Duckworth Presses Veterans Affairs Secretary Nominee Doug Collins to Oppose Dangerous Efforts That Would Privatize the VA and Harm Veterans

[WASHINGTON, D.C.] – Today, combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)—a member of the U.S. Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC) who still receives her own health care services through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)—pressed Doug Collins, President Trump’s nominee to be VA Secretary, to oppose any effort to privatize VA health care at his confirmation hearing, which would place many Veterans at risk of receiving less effective and less cost-efficient care. In her remarks, Duckworth underscored that VA health care professionals are better positioned to provide the best care possible for our Veterans due to specialized training that informs providers with a unique understanding of Veterans’ experiences and comprehensive medical needs—something that is not replicated in the civilian health care system. Video of Duckworth’s remarks and questions can be found on theSenator’s YouTube.
“After bravely serving our country in uniform, our Veterans deserve nothing less than the high-quality care and benefits from the VA that they’ve earned through their service—and that includes the IVF services they need to start or grow their families,”said Senator Duckworth.“I made it clear to Mr. Collins that I would oppose any effort to privatize our VA, which would be absolutely devastating for our Veterans and make it harder for them to access better, more comprehensive care that is informed by their military service. If Collins is confirmed, I hope that he makes a conscious effort to include Veterans with different backgrounds and life experiences as he builds his VA leadership team so we can ensure no Veteran is left behind.”
During his first term in office, President Trump and his Administration made numerous misguided decisions that made life harder for our Veterans. The VA under Trumpracked up a massive payments backlogdue to bureaucratic failures within the department that resulted in as many as 82,000 student Veterans not being paid the benefits they were owed under the “Forever GI Bill,” in some cases rendering Veterans homeless. In 2020, Trump’s VA Secretarymishandleda female Veteran’s report of sexual assault at a VA medical center and the Trump-led U.S. Postal Service instituted harmful operational changes that impeded the timely delivery of mail—whichsignificantly delayedthe delivery of Veterans’ prescription medications. Additionally, Project 2025’s roadmap for the second Trump term includes radical Veterans policy plans that the Veterans Healthcare Policy Institutesaidwould “decimate Veterans’ health care and benefits,” such as privatizing core VA services and making it much more difficult for Veterans to get a disability rating, which they rely on to receive compensation for their service-related disabilities.
Throughout her tenure in Congress, Duckworth has been a fierce supporter of and an effective legislator for our Veterans. Some of the legislation she has pushed for to help deliver for our Veterans include:
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