The mental healthcare system within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is under intense scrutiny as more than 60 House Democrats demand answers from Secretary Doug Collins. The lawmakers’ concerns stem from a ProPublica investigation this spring, which revealed a significant decline in mental health providers and the subsequent impact on veterans’ care.
The letter, led by Rep. Judy Chu, a psychologist representing a district in Southern California, underscores the critical need for high-quality mental health services for veterans. “Caring for our nation’s Veterans is a fundamental responsibility,” the letter states. “That includes ensuring access to high-quality mental health care.”
Congressional Concerns and VA Response
The lawmakers are seeking detailed information about the VA’s shortage of mental health providers and the resulting impact on veterans. They also want to know the current wait times for care. The letter gives the VA until Aug. 14 to respond.
In response to ProPublica’s investigation, VA spokesperson Quinn Slaven defended the agency, stating, “The Trump Administration is solely focused on measuring VA’s success by how well it serves Veterans.” Slaven highlighted that the VA completed a record number of mental healthcare appointments in the past fiscal year while also lowering veterans’ wait times.
However, the VA declined an interview request, with spokesperson Peter Kasperowicz accusing ProPublica of attempting to mislead the public by “cherry picking issues that are limited to a handful of sites and in many cases were worse under the Biden Administration.” After ProPublica shared its findings, the agency reached out to several veterans to inquire about their care and offer help.
The Human Impact of Staff Shortages
ProPublica’s investigation revealed the troubling experiences of both mental health providers and veterans seeking care. With hundreds of mental health staffers leaving the VA and not being replaced, the remaining providers are stretched thin. A psychologist who worked for a VA in Arizona recounted how some of her one-on-one sessions were replaced with online group sessions that included as many as 35 veterans. The therapist said their remaining individual sessions were sometimes limited to as little as 16 minutes.
“It was always bad,” said the psychologist. “And now it’s at a breaking point.” In VA exit surveys obtained by ProPublica, mental health staffers who quit often wrote that they were no longer able to provide high-quality care. “Mental Health is understaffed, burned out,” wrote one New York-based staffer who was leaving. “There is not enough mental health care for the Veterans who need the services.”
Veterans, meanwhile, have started to fall through the cracks. Jason Beaman, a Navy and Army vet, was shuffled among therapists who later left until he finally had enough. “I just quit. I don’t want to mess with the therapist anymore,” Beaman told ProPublica this spring.
The Critical Need for VA Mental Health Services
After Trump returned to office last year, his administration promised to deliver veterans “the highest quality care.” The VA is the country’s largest healthcare system, serving 9 million veterans. Those men and women face many mental health issues at a higher rate than the general population. They die by suicide at roughly twice the rate.
VA mental health staff have developed deep expertise in addressing the particular needs of vets. Indeed, studies have shown that vets get better care at the VA than through private providers. “VA psychologists are best in class,” said Russell Lemle, former chief psychologist for the San Francisco VA Health Care System and now a senior policy analyst at the Veterans Healthcare Policy Institute. “When you lose them, the veterans are the ones who pay the price.”
ProPublica reported that in January, the department had around 500 fewer psychologists and psychiatrists than it had at the same time last year. Recent VA data shows those head counts continue to decline.
