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Senators press VA nominee John Bartram on staffing, wait times and contract reviews
Summary
Senators questioned John Bartram about reported large staff losses, an effort to terminate or rescope thousands of VA contracts and whether those moves threaten veterans' access to care. Bartram said he supports building staffing models and that he has participated in contract review but lacks full visibility into every HR decision.
John Bartram, the nominee for Undersecretary for Health at the Department of Veterans Affairs, faced sustained questioning from senators about recent VA workforce shifts and a departmental memo describing planned contract terminations and non‑reviews.
Senator Richard Blumenthal cited news reports and told the committee that the Federal News Network had reported losses of clinicians and frontline staff, listing “1,720 registered nurses, 600 doctors, 1,150 medical support assistants, close to 200 police officers, 80 psychologists, and about 1,100 claims examiners.” Blumenthal said published investigations suggested the cuts had…
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