By Kyle Davidson, Michigan Advance
Amid plans to cut 80,000 jobs from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins promised a room full of veterans, military spouses, and veterans services providers in Howell, Mich. that his focus remains on veterans.
“We got a lot of change coming up, and I’m being forthright and honest with you about that, but at the end of the day, it’s putting the veteran first and making sure you get the care that you’ve earned and the care and the benefits that you have,” Collins said, during a visit to American Legion Post 141 alongside U.S. Rep. Tom Barrett (R-Charlotte) on Monday.
“As they always say, motion causes friction. There’s going to be a lot of friction. There’s a lot of invested parties in keeping the VA, just like it is, the only investment I have is in you to make it better,” Collins said.
During his visit, Collins told reporters that despite added funding and personnel, the department hadn’t improved in providing services to veterans.
As it looks to reduce its workforce, Collins said they were looking at areas that did not deal directly with veterans’ benefits or healthcare. The Department is currently assessing its agencies to determine whether its agents are performing well, where they need help and what they do not need, he said.
The Department has added more than 80,000 employees since the 2019 fiscal year, including tens of thousands of employees hired to address claims under the 2022 PACT ACT claims, which expanded benefits to veterans exposed to burn pits. However, Collins told the crowd nobody could tell him how many employees were hired in support of the law.
“We were hiring interior designers. We’re hiring laborers. We were hiring publicists,” Collins said.
“We have a lot of employees in the VA that are not seeing patients. They’re not doing disability claims. They’re not doing that. They’re moving paperwork. And so we’re gonna see if someone would like to be reintroduced to a clinic and actually help patients on their daily basis,” Collins said.
However, that reduction of 80,000 positions is a goal, Collins said. While they may not get there, Collins said he made “very much of a commitment.”
While the Department aims to cut tens of thousands of employees by August, Democrats, veterans and unions have raised concerns about how they will impact veterans, protesting nearby the Lieutenant Colonel Charles S. Kettles Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Ann Arbor.
According to a report from the Detroit Free Press, Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist U.S. Reps. Debbie Dingell (D-Ann Arbor) and Rashida Tlaib (D-Detroit) and state Rep. Joe Tate (D-Detroit) on Saturday pushed back on the Trump Administration’s cuts and the president’s move to invalidate bargaining agreements with the American Federation of Government Employees, the union representing VA employees.
“This commitment to cut 80,000 people out of the Veterans Administration means veterans’ health care can be cut, veterans’ access to services and benefits are going to be cut,” Gilchrist told the Free Press. “The fundamental promise of being a servicewoman or a serviceman, that’s being broken.”
Earlier this month, Barrett sent a letter to Collins calling on the VA to “review and reconsider their workforce reduction process to ensure only those who have truly underperformed are relieved of duty.”
When asked if his concerns had been addressed, Barrett deflected, telling reporters he was excited the secretary had come to visit his district and was committed to his mission of improving the VA.
“I think you heard from his remarks today the commitment that he has, and I’m excited to be working with him in that effort to make sure that we continue, as he said. The purpose of this is to deliver the benefits that our veterans have earned, and to do that respectfully. And that’s the mission that I’m committed to as well. And look forward to working with him in that effort,” Barrett said.
Collins similarly deflected when asked how many employees had been fired and rehired as after two federal judges ordered the White House to reinstate more than 24,000 probationary employees let go across 18 government agencies.
“We’re following the courts’ orders,” he said.
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