Local opinion: Veterans are tired of fake patriotism and broken promises

Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins is focused on rolling back progress instead of creating a better future for the nation’s Veterans. Like the rest of the Cabinet, he is woefully unqualified — and now we are starting to see what happens when loyalists are appointed over proven leaders.

Veteran organizations have been warning the public and elected officials of the consequences and reporting concerns from the community. This week, a report from the VA Office of the Inspector General confirmed our fears. With little surprise to no one, Doug Collins and his uninformed, authoritarian, and externally motivated approach to his role as VA Secretary is inefficient at helping veterans. It is effective at dismantling the promise made to veterans in exchange for the toll on their bodies and minds.

In the VA OIG report, we see an indictment of the systemic failures of the Community Care program, in which a patient had a seriously delayed diagnosis for lung cancer.

“The OIG found pervasive failures regarding community care staff not making three attempts to retrieve patient records within 90 days of completed appointments, which leaders partially attributed to metrics that prioritized staff receiving and scheduling community care appointments … System and program leaders did not develop the LCS infrastructure prior to implementation. The LCS program lacked oversight, multidisciplinary engagement, policies, and adequate primary care training.”

Community Care is suitable for patients who prefer to see off-site providers or require emergency care, particularly when the VA does not offer timely access to care. However, that is not the case in the overwhelmed private sector. Like the VA staffing cuts, there is no tangible operational plan in place. We see appointed and elected leaders bulldozing an agenda and taking orders from an openly corrupt administration, telling veterans they are expendable.

I personally sat in a VA Senate Hearing on May 6 this year, where Doug Collins repeated talking points focused on blaming the Biden Administration. They are the same talking points our group of Veterans heard in Dirksen Hall when speaking with Republican staffers. Veterans tried to approach Doug Collins to ask questions, but he physically ran out of the building and jumped into a car.

Instead of fixing issues and investing in improvement, the VA Secretary is focused on creating more barriers to care and benefits. He is the blunt object the Trump administration is using to dismantle the Department of Veterans Affairs, one program at a time. This VA OIG report focuses on serious issues that happened under his watch as the Secretary of Veterans Affairs. Now, there is no one to blame but himself.

How a nation treats its Veterans is an indicator of how the rest of the country will be treated. As we can see in recent headlines and rhetoric in the media, Doug Collins and Republicans are shifting the blame to the veterans themselves. Conflating isolated issues on the misuse of VA programs and applying it to all Veterans is despicable. Treating veterans like beggars and accusing us of fearmongering is about as un-American as it gets.

Veterans appreciate the love from the community and want you to know there are so many ways to show it:

1. Vote for people who will do more than wrap themselves in the American flag on holidays and then vote against veteran interests.

2. Support programs and legislation that help keep our families and communities stable.

3. Denounce any calls for using the National Guard against our communities on American soil.

Now — that is how you support the troops. We don’t ask for much. We have a special name for someone who betrays or harms their fellow service members for personal gain or to earn favor from their boss: Blue Falcon. If you know, you know. If you don’t — ask a veteran. They’ll be happy to tell you more.