The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has lost thousands of healthcare professionals deemed 'core' to the system's ability to function, according to agency records. The number of medical staff has fallen every month since President Donald Trump took office, with a net loss of 2,000 registered nurses, 1,300 medical assistants, 1,100 nursing assistants and licensed practical nurses, 800 doctors, 500 social workers, and 150 psychologists since the start of the fiscal year.
The reductions contradict claims by VA Secretary Doug Collins that veterans' healthcare would not be affected by an agency-wide cut of 30,000 workers. The departures are exacerbating existing shortages and creating 'very unsafe' conditions for patients, according to veterans and health workers. Patricia Fieldings, a registered nurse at the VA hospital in Augusta, Georgia, said staff shortages mean nurses from other departments are pulled in without adequate training to care for spinal cord injury patients.
Manuel Santamaria, a disabled veteran who served as a US army medic, described the situation as 'a betrayal', saying it removes government accountability to veterans. The VA dismissed fears of privatization as a 'far-left canard', insisting it is not cutting healthcare. However, the decline in health workers comes as the VA faces an influx of nearly 500,000 patients with complex issues from war-time toxic exposure, following bipartisan legislation in 2022 that expanded eligibility for care.
Even before these departures, the VA was understaffed. Last August, the VA's inspector general reported that 86% of medical centers and over 1,000 clinics had a 'severe' shortage of doctors, and 82% had severe shortages of nurses. The new reductions represent an additional 2% decrease in nurses and 3% in doctors. Under President Joe Biden, the VA added approximately 10,000 'mission-critical' healthcare professionals between May 2023 and January 2025.
VA press secretary Peter Kasperowicz did not dispute the lower numbers under Trump but cited a nationwide healthcare worker shortage. He said the VA uses strategies like referrals to private providers and telehealth to navigate shortages, and dismissed the inspector general's report as 'completely subjective'. Secretary Collins has made cutting employee headcount a priority, arguing the agency is bloated and can improve quality while shedding 30,000 jobs.
