Are Veterans Better or Worse Off After 2 Years of Trump?

The VA under President Donald Trump has cut disability claim wait times nearly in half. Its workforce has shrunk, and watchdogs report rising shortages at its hospitals.

• 75.6 days: average claim decision time in September 2026, down from 141.5.
• 34,800 fewer VA employees in January 2026 than December 2024, per GAO.
• 4,712 severe occupational shortages reported in FY2026, up from 2,959 in FY2024.
• 67.42 million community care appointments in FY2026, up 25.5% from FY2024.

Why it matters: The VA is shifting more care to outside providers it pays for. That move changes where and how quickly veterans get treated.

• 97% of surveyed VA facilities reported trouble recruiting medical officers.
• 329,000 claim review errors were recorded in 2026, up from 66,000 in 2021.

How 2 sources split on this story

Where they split: The two outlets disagree on the core result: whether record claims and appointment numbers outweigh shortages that staff say are degrading hospital care.

What’s next: The VA plans to hire 2,000 more claims processors in fiscal year 2027.

• VA Secretary Doug Collins says the department will keep lowering wait times and opening facilities.
• Is the VA's automated claims tool contributing to the rise in review errors?
• Do the shortage figures reflect actual vacancies or only hard-to-recruit roles, as the VA argues?
• Will veterans in community care face longer waits as caseloads grow?