Background on VA Privatization
There are 22 million veterans in America. Of those 22 million, 9 million are enrolled in VA care, and 7 million get some or all of their care in VA hospitals. In addition, there are 49,000 vacant positions at VA hospitals across America. Most are vacant doctor, nurse & mental health positions. As VA vacancies go up, vet care goes down.
Since 2014, when the CHOICE program began, millions of vets have been sent into the private healthcare sector, and nearly 40% of all outpatient doctor visits have been routed into private healthcare. Many vets are dissatisfied with CHOICE and wait times for some vets are as long or longer in the private sector than they are at the VA.
Legislative proposals in Congress are threatening to drastically change how veterans receive healthcare. The Veterans Health Administration is under attack by groups who are encouraging the elimination of government programs and pushing the idea that only the private sector ‘works’. In surveys by Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) & Disabled Am. Veterans (DAV), a vast majority of vets say they don’t want private care – they want their VA doctors & nurses.
Take action now by calling your House Representative and Senators and encouraging them to pass S. 1723, and HR. 3459. What would these bills do? The American Federation of Government Workers (AFGE) website says this:
“AFGE is urging Congress to pass S. 1723, which would allocate $5 billion to hire more medical professionals and narrow the staffing deficit at the VA, and HR. 3459, which would put new transparency requirements in place by requiring the VA to post on its website the total number of filled posit…
Call your US representative & senators – tell them –
The above telephone number and congressional contact system is sponsored by the American Federation of Government Workers (AFGE). This union represents over 220,000 VA workers and the VFP Work Group works with their members and staff.
Sign this petition to the President & Congress.Join the “Stop VA Privatization, Fix, Fund and Fully Staff the VA”
Check out: Fighting for Veterans Healthcare (FFVHC)