Minority and transgender veterans tell Congress they face eroding trust and access to care

Speakers from Minority Veterans of America and other advocacy groups said at a joint House–Senate hearing that veterans from historically underserved groups face special and immediate risks from policy and administrative changes at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

"Our community is under attack," Lindsay Church, executive director of Minority Veterans of America, said in opening remarks. Church described the removal of gender markers from some records and recounted that providers and transgender veterans report confusion about what care will be permitted under recent executive direction. "Providers who serve trans patients are deeply uncertain about what they can do," she testified.

Church and other witnesses urged Congress to conduct vigorous oversight and to protect established services. She cited a recent local suicide involving a transgender veteran in Syracuse, saying advocates are seeing both direct health consequences and growing fear among veterans who rely on gender‑affirming and other specialized care.

Why it matters: Minority and LGBTQ+ veterans are a growing share of VA users and, witnesses said, face higher rates of harassment, discrimination, and barriers to care. The witnesses called for sustained oversight of VA policy changes, full implementation of the Deborah Sampson Act protections, and immediate steps to ensure reporting mechanisms and anti‑harassment measures are independent and transparent.

Committee response: lawmakers including Rep. Mark Takano and Sen. Richard Blumenthal acknowledged the testimony, and several members asked witnesses and VSOs to forward specific cases to their offices so committees could pursue oversight and remedies.

Ending: Witnesses urged the committee to keep oversight active and to ensure that policy change at VA does not lead to loss of access for veterans who are already at elevated risk for poor health outcomes.