Ed Stadjuhar
As a veteran and resident of PebbleCreek, I would like to share with you some positive changes being made by the Trump administration to the Veterans Administration (VA) to improve care that veterans receive going forward. Just in the month of August there have been numerous news releases on what the Veterans Administration is doing. Here are a few:
Aug. 29, 2025: More than three-fourths of Department of Veterans Affairs hospitals that received an Overall Hospital Quality Star Rating earned four-or-five-star ratings as part of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services 2025 hospital quality ratings.
Aug. 27, 2025: More than $818 million in grants were awarded to 235 organizations across the country to help Veterans who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
Aug. 13, 2025: VA processes more disability benefits compensation and pension ratings claims in a single year than ever before.
July 23, 2025: VA realigns an additional $800 million this fiscal year for its Non-Recurring Maintenance program to make infrastructure improvements to health care facilities.
Aug. 26, 2025: VA guarantees its 29 millionth home loan since the program was created in 1944 a 19% increase in VA home loan processing this year compared to the same time in 2024.
VA Secretary Doug Collins said, “One hundred days into the second Trump administration, and VA is no longer content with poor results. Under President Trump’s leadership, we have already stripped away many of the costly distractions that were coming between VA beneficiaries and the benefits they have earned. And we’re looking to make even more historic reforms to better serve our veterans.” In recent months, VA Secretary Doug Collins repeatedly told lawmakers during committee hearings that personnel cuts would have no impact on the department’s delivery of health care and benefits to veterans. “We’re going to maintain VA’s mission-essential jobs, like doctors, nurses, claims processors, while phasing out nonessential roles, like interior designers and other things,” Collins told the Senate VA Committee in May. “This is savings we can achieve that will be redirected to veteran healthcare and benefits.”
Savings to come through: Automating the claims processes. Freeze hiring and allow the post-PACT surge to recede. Close or merge some non–essential offices. Focus remaining staff on critical claims. Close underused facilities/wards. Consolidate low-demand clinics. Adjust staffing ratios modestly. Shift some care to community/telehealth. Flatten VISNs and facility admin. Centralize HR/finance. Improve maintenance efficiency. Contract out some services. Adjust staff at lower-volume cemeteries. Merge/streamline HQ offices (HR, IT, finance, acquisition, OGC, OAWP, VEO, etc.). Eliminate duplicative programs. Halve central management layers. Streamline Board appeals processing. Minor OIG reduction (mostly via attrition). Merge any overlapping oversight.
I recently found evidence of these improvements in visits to both the main VA Hospital in Phoenix and the Clinic in Surprise. Booking appointments was easy, and wait time was virtually nil. Communication with staff was extremely pleasant. I believe it when Secretary Collins said there would be a new VA.
Sourced from Military Times, and VA Press Room news releases (news.va.gov).