Trump lays out plan to reform Veterans Affairs

The Hill ^ | October 31,2015 | David McCabe

[Hojczyk]

Trump promised that in his administration, veterans would receive better healthcare more quickly.

"The plan will ensure our veterans get the care they need, wherever and whenever they need it," he said.

Trump said that he would institute policies that would see Veterans Affairs (VA) facilities competing with non-VA hospitals. He said that under his plan, any veteran could go to a doctor that accepts Medicare and receive care.

In a winding indictment of the VA system, he targeted Veterans Health Administration hospitals that came under fire in the last year for keeping long wait lists of veterans who needed crucial care.

“Think about me going to my doctor’s office and waiting four days,” he said. "If I wait 15 minutes, I’m angry as hell at the doctor.”

Trump said the VA system needed to be maintained but reformed. “I don’t want to get rid of it, I want to supplement it," he said.

He promised to fire "the corrupt and incompetent VA executives who let our veterans down" and update the VA's policies to meet the needs of the younger veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"The fact that many VA hospitals don’t permanently staff OB-GYN doctors shows an utter lack of respect for the growing number of female veterans,” Trump said, pledging that under his leadership, every VA hospital would have doctors specializing in women's health.

Veterans hospitals would, he added, put in place technology that connect patients to doctors and allows them to manage their care.

Trump, who appeared to break from his extemporaneous remarks to consult a document while speaking about his policy proposal, said he would also invest in policies to help ease the transition from active duty to civilian life.

He pledged to institute programs to help veterans start businesses and find employment,

[okie01]

I tend to agree with you. Cruz, in particular, could bring radical change to Washington. Trump, in my opinion, less so — simply because his learning curve will be steeper and longer than Cruz’s. But his bull in a china shop approach would remain entertaining and effective, in its own way.