More than 300,000 Department of Veterans Affairs health care jobs are exempt from a federal hiring freeze instituted Jan. 20 by President Donald Trump.
Acting Veterans Affairs Secretary Todd Hunter issued a memo Jan. 21 containing instructions for the department to comply with Trump's executive order, issued shortly after he was sworn into office.
Trump's order did not list any exemptions, but in his memo, Hunter said positions critical to delivering health care to veterans were an exception, and those considered essential for providing benefits like disability compensation could be considered protected if deemed necessary by the federal Office of Personnel Management.
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Hunter listed 39 exempt positions, representing more than 304,000 jobs.
"Positions critical to delivering care to veterans in the Veteran[s] Health Administration ... are exempted under the category of public safety," Hunter wrote in the memo obtained by Military.com.
The memo was issued the same day the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee vetted Doug Collins, Trump's nominee for VA secretary, during his confirmation hearing.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, the committee's ranking Democrat, told Collins there will be "heavy pressure" on him to "cut and slash," calling the VA a "target-rich environment" for cost-cutters.
In response to Blumenthal and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, Collins said he would advocate for veterans but that he also needed to work under the executive order.
"We'll take a look at the current levels of employees that we have and where they're properly located," Collins said.
Of the more than 300,000 positions, almost one-third are for nurses and 70,000 are for medical support assistants, social workers and pharmacists.
According to Hunter's memo, no other vacancies that existed as of midday Monday will be filled. Candidates who received job offers before Jan. 20 at noon and have a start date on or before Feb. 8 will be onboarded, while those with a start date after Feb. 8 or an undetermined date will have their offers rescinded.
All candidates who had applied for vacant, non-exempt positions but did not have an offer also will be told the agency is no longer hiring.
For benefits jobs, supervisors will need to request an exemption from OPM; for other positions, hiring officials will need to ask the VA chief of staff for exemptions.
"VA remains committed to being deliberative in the hiring actions taken to ensure we are postured for success as we implement overall modernization efforts and reform plans in accordance with the Office of Management and Budget," Hunter wrote.
VA Media Affairs Director Morgan Ackley said Thursday that the department is committed to providing benefits and services to veterans.
"The targeted hiring-freeze exemptions announced today underscore that fact," said Ackley, referring to Hunter's memo, made public Thursday.
The VA has almost 450,000 employees, nearly 92% of whom work in health care and health administration and support services.
Union officials have decried several of Trump's executive orders that pertain to federal workers, including the freeze, Trump's elimination of offices created to promote diversity, the redesignation of many jobs to make it easier to fire personnel, and a requirement that they work in an office full-time rather than telework.
On Thursday, Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., praised the VA for protecting essential staff and new hires for critical positions.
"I appreciate VA quickly issuing guidance to continue hiring health care and other critical VA employees to make certain veterans and their families continue receiving their care and benefits in a timely manner," Moran said. "I encourage the new administration to establish a clear long-term staffing plan."
The committee voted 18-1 Thursday to advance Collins' nomination to the full Senate, a vote that is expected next week.
Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, was the lone dissenting vote. During Collins' hearing, Hirono pressed the nominee on his commitment to community care and protecting women's health care services, including access to abortion. She was unsatisfied by his answer, which included citing the law that restricts the VA from providing "infertility services, abortions or pregnancy care" unless the care is needed as a result of a service-connected condition.
"I voted 'no' against his nomination because Congressman Collins' plans for VA are not in line with what I believe are right for veterans in Hawaii and across the country and are not what my constituents support," Hirono said.
Sen. Tina Smith, D-Minn., said Thursday that 83 final and tentative offers had been rescinded by the Minneapolis VA Medical Center since the order was passed down. She did not know what types of jobs were revoked.
"We all know the VA struggles to hire and retain staff, and this executive order will only make it worse. It's overly broad and unworkable," Smith said in a statement to Military.com. "I plan to get to the bottom of this and have already requested a full breakdown of the kinds of jobs affected and how this order will impact caring for our veterans and their families."
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