In an effort aimed at reducing waste and inefficiency at Veteran Affairs, the Obama administration began offering contracts to private insurers in 2014. Unfortunately, four years later, this program, called Veterans Choice, has been proven to have had the opposite effect.
Veterans seeking medical care are facing even longer waits for appointments. They're getting appointments with the wrong specialists or in different states.
It's been very costly, too: Nearly one-quarter of the $2 billion doled out by the federal government to private contractors have been claimed as profits, while service costs have gone up. On average, appointment referrals handled by these contractors cost $300 each, oftentimes more than the actual doctor visit itself.
Now the Trump administration wants to continue down this path and privatize Veterans Affairs even more — despite VA officials admitting they've been "taken advantage of."
Add your name to this petition to demand the new Congress put an end to these appalling acts of greed and exploitation of our veterans by blocking further privatization efforts and rolling back those already in place!
