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Paralyzed Veterans of America warns specialty spinal cord care is understaffed and aging facilities risk patient safety
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Summary
Paralyzed Veterans of America told the joint hearing that VA spinal cord injury and disorder (SCI/D) centers face chronic staffing shortages and aging infrastructure, with at least one center operating at half capacity because of vacancies; PVA urged Congress to fund staff and capital repairs to preserve the specialized system of care.
Paralyzed Veterans of America told the joint hearing that VA’s national system of spinal cord injury and disorder (SCI/D) centers is facing chronic staffing shortages and aging facilities that threaten specialized care for veterans.
Robert Thomas, national president of Paralyzed Veterans of America, said the average SCI/D center is nearly 40 years old, infrastructure failures have caused months‑long patient relocations, and staffing vacancies in nursing and other clinical roles can exceed 50 percent at individual centers. Thomas said that one center "can only use half its beds because staffing vacancies exceed 50 percent" after a leadership decision denied backfill for a resignation.
Why it matters: Veterans with catastrophic injuries require multidisciplinary specialty care that community providers may not be equipped to deliver. PVA said veterans’ health stabilizes under VA specialty programs and that loss of capacity would force many veterans into lower‑quality community care.
Thomas urged Congress to invest in staffing and infrastructure for the SCI/D system, preserve funded positions and research, and ensure clinical and rehabilitative roles — including recreational therapists — remain supported so veterans can continue to receive VA specialty care.
Ending note: PVA asked the committees to act before more centers reduce capacity or close beds, and to prioritize funding and workforce planning to sustain the specialized care network.
