Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins, in his first message to a veterans group, said the "veteran is now first at VA" to applause at the Disabled American Veterans 2025 Mid-Winter Conference on Sunday at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Virginia.
Collins also addressed recent layoffs at the VA and claimed that there would be no impact on veterans' benefits or health care: "Not compromised. Period."
More than 1,000 probationary employees at VA were recently dismissed as part of President Donald Trump's efforts to drastically decrease the size and scope of the federal government. The money claimed to be saved as a result of the dismissals is being returned to veteran care and also, as part of the administration's efforts to end and program connected to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion activities, $14 million from VA’s DEI program, Collins said.
“Contracts, get ready. You will be surprised at the contracts we are finding that have no direct impact to veterans' care, but are being spent,” he continued. “We are going to make sure that money is being redirected back to the veterans.”
Collins is a 23-year veteran of the Navy and Air Force. He served in the Navy from 1994 to June 1996 as a chaplain corps student. He joined the Air Force Reserve as a chaplain following the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, deploying to Iraq for five months in 2008, serving as the nighttime flight chaplain.
To remind him of who he serves, Collins said you can find two things in his office: Dog tags and a Paracorps bracelet gifted to him by a young Airman while he was in Iraq.
“I wore it the whole time I was in Iraq,” he said.
Collins called being the 12th VA secretary a privilege. He said when President Donald Trump asked him to take on the job, he gave him a single mission.
“He said, `Doug, you just go take care of your veterans,’” Collins said. “That’s a simple message.”
Collins said he will settle for nothing less than fulfilling that mandate.
“It’s not about the VA as an organization, it is about the veterans we serve,” he said. “And if we are not serving the veterans, then the VA is not in the position it should be.”
Poking fun of his southern drawl, Collins, who served six years in the Georgia legislature and as a congressman for eight, said he also speaks a second language - Capitol Hill.
“I understand the politics, I understand the postering, I understand the promises and I understand how to get it done,” he said.
Collins said his priorities as VA secretary are “fairly simple,” and include timely access to care and benefits.
“The idea that the veteran has to call a congressman or senator to get help with the benefits they earned means the VA has failed,” he continued. “I want to put constituent services out of business on the Hill.”
Sixty percent of constituent calls for service to lawmakers revolve around getting assistance for earned VA health care and benefits, Collins continued.
“Think about what they could be doing if they weren’t answering calls about what the VA should have solved,” he said.
Collins pledged that the VA would no longer stand in the way of where veterans their care - whether they decide to go to a VA facility or utilize community care.
“Hear me clearly, no one will discriminate against anyone coming in to get the veteran services they have earned,” he added.
He also called veteran homelessness and suicide are two of his “heartbeat issues.”
“We have spent billions of dollars and added countless programs to the homeless situation and to suicide prevention and seen nothing,” Collins said. “I’m ready to see results. I’m ready to take whatever we have and say what can we do better.”
The VA had recently come under fire from U.S. Senators after reports that some of those workers let go in the layoffs were staffers on the Veterans Crisis Line.
Collins said leadership is about accountability and raising the bar.
“I’m not a secretary of VA that is going to sit behind a desk,” he promised. “I’m going to hold myself accountable at the highest level I can.”
Collins said when anything goes wrong at VA, it’s his fault. When things go well, it’s due to others, he said.
Reach Julia LeDoux at Julia@connectingvets.com.