Video: At Hearing, Blumenthal Hears Firsthand the Dangers of Cuts to VA Health Care for Veterans

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] - At a Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee oversight hearing today, Ranking Member Richard Blumenthal stressed the harmful impacts the Trump Administration's cuts and firings at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) are having on veterans' care-especially for veterans with spinal cord injuries and disorders (SCI/D). These veterans rely heavily on in-house VA health care and the specialized VA employees who provide that care-both of which are especially vulnerable to the Trump Administration's VA cuts and firings.

"As VA continues to bleed employees due to this Secretary's harmful policies, the services provided to people who are directly involved in SCI/D are particularly at-risk," said Blumenthal during his opening remarks. "…Veterans who receive these services from VA can't easily transfer their care to community providers - where facilities are often inaccessible and providers rarely receive specialized SCI/D training. And this training isn't a luxury, it's essential. It's dealing with severe, life-threatening complications that can arise from seeing a provider who is not sufficiently trained. And I am very disturbed at how Secretary Collins has failed to provide any credible assurances that he'll fight to preserve access to SCI/D care at VA - which, even before these cuts, needed bolstering and expanding."

Blumenthal and the Committee members heard firsthand from veterans and caregivers about the potential impact of the Trump Administration's cuts on the quality and timeliness of health care and services they rely on at VA.

"Congress must ensure the Veterans Health Administration is fully funded. In addition to budget cuts, Congressionally allocated funds for special diagnoses, like ALS, cannot be spent due to VA-imposed hiring freezes and caps. Can that be corrected? These funding shortfalls have had a direct and devastating impact on my health and safety," said Shelly Hoover, EdD, a U.S. Navy veteran with service-connected ALS.

Hoover detailed the specific real-life impacts these cuts are having on her health: "I recently experienced severe complications after a VA pharmacy, due to budget cuts, was unable to provide the liquid form of a prescribed chemotherapy drug. I suffered severe burns across my chest and pelvic region, an extreme and avoidable outcome. Delays are now a constant risk…Life-sustaining breathing and nutrition supplies that were once readily available now face delays of weeks or even months. For a person with my condition, this is not just an inconvenience-it's a grave threat. I will not die from ALS; I will likely die from infection, a risk dramatically increased by these supply delays."

The witnesses also stressed their preference to receive SCI/D care at VA, rather than in the community: "In our opinion, the care received inside the walls of our local VA Medical Center was far superior to the community care we received. I soon learned that we aren't alone in that opinion. In 2024, a survey was conducted by the Department of Veterans Affairs Veteran Experience Office that revealed the highest trust levels in years. Our veterans know that by receiving care at the VA, they will be treated with the dignity and respect they deserve as U.S. veterans," said Mandi Bailey, a member of the Veteran ALS Action Committee whose stepfather, a veteran, was diagnosed with ALS in 2017. When asked about the impact of the Trump VA's cuts and firings on veterans with SCI/D, Mandi underscored the negative impact of these actions: "It's hard to serve our veterans with our hands tied behind our backs."

During the hearing's second panel, Blumenthal pressed VA officials to share additional information about SCI/D care at VA and its specialized workforce. Blumenthal stated he was "stunned" when those officials were unwilling or unable to answer multiple basic questions about SCI/D care provided to veterans-including the extent to which staffing shortages have been impacted by Secretary Collins' VA directives, such as the hiring freeze and chaotic contract cancellations.

The full text of Blumenthal's opening statement is copied below and a video link is available here.

U.S. Senator Blumenthal: I join Senator Moran in thanking you for being here. I know that as caregivers and veterans of very deep and immediate experience with spinal cord injuries and disorders, the challenge of being here is probably even more difficult than for many of our other witnesses. And so, your being here has special meaning. I'm glad we're focusing on a part of the veteran population that relies, probably more than any other group, on VA. And that's a testament to the quality of the care that VA provides. The employees who provide this kind of care are unmatched in the private sector, making these services extremely valuable but also vulnerable to the type of cuts and cancellations that we're seeing throughout the VA. As VA continues to bleed employees due to this Secretary's harmful policies, the services provided to people who are directly involved in SCI/D are particularly at risk. So, I think today's hearing is very, very timely and important. Veterans who receive these services from VA can't easily transfer their care to community providers - where facilities are often inaccessible and providers rarely receive specialized SCI/D training. And this training isn't a luxury, it's essential. It's dealing with severe, life-threatening complications that can arise from seeing a provider who is not sufficiently trained. And I am very disturbed at how Secretary Collins has failed to provide any credible assurances that he'll fight to preserve access to SCI/D care at VA - which, even before these cuts, needed bolstering and expanding. The Administration has left many veterans with SCI/D and their loved ones in limbo by failing to publish a rule to extend eligibility for participants in the Caregivers Program. And I think that's an immediate need that needs to be addressed. He's been slow-rolling implementation of the Elizabeth Dole Act, which would improve access to long-term care services for veterans with SCI/D. He's delaying implementation of critical funding increases for organizations that serve veterans experiencing homelessness. Congress intended these funds to help providers to keep their doors open and continue supporting veterans. On both of these provisions, we've been given a lot of assurances that immediate implementation was not only possible, but also a priority for VA. We are here, months later, with no concrete implementation timeline for either authority. I wish we could be using today's hearing to discuss expanding SCI/D care at the Department of Veterans Affairs rather than just fighting to keep the status quo and asking VA to implement laws Congress has already passed. We approved those laws. We worked hard on them. And VA is failing to implement them because of the leadership. Not because the dedicated, hardworking VA workforce has any reluctance to do so. They want to serve. So, I thank the Chaiman for having this hearing and I look forward to hearing from you.

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