Doug Collins, secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, said Wednesday in Fayetteville that layoffs and the increasing use of private health care providers will not change the VA’s standard of care.
The VA secretary was accompanied by Rep. Richard Hudson and Rep. David Rouzer, Cumberland County’s U.S. House representatives. Collins, who addressed a small group of staff members and reporters at the Fayetteville VA Medical Center on Ramsey Street, said he has been touring VA facilities across the country, and he takes pride in all of them.
But the Fayetteville VA, he said, is “a special place, not only in our service of our country, but also its history and making sure we’re taking care of and seeing these transition points as we go forward.”
Collins, a U.S. Air Force veteran who leads the second-largest U.S. government department, introduced a plan in March to cut around 72,000 employees or 15% of the VA’s workforce as of January 2025. The proposal sparked backlash from Democratic and Republican lawmakers, as well as veterans groups.
During his remarks in Fayetteville, Collins said changes in staffing would not impact the standard of care for veterans. He briefly alluded to the change of plans to scale down the mass layoffs and reframed them as part of a larger effort to restructure the VA.
“We’re going to do everything we can inside our organization to take care of our people, take care of our organization,” Collins said. “But if it doesn’t align with taking care of veterans, then those things are going to change.”
The VA issued a press release in July saying the 15% reduction would no longer be necessary because of “employee reductions through the federal hiring freeze, deferred resignations, retirements and normal attrition.” Instead, the department is set to complete its goal of reducing total staff by around 30,000 employees by the end of September, the release said.
The announcement also said “mission-critical” positions are exempt from the buyouts offered to other federal employees, and over 350,000 VA positions are exempt from the Trump administration’s ongoing federal hiring freeze.
“We’re actually looking at some reorganization structure that is not RIF-related,” Collins said, referring to a “reduction in force” about the workforce cuts. “This is not what we’re doing because we’ve stopped that … But we’re actually saying, if they’re [VA staff] in certain levels of command, they’re not actually being of best use. Maybe we can get them back in the field as well.”
Collins said the VA was “on the right track” and repeatedly praised President Donald Trump for supporting the agency. He said the VA was making progress on its transition to an electronic health records system, and applauded the VA’s 4% budget increase, which comes as other major federal agencies have faced drastic funding cuts.
Earlier this year, the department also moved to eradicate $14 million in spending that the federal government has determined is related to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Critics have argued the cuts to contracts and staffing endanger care for disabled veterans, including those exposed to Agent Orange, the toxic chemical used by the U.S. during the Vietnam War.
When asked about VA wait times, a common concern among veterans and caregivers, Collins said wait times were similar to those experienced by patients in the private sector.
“I think one of the things is if [VA patients] are having serious injuries — and I would question that with our team — I think we’re getting the ones processed through as quickly as just any health care system,” he said. “Look, this is something I need for the media to understand, the people. We have a system that takes care of veterans and does it very well. However, we are a health care system just like everyone else.”
Collins also applauded the VA’s plans for expanded Community Care, a program in which VA patients can receive health care services from private providers. “We’re expanding those avenues so that they can get to the care quicker,” he said.
Ending his remarks, Collins addressed concerns related to the changes he plans to implement. He criticized any concerns related to politically aligned changes.
“If we’re doing something we need to change, I’m going to admit it and say we need to change,” he said. “But if it’s somebody just picking on us to make political points, they’re going to have to come through me and I’m going to answer them back, and I’m going to fight because I believe we have a VA that works for our veterans, can get better for our veterans, is going to get better for our veterans, but we’re not going to use it as a whipping post anymore.
“We’re going to use the mark to get better and better. And Fayetteville is one of those examples of how we can get better.”
Government accountability reporter Evey Weisblat can be reached at eweisblat@cityviewnc.com or 216-527-3608.
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