, NOT subjected to harassment and belittlement by religious zealots posing as healthcare practitioners.