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The controversy swirls the mass shootings of 1,000 Veterans Affairs employees last week, but the far greater threat to veteran health care is completely unaware. Strong Congressional leaders quietly revealed their plans to disrupt care, with the erroneously titled “Veterans Access Act.” If veterans don't act quickly, they lose the VA health care system they know and rely on.
The bill looks harmless enough, with a desire for accountability. But don't be fooled. Hidden in the depths of a time bomb is a provision intended to dismantle the integrated VA healthcare system faster than “privatization.”
Here's the Trojan sneak attack: In response to the struggle against addiction and mental health challenges faced by many veterans, the bill will allow free access to outpatient private care without VA approval or referral. No questions. There are no guardrails at all. VA simply pays invoices from limited Coffers. That's Phase 1.
Then, three years later, the arrangement aims to include all healthcare and fundamentally changes the main role of the VA to writing checks from healthcare providers to insurance companies.
Bleeding from the VA to the private sector, follow the money. A possible outcome is that the VA will shut down inpatient services and instead will be a variety of outpatient clinics. If that sounds familiar, it's a plan laid out in the Project 2025 Playbook. Veterans are aware that the VA facilities they rely on are not affected. Don't buy it for a moment.
Do you think this prediction is exaggeration? Think about it again. Independent healthcare professionals say that if Runaway Community Care expenditures (a term for private health care funded by VA) were not taking place last year (an increase of 15-20% per year), the survival of the VA system would be He warned him that he was in danger. The slow way. This bill hits gasoline pedals.
When VAs turn into insurance agents and cut direct care, veterans will be forced to find a long-standing shortage of primary, mental health, hospitalized patients and emergency care providers. Half of US counties and 80% of rural counties also do not have a single psychiatrist. Nearly 200 rural hospitals have been closed, with more than 700 more (a third of all rural hospitals in the country) collapse. Who will treat our veterans accurately in this healthcare desert?
Furthermore, a complete absence in Access Act is the recognition that VAs need to expand their workforce rather than shrink. The staffing shortage that was concerning before the new administration took office for an influx of approximately 400,000 newly registered veterans suitable for the laws of newly registered agreements is becoming increasingly urgent. Without adding a significant number of healthcare workers, VAs will need to cut down on the services veterans rely on.
Want to know more that can follow the explosion of community care costs? As Congress is not in the mood to significantly increase the VA's budget, there is no choice but to reduce who is eligible for care. This is exactly the blueprint described by the Project 2025 Heritage Foundation. Eliminate healthcare benefits across veteran cohorts.
Many veterans deeply appreciate the convenience of being referred to community care near their home. But here's the kicker. They have not been said about the impact of this plan's crushing of VA essentially converting it into an insurance company. If they know, they will never put up with it.
Recent statements by veterans of Foreign Wars, Disabled Veterans and the American Legion have given overwhelming support to ensure that the VA remains the leading healthcare provider and care coordinator for veterans. It has been shown. Previous VFW reports, which include 10,000 members, found that 92% explicitly prefer that the VA is “unfixed.”
It is betrayal to place ideology before veteran welfare. Veterans have earned the rights to a finely coordinated, integrated network of professional providers who have treated millions of physical and psychological veteran-specific injuries through service and sacrifice. This is a groundbreaking study of PTSD, traumatic brain injury, and burn exposure, and countless former services that allow you to see healthcare teams in one location under one roof, in one location It is a system that supports members.
Veterans, talk now before it's too late. Contact members of Congress and let them know what you're thinking about bills that will hinder the VA Healthcare system.
-Russell B. Lemle is a senior policy analyst at the Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute. His recent article on Military.com states, “Congress should support partnerships between the VA and the firearms industry to prevent suicide among veterans.”
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