Don't close VA facilities, my son and many others need their mental health programs
(This guest essay for Newsday is by Joseph Riotta, a telecommunications industry sales director and VHPI advisory board member whose son...
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- Oct 28
- 4 min
Why Is the Biden Administration Continuing Trump’s Veterans Privatization Scheme?
By Suzanne Gordon + Steve Early In recent years, many Republicans have railed against overreach by the “administrative state”—which, in...
- Oct 26
- 4 min
VA Gets it Right on Suicide Data
Ignore the critics, it’s America’s Warrior Partnership, not VA, whose veteran suicide data and conclusions are faulty By Russell Lemle,...
- Oct 17
- 5 min
Another False Koch-Backed Fantasy
Darin Selnick Again Fudges the Facts Darin Selnick, a long-time advisor for the Koch-funded Concerned Veterans for America and former...
- Oct 17
- 4 min
A Reflection on VA Privatization from the Front Lines
A story on VA Privatization by James Martin, AFGE, National Representative, National VA Council (NVAC). I’ve worked as an emergency...
- Sep 29
- 1 min
VHPI Leads on Suicide Prevention Testimony
VHPI Senior Policy Analyst Dr. Russell Lemle organized a multi-organizational effort to provide written testimony on how to stem the...
- Sep 28
- 1 min
VA Research Verges on Breakdown
Over the past 75 years, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has developed one of the most sophisticated and powerful research...
- Sep 16
- 4 min
How to save money at VA without sacrificing our veterans
By Suzanne Gordon, Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute Published at The Hill On Aug. 10, President Joe Biden signed the PACT Act,...
- Aug 1
- 2 min
Survey: Severe Short Staffing in Veteran HealthCare Facilities
Fifty percent of survey respondents report that beds, units, and programs at veteran hospitals have been closed due to staffing and budgets.
- Jul 29
- 5 min
Inside a Terrible House Hearing
The July 14th House Veterans Affairs Committee hearing on the private care program established through the VA MISSION Act was an occasion...
- Apr 24
- 2 min
A Government Watchdog Raises Urgent Concerns Over AIR Assessments
Those concerned about the merit of VA Secretary Denis McDonough’s recently released recommendations for facility closures, renovations,...
- Apr 5
- 6 min
Inside The AIR Commission's Perilous Work
By Suzanne Gordon, Senior Policy Fellow On March 14, VA Secretary Denis McDonough released recommendations mandated by the VA MISSION Act...
- Jan 10
- 4 min
VHPI’s New Year’s Resolutions
In the spirit of the New Year, the Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute offers a clear and simple set of policy resolutions to Congress,...
- Dec 7, 2021
- 3 min
A Retired VA Clinician Raises Concerns over VA Outsourcing
By Rick Staggenborg, MD As a former VA psychiatrist who conducted a significant amount of psychotherapy in my practice, I am very...
- Nov 11, 2021
- 5 min
A Major Newspaper Gets It Wrong
Last week, USAToday ran a feature by reporter Jill Castellano that spotlighted issues around the VA MISSION Act, which is supposed to...
- Nov 2, 2021
- 2 min
Sanders’ Dental Dilemma
By Justin Straughan, VHPI Policy Researcher Senator Bernie Sanders recently introduced two pieces of overlapping legislation that would...
- Nov 2, 2021
- 6 min
A Fresh Look at Veterans, Toxic Exposures, and Access to VA Care and Benefits
On October 1, VA Secretary Denis McDonough was interviewed by Jon Stewart, who had just launched his Apple TV show, “The Problem with Jon...
- Sep 28, 2021
- 2 min
Private Sector Watch: Unvaccinated Healthcare Workers
Due to deliberate misinformation, the concept of vaccine mandates has become strangely divisive in America, a country that successfully...
- Sep 1, 2021
- 5 min
A New Report Lays Out The Ideal Future of Mental Healthcare
By Dr. Josef Ruzek, VHPI Advisory Board Member Over many years as a clinical psychologist inside the Department of Veterans Affairs...
- Sep 1, 2021
- 4 min
Selnick Peddling Falsehoods to Push Passage of New Legislation
Darin Selnick is at it again. Selnick, a VA privatizer with close ties to the Trump and Koch worlds, has recently helped launch a new...