Recommendations of the Editorial team
US President Donald Trump has withdrawn his original plans to dismiss 83,000 employees of the US Veteran Ministry (VA). Nevertheless, the ministry will reduce around 30,000 employees, including the dismissals that have already taken place.
Administrative trick instead of change of direction
After the government had argued for months that the planned cuts were essential to maintain the order of the VA, she is now making a turnaround. It remains unclear whether the withdrawal of pressure from veteran associations, the need for financing for billions of taxes or the congress is due. It is probably a combination of everything – or a clever deception to win time.
The revised approach is sold as an efficiency measure, but is actually only a linguistic withdrawal – not in terms of content. Instead of dismissals, there are now hiring stops, premature retirement, natural fluctuation and a bureaucratic description called “pushed termination”, in which employees officially stay on the salary list while paying for it. The new plan is not a complete back – but a detour. And at a time when the number of patients grows in the VA and at the same time becomes scarce.
Members of the VA staff raise the alarm. Nurses and doctors are now taking on administrative tasks because the responsible forces for billing or building management are simply missing.
17,000 jobs away – 12,000 episodes
The VA has already lost 17,000 employees since January 1. Another 12,000 will follow by the end of September. The government claims that this will not have a negative impact on the care of veterans. Any veteran who is waiting for disabilities for disability services for months or is on a doctor’s appointment in long queues.
Trump announced on Monday that the setting stop in the VA and in the entire executive area would be extended for at least three more months. This has a double effect: On the one hand, it makes it difficult to find a new federal office quickly – on the other hand, it extends unemployment beyond what their means can catch.
Veterans have to wait even longer for medical care. It is unlikely that the VA can keep up with new settings, while over 30,000 employees leave the house. A look at Trump’s “Big Beautiful Bill” shows: While the VA shrinks and the US immigration and customs authority (ICE) is greater than the FBI, the government’s priorities are shown: less care for veterans, more money for tax relief for billionaires and more ICE agents.
Project 2025: Cuts and privatization
Trump states on the plans of the “Department of Government Efficiency” (Doge), which provides to dismiss thousands of employees in other authorities. A third of it veterans. This is followed by the overarching project 2025 plan, which was developed by conservative think tanks. And Trump’s second term flanked.
At the same time, the entry of private health companies threatens in the background of the systemic VA crisis. A long-cherished wish to finally get a bigger piece of the VA cake.
In Trump’s first term, central legislation for the privatization of the VA was adopted. The Veterans’ Access Act is now available in the second term of the Republicans. Who is supposed to push even more VA patients into private care.
These measures, in combination with job cuts and already decided cuts in Medicaid and Snap services for veterans, as well as the closure of rural hospitals, the veterans and their families provide a comprehensive departure from the public health system. In its place there is a hybrid system that takes veterans with bureaucracy, fees and expensive trips. The result: massive loss of quality in patient care. And massive profits in a system that was never designed for profit.
Doge has long since turned out to be a deception. Ask the former Doge employee in the VA, who now admits: “To be honest, I was pretty surprised at how efficient the government was actually.”
But Trump, Va Minister Collins and the rest of his government, cannot give up the course taken since Trump’s taking office in January. The reason is obvious. It was never about saving money. Never went for veterans, active soldiers or their families. It was all about one. To make rich rich. At the expense of the veterans and taxpayers.