Salem VA leaders assure veterans patient care will be maintained amid layoffs

SALEM, Va. – Leaders at the Salem VA Medical Center sought to reassure local veterans that recent layoffs at the center should not have a major impact on patient care.

But they declined to speculate on reports that VA officials in Washington plan to lay off more than 80,000 additional employees nationwide, bringing staffing down to 2019 levels or roughly 400,000.

Veterans questioned the local leadership during a quarterly town hall meeting, telling them that care and wait times have greatly improved but that the layoffs have them concerned for the future.

“That’s like 18 percent of your staff, and you’re going to keep the care up,” one veteran asked in response to the latest reports.

System director Rebecca Stackhouse said they would do everything they could to maintain the level of care.

Employees told 10 News that at least 20 positions have been cut at the Salem facility. Stackhouse would not confirm exact numbers but said that besides two recreational therapists, most of the positions were not involved directly with patient care. The positions that were cut were employees considered probationary, mostly with less than a year on the job.

“They’re still no longer employees with us; however, we have submitted for exceptions or a request to bring those folks back,” Stackhouse said. “We have not received the determination of our request at this time.”

Staff for several Members of Congress attended the town hall, including newly-elected Rep. John McGuire, R-Virginia. In a later media availability, McGuire told 10 News it’s still early in the budgeting process.

“We love our veterans. We wouldn’t have our country without our military, and we need to take care of our veterans,” he told reporters. “I will say there’s a lot of misinformation out there. We have a budget we just passed, and that’s just step one in the process of figuring out how the dollars will be allocated. We need to find savings because we’re spending more money than we’re bringing in.”

Meanwhile, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, sharply criticized the budget cuts.

“We have a sacred obligation for those men and women that have defended our country and their families to them, honor the commitment that we’re going to take care of, for example, their health care and other benefits they earned,” he said.

Stackhouse declined to speculate on further cuts but acknowledged there could be changes at the center as they continue to focus on their mission.

“We are going to continue to make sure that we provide them the absolute best healthcare and treatment services that they trust us to provide to them that they’ve earned and that they deserve,” she told 10 News.

Stackhouse says the VA has also received exemptions to the federal hiring freeze for more than 100 occupations, including doctors and nurses. And she says they’re currently fully staffed in areas like primary care.