Latest news with #PeterKasperowicz
The Hill
13 hours ago
- Health
- The Hill
White House denies reporting by Guardian on VA benefits: ‘totally FALSE story'
The Trump administration on Monday denied reporting by The Guardian that said new Veterans Affairs (VA) hospitals could refuse care to veterans based on factors like marital status and political affiliation due to an executive order by President Trump. The Guardian earlier Monday published a report saying VA hospitals are implementing new rules in response to Trump's executive order in January, which would permit workers to deny care to veterans based on characteristics not protected by federal law. On the first day of his second term, Trump signed an executive order titled 'Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,' which ordered the federal government to recognize only two biological sexes. According to the documents it obtained, The Guardian reported that 'doctors and other medical staff can also be barred from working at VA hospitals based on their marital status, political party affiliation or union activity.' VA press secretary Peter Kasperowicz, a former politics editor at Fox News Digital, reportedly did not deny that veteran patients could be denied care and physicians could be dismissed based on their marital status or political affiliation when reached by The Guardian. But White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly adamantly denied The Guardian's reporting. Writing on the social media platform X, Kelly addressed the article's writer, Aaron Glantz, saying, 'Aaron, this is a totally FALSE story that The Guardian should retract immediately. Fearmongering with our Veterans to try to score clicks for your failing 'news outlet' is pathetic and shameful.' The VA also responded on X, writing, 'This story is disinformation. All eligible Veterans will always be welcome at VA and will always receive the benefits and services they've earned under the law.' The Hill has reached out to The Guardian for comment. According to those who work with veterans benefits, some hospitals have begun updating their bylaws, but the extent of what effect these changes are having is unclear. According to Kyleanne Hunter, CEO of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, the VA has historically been 'very expansive' in its anti-discrimination policies, which have gone beyond federally protected classes. In response to Trump's executive order earlier this year, some bylaws have 'shrunk' so that anti-discrimination policies only encompass federally protected classes like race, religion and sex. She notes, however, that there don't appear to be any rules that mandate discrimination based on unprotected classes. 'There are over 140 different VA medical centers as hospitals that each have their own set of bylaws that exist. So we don't know how many different hospitals this has actually been changed at,' Hunter told The Hill. 'We're trying right now to really gather the information we can, to see how widespread the changes of bylaws might actually be, as well as to engage and understand how it is actually impacting our veterans,' added Hunter. She lamented that VA employees are getting in the crosshairs of this dispute while they seek to provide care to veterans. 'The VA employees that we have talked to and connected with are personally very, very committed to continue to serve all veterans and are concerned that the way in which this is being discussed will continue to destroy morale among VA employees,' Hunter said.
Economic Times
18 hours ago
- Health
- Economic Times
New VA policy sparks outrage as doctors may refuse treatment to Democrats and unmarried veterans alike
What exactly changed in the VA policy? Live Events Has the VA responded to the backlash? What did the experts say about the policy? Who could lose access to care under these rules? FAQs (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel A new VA policy has sent shockwaves through both veteran communities and the medical community. The change, which follows a Trump-era executive order, has already raised serious ethical and legal concerns.A contentious policy change at the Department of Veterans Affairs allows VA doctors to refuse treatment to veterans based on their political beliefs or marital status. Critics describe it as discriminatory and dentists, and a variety of other professions are also subject to the new regulations. The new regulations have already taken effect in certain VA medical facilities, as per a report by The order "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government" issued by the president on January 30 is cited by VA officials as the reason for the of race, colour, religion, or sex, medical personnel are still expected to treat veterans, and all veterans still have the right to since federal law does not specifically forbid it, individual employees are now free to refuse to provide patient care due to personal hospitals have the authority to exclude physicians and other medical personnel on the basis of union activity, marital status, or political party affiliation. Impacted are certified clinical social workers, podiatrists, speech therapists, chiropractors, CNPs, and optometrists, as per a document, reported The executive order sought to deny the majority of government protections to transgender individuals. The VA no longer offers the majority of gender-affirming care and has prohibited the use of terms like "gender affirming" and "transgender" in clinical VA press secretary, Peter Kasperowicz, responded to inquiries via email, saying that all eligible veterans will always be welcome at the VA and will always receive the benefits and services they have earned under the he did not dispute that the new rules allowed doctors to refuse to treat veteran patients based on their beliefs or that doctors could be fired based on their political affiliation or marital new regulations were described as "extremely disturbing and unethical" by Dr. Arthur Caplan, the original head of the medical ethics division at New York University's Grossman School of the surface, it appears to be an attempt to exercise political influence over the VA medical staff, he are worried about how new policies will affect their healthcare, especially those who are female, LGBTQ+, or reside in rural see a doctor, some people might have to travel more than a hundred miles, which could have a cascading effect. Because these changes were implemented without consulting the doctors in the system, medical experts are also worried about the under the new rules, VA doctors can refuse care based on factors such as political affiliation or being veterans, LGBTQ+ veterans, and those living in rural areas are expected to be disproportionately affected.
