WASHINGTON \u2014 Officials from the largest federal workers union slammed Veterans Affairs officials\u2019 new health care reform plan as \u201ca total dismantling of the department\u201d that would jeopardize veterans services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt\u2019s taking resources out of VA and shifting them into the private sector,\u201d said J. David Cox Sr., national president of the American Federation of Government Employees. \u201cIt\u2019s voucherizing veterans health care.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The comments came less than a day after the formal unveiling of the new Coordinated Access & Rewarding Experiences (Vets CARE) Act, proposed by VA leaders as a way to increase patient access to physicians through expanded appointments outside the department\u2019s system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a statement, VA Secretary David Shulkin said the new plan puts veterans at the center of all health care plans, instead of bureaucrats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe want veterans to work with their VA physicians to make informed decisions that are best for their clinical needs, whether in the VA or in the community,\u201d he said \u201cThis bill does just that, while strengthening VA services at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Vets CARE program would replace the three-year-old Veterans Choice program, which allows veterans to seek private sector care at government expense if they face a 30-day wait for a department appointment or a 40-mile trek to the nearest department facility.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Under the new plan \u2014 which still needs congressional approval \u2014 those options would open to any veteran who faces a wait longer than \u201ca clinically acceptable period.\u201d VA officials could would also be able to authorize outside care for a variety of other reasons, and make it easier for private-sector doctors to get reimbursed for veterans walk-in care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Tuesday, officials from the American Legion offered general support for the reforms, saying they are in favor of making VA health care options \u201cmore efficient, transparent, and effective.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But AFGE leaders attacked the proposal, labeling it another effort to slowly undermine and destroy the VA system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe\u2019re seeing a constant push to expand \u2018choice\u2019 at VA against veterans wishes,\u201d Cox said. \u201cThis is another attempt to dismantle VA from the inside out. It\u2019s appalling, and it has to stop now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
AFGE has been a frequent critic of President Donald Trump\u2019s veterans policies, including legislation he signed into law this summer which made it easier to fire VA workers. In recent weeks, those arguments have centered around the idea that Trump appointees are working to privatize VA health care, an accusation Shulkin has repeatedly refuted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Cox \u2014 whose group represents about 250,000 VA employees \u2014 said instead of opting for an expensive expansion of outside care programs, lawmakers should back plans to reinvest in existing VA facilities and more carefully rely on private-sector doctors for specialties the federal workforce lacks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shulkin\u2019s vision has instead been focused on offering an expanded network of VA and community physicians. Conservatives on Capitol Hill have backed that idea, with similar promises that they aren\u2019t looking to pull away resources from the department.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Will Fischer, director of government relations for VoteVets, called that approach \u201cdeath by a thousand cuts.\u201d Their group, which has close ties to the Democratic Party, is working with AFGE to campaign against the new plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey\u2019re promising not to privatize VA, but their actions and words don\u2019t match up,\u201d he said. \u201cEach time one of these vouchers is issued, it\u2019s money that is leaving the VA system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
House lawmakers are expected to review the plan and their own health care reform proposals at a Capitol Hill hearing next Tuesday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Meanwhile, officials from Concerned Veterans for America \u2014 which AFGE attacked in a press call Tuesday as pro-privatization, Republican activists \u2014 called the Vets CARE proposal a good start to the debate over VA\u2019s future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere is room for improvement,\u201d said Dan Caldwell, policy director for the group. \u201cOne important modification that we believe should be made is that a veteran should be able to choose a primary care physician inside or outside of the Veterans Health Administration within the integrated care network.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis reform would be an important step towards fulfilling President Trump\u2019s promise to increase health care choice for our veterans.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n