Schumer worries ‘DOGE’ cuts are hurting VA’s ability to serve veterans

Photo from Charles Schumer’s Office: U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer speaks on Wednesday at the Canandaigua VA, joined by veterans in the Rochester-Finger Lakes area.

Press Release, U.S. Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer

CANANDAIGUA – With ‘DOGE’ and the Trump administration’s plans to fire over 80,000 workers at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) looming, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer today stood outside the Canandaigua VA to sound the alarm on the devastating impacts for the over 33,000 veterans in the Rochester-Finger Lakes region.

“This is not how you treat our veterans – it’s not just unacceptable, it’s un-American,” Schumer said. “Firing over 80,000 VA workers, many of whom are veterans themselves, will undoubtedly hurt the healthcare and benefits for the 33,000 veterans here in the Rochester-Finger Lakes. We have already seen the chaos firsthand, VA workers fired without warning across Upstate NY, chaos across the VA workforce. It is gut wrenching to think this is how we are treating the services of those who defended our freedoms.”

The senator said across Upstate NY, VA workers, many of whom are veterans, have already been fired, creating chaos in the workforce and new massive cuts would spell disaster for the care for vets across NY. Schumer called on the Trump administration to restore fired veterans and VA workers and stop any plans to further decimate the VA workforce.

“Make no mistake, these cuts are a direct assault on our veterans here in Upstate NY,” Schumer said. “These cuts don’t just mean fewer VA workers, they mean longer wait times for our veterans to get the help they need. It means they won’t get the most advanced treatment, and ultimately it means many will likely be denied healthcare they deserve. Our nation told our veterans that if they put their lives and health on the line to protect our freedoms, we would take care of them, and the Trump administration is breaking that promise by cutting the VA to the bone.”

“DOGE” has already fired thousands of veterans across the country, many of whom have service-connected disabilities, Schumer said. 2,400 VA employees, many of whom are veterans themselves, have already been terminated. The VA, however, has refused to even explain where all these cuts have been in New York, leading to chaos, and with 80,000 more looming, the senator said it could turn into a real crisis.

Schumer said these broader “DOGE” firings are especially cruel as veterans make up 30% of the federal workforce, with approximately 640,000 veterans working in federal agencies. The federal government has long made it a priority to hire veterans and military spouses, encouraging them to do so as a continuation of public service, making these cuts by the Trump Administration uniquely hurtful.

Schumer has repeatedly highlighted this, including bringing a Western NY disabled Army veteran who served in Afghanistan who was fired from the Buffalo VA, as his personal guest to attend President Trump’s Joint Session of Congress.