The Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs convened a confirmation hearing to consider John Bartram, nominated to be Undersecretary for Health at the Department of Veterans Affairs, and Jeremiah Workman, nominated to be Assistant Secretary of Labor for Veterans' Employment and Training. Committee members praised both nominees’ military service and asked for details about plans to improve veterans’ access to health care and employment.

Both nominees described their backgrounds and priorities. John Bartram said he has served more than 40 years in the Air Force Reserve and in senior health leadership roles, and said that if confirmed he would “work to enhance healthcare delivery standards with greater consistency” and to “continue VA’s focus on patient safety and quality improvement.” Jeremiah Workman said he enlisted in the Marine Corps at 17, is a combat veteran, and said that as a nominee for VETS he would make veterans’ outcomes the central question for decisions: “What does this mean for the veteran? That will be our guiding principle.”

Senators focused much of their questioning on workforce changes and contract reviews at the VA. Senator Blumenthal entered several news articles into the record and cited a Federal News Network report listing recent losses of clinicians and support staff; he asked Bartram whether those losses and contract cancellations would harm care. Bartram said he did not have full visibility into every HR and contracting decision as a senior adviser but proposed developing standardized staffing models and manning documents to measure staffing needs. He noted VA employs roughly 470,000 people and described efforts such as expanded electronic scheduling to increase scheduler throughput.

Several senators, including Senator King and Senator Sheehy, pressed Bartram on a department memo showing planned contract terminations and on an announced reduction in workforce totals that were first reported as 83,000 and later described as 30,000. King and others asked that any staffing or contract changes be driven by careful analytics and staffing models rather than starting from a numerical quota. Bartram told the committee he had been involved in reviewing contracts for rescoping or cancellation and agreed to provide more details for the record when available.

Committee members also questioned each nominee about coordination across agencies and specific programs. Senators asked Workman to describe how he would strengthen the Transition Assistance Program (TAP) and ensure veterans are placed into quality long-term jobs; Workman said TAP must reach service members earlier and said he would work to ensure the Department of Labor has a “seat at the table” with DOD and VA. Senators discussed the PACT Act’s enrollment effects and cautioned that referring veterans to civilian community care will not alone solve access problems if community providers are themselves strained.

Other topics included the Veterans Crisis Line and clinical trials. Senators asked Bartram to confirm that suicide-prevention services would not lose staff or funding; Bartram responded that he would work to ensure veterans continue to have access to the Veterans Crisis Line. Senators also asked about whether any VA clinical trials had been paused; Bartram said his understanding is that no clinical trials are paused and that research personnel were exempted from hiring restrictions.

Ethics and contracting questions surfaced when Senator Tillis asked Bartram about a five‑year VA contract awarded in April 2025 to BrightStar Innovations, a company Bartram formerly led. Bartram said he had no ongoing financial stake and denied knowledge of BrightStar having that contract while he was involved. He agreed to provide additional records where appropriate.

The committee requested timely follow-up information on staffing data, wait times for community care, numbers of veterans in clinical trials, and contract counts. The hearing concluded with the chairman directing nominees to respond promptly to written questions for the record.