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Journalist Aaron Glantz tells HRC VA staffing shortfalls and warns of federal funding risks for veterans' housing
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Summary
Aaron Glantz briefed the commission on post‑9/11 veterans' mental‑health needs, said the Palo Alto VA serves tens of thousands and reported dozens of vacant clinical positions locally; he warned that proposed federal budget changes (a replacement of HUD‑VASH with a 'BRAVE' plan) could jeopardize programs that reduced veteran homelessness.
Aaron Glantz, an investigative journalist at Stanford University, told the Human Relations Commission that post‑9/11 veterans are a demographically distinct cohort with complex medical and mental‑health needs and that the Palo Alto VA serves a large regional caseload and houses a national polytrauma center.
"Palo Alto has perhaps the most important VA hospital in the country," Glantz said, adding that the facility serves Santa Clara County and areas as far as Monterey and Livermore and treats about 67,000 patients a year in his characterization.
Glantz said the local VA faces staffing shortages and cited "over 50 vacant medical doctor positions" and "almost a 100 vacant nurse positions" at the Palo Alto VA. He credited earlier national strategies for reducing veteran homelessness and said the primary solution is housing vouchers combined with wraparound services.
He warned that a proposed White House budget had sought to replace HUD‑VASH with what he described as a 'BRAVE' program focused on moving people away from long‑term support; Glantz said congressional pushback had intervened but urged local awareness because federal changes could affect service delivery for veterans locally.
Commissioners asked about data sources and how local trends compare nationally; Glantz cited HUD point‑in‑time counts and VA statistics and said veteran homelessness has fallen in recent counts while overall homelessness has risen.
The commission received the briefing and asked follow‑up questions about national policy and local service coordination; no formal commission action followed.
