An extravagant design plan is one reason costs have skyrocketed at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs hospital under construction in Aurora, according to a new review by the department's internal watchdog.
In 2009 Congress approved $800 million for construction of the hospital, which would replace an aging facility built in 1951 and serve a growing number of veterans living in the area, according to the inspector general's report.
The estimated budget is now $1.675 billion.
Colorado Matters host Nathan Heffel talked with Mark K. Matthews, Washington correspondent for the Denver Post, who has followed this story for two years.
