Panicked veterans are calling one member of Congress in droves, fearing consequences over an executive order.
New guidelines imposed by President Donald Trump's executive order could result in hospitals refusing treatment to unmarried veterans and Democrats, The Guardian reported.
"Medical staff are still required to treat veterans regardless of race, color, religion and sex, and all veterans remain entitled to treatment," said the report. "But individual workers are now free to decline to care for patients based on personal characteristics not explicitly prohibited by federal law."
The law previously included "marital status" and "politics."
"My office has received many calls from veterans worried they will be denied care by the Department of Veterans Affairs because of their political affiliation or marital status," said Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH) wrote on Bluesky Monday. "I call on Secretary Doug Collins to provide a full briefing to Congress and release all relevant documents to the public."
"This isn’t healthcare. It’s political purity tests for people who risked their lives for this country. It’s unethical, authoritarian, and every one of us should be outraged," commented VoteVets, a progressive pro-veteran group.
These updates will have no impact whatsoever on who VA treats or who works at VA.
Macaulay Porter, deputy assistant Secretary of Public Affairs, has disputed the report, and said the Guardian is trying to misrepresent the changes as "anything more than a formality."
Porter insisted the VA will "always follow federal law" and that "all eligible Veterans will always be welcome at VA and will always receive the benefits and services they’ve earned under the law."