Time of India
20 hours ago
- Health
- Time of India
New VA policy sparks outrage as doctors may refuse treatment to Democrats and unmarried veterans alike
A new VA policy has sent shockwaves through both veteran communities and the medical community. The change, which follows a Trump-era executive order, has already raised serious ethical and legal concerns. A contentious policy change at the Department of Veterans Affairs allows VA doctors to refuse treatment to veterans based on their political beliefs or marital status. Critics describe it as discriminatory and dangerous. What exactly changed in the VA policy? Psychologists, dentists, and a variety of other professions are also subject to the new regulations. The new regulations have already taken effect in certain VA medical facilities, as per a report by The Guardian. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Join new Free to Play WWII MMO War Thunder War Thunder Play Now Undo Executive order "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government" issued by the president on January 30 is cited by VA officials as the reason for the modifications. Regardless of race, colour, religion, or sex, medical personnel are still expected to treat veterans, and all veterans still have the right to care. Live Events However, since federal law does not specifically forbid it, individual employees are now free to refuse to provide patient care due to personal characteristics. VA hospitals have the authority to exclude physicians and other medical personnel on the basis of union activity, marital status, or political party affiliation. Impacted are certified clinical social workers, podiatrists, speech therapists, chiropractors, CNPs, and optometrists, as per a document, reported The Guardian. The executive order sought to deny the majority of government protections to transgender individuals. The VA no longer offers the majority of gender-affirming care and has prohibited the use of terms like "gender affirming" and "transgender" in clinical settings. ALSO READ: Juneteenth 2025 events near me: Is Juneteenth a Federal holiday in the U.S? What day is Juneteenth? Has the VA responded to the backlash? The VA press secretary, Peter Kasperowicz, responded to inquiries via email, saying that all eligible veterans will always be welcome at the VA and will always receive the benefits and services they have earned under the law. However, he did not dispute that the new rules allowed doctors to refuse to treat veteran patients based on their beliefs or that doctors could be fired based on their political affiliation or marital status. What did the experts say about the policy? The new regulations were described as "extremely disturbing and unethical" by Dr. Arthur Caplan, the original head of the medical ethics division at New York University's Grossman School of Medicine. On the surface, it appears to be an attempt to exercise political influence over the VA medical staff, he stated. Who could lose access to care under these rules? Veterans are worried about how new policies will affect their healthcare, especially those who are female, LGBTQ+, or reside in rural areas. To see a doctor, some people might have to travel more than a hundred miles, which could have a cascading effect. Because these changes were implemented without consulting the doctors in the system, medical experts are also worried about the process. FAQs Can VA doctors now refuse to treat some veterans? Yes, under the new rules, VA doctors can refuse care based on factors such as political affiliation or being unmarried. Who is most affected by the changes? Female veterans, LGBTQ+ veterans, and those living in rural areas are expected to be disproportionately affected.
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Some VA employees' overtime pay will be delayed by software problems
Paychecks for several thousand Veterans Affairs employees owed extra compensation will be shortchanged this week because of ongoing issues with payroll processing systems at the department, officials announced Wednesday. In a statement, VA leaders said the problem centers on delays within the VA Time and Attendance System. Sources within the department say outages and slowdowns have disrupted the system since late last week. VA spokesman Peter Kasperowicz said officials expect all employees to receive their regular pay this week despite the software problems. 'A portion of these employees who are due to receive additional wages, such as overtime pay, will be paid those additional wages on April 11, VA's following payday,' Kasperowicz said in a statement. 'To summarize: 100 percent of VA employees will be paid their normal wages on time and 98 percent of VA employees will experience no impact whatsoever from this issue.' Senate Democrats plan 'shadow hearings' on controversial VA cuts VA is one of the largest employers in the federal government, with around 480,000 staffers. An overtime pay issue affecting about 2% of that total would still be nearly 10,000 individuals. Senior leaders from the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee said they are tracking the payroll issues but have not yet received details from VA leadership about the cause of or ultimate solution to the problem. 'The concern here is that VA needs systems that work,' said committee Chairman Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas. 'We need to find out what the problem is, and they need to fix it.' Ranking member Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said several employees have voiced worries to his staff that their paycheck may be postponed or shortchanged. 'But we're still trying to verify what is happening,' Blumenthal said. Democrats in both the House and Senate have been critical of VA Secretary Doug Collins in recent weeks for a lack of communication on their inquiries into department operations and planning. For his part, Collins has posted several social media videos and statements promising transparency and blasting critics for spreading rumors about department reform efforts. The secretary has proposed trimming VA's workforce total to less than 400,000, which would bring VA in line with staffing levels in place before the end of President Donald Trump's first term in office. However, federal union officials have strongly criticized those plans, saying the staff cuts would inevitably hurt benefits and medical care delivery.
