HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

Massachusetts Veteran Died in a VA Medical Center—His Body Was Not Discovered Until 5 Weeks Later

Tim White’s body lay undiscovered at the bottom of a stairwell 20 yards from his room.

A 62-year-old Bedford, Massachusetts Army veteran died inside a VA medical center but nobody discovered his body at the bottom of a stairwell 20 yards from his room for five weeks. Tim White’s disappearance was reported to Bedford police five days after he vanished. Massachusetts members of Congress are calling for an investigation into the circumstances of White’s death by the VA inspector general. The Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan has already launched an investigation. White is not the first veteran to have been neglected in at the Bedford center: in 2016 a patient who had a heart condition died while the employee designated to monitor him was playing video games.