Federal actions caused ‘significant strain’ on New Mexico veterans’ agency, report says

The Trump administration’s federal hiring freeze and deferred resignation program caused staffing vacancies and increased patient wait times at the New Mexico Veterans Affairs Healthcare System last year, according to an independent oversight agency.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of the Inspector General inspected the Raymond G. Murphy VA Medical Center in Albuquerque from Feb. 3-5 and published its findings on Aug. 26. The medical center serves as the hub of the New Mexico VA Healthcare System that provides primary and specialty care for New Mexico and Colorado veterans and their families. The facility treated 84,000 patients last year, according to the report.

Executive leaders at the Albuquerque facility told inspectors that federal policy changes, such as the government-wide hiring freeze and return-to-office mandate last year, caused vacancies at the facility and “stressed the effects of fewer nurses, anesthesiologists, and interventional cardiologists (who perform invasive cardiac procedures),” the report said.

The report found that 75 of the facility’s 300 patient beds were not operational in the past year, largely due to staff losses and a slow hiring process. As a result, the VA medical center was unable to perform certain specialty care and surgeries, such as surgery for heart attacks.

Last year, the VA announced its plan to reduce staff by 30,000 federal workers through hiring freezes, deferred resignations and voluntary early retirement. The hiring freeze was lifted in January, but at least one member of New Mexico’s federal delegation has expressed concern over the current state of the VA.

“Existing VA staffing shortages are already causing delays for surgeries, making it hard to access mental health care, and devastating morale for providers, employees, and veterans,” U.S. Rep. Gabe Vasquez (D-N.M.) wrote in a letter to VA Secretary Doug Collins on Wednesday. According to Vasquez’s letter, 172 VA staff in New Mexico were cut. 

Workers at the Albuquerque VA medical facility told the Inspector General that they stayed “because they believe in the VA’s purpose and the importance of serving veterans.” When asked what would make them leave, 43% responded with stress due to burnout, the report said.

Patient advocates told the Office of the Inspector General that care coordination and “difficulty reaching community care employees by phone” were the top complaints from veterans receiving healthcare services. These complaints, New Mexico VA executive leaders told the OIG, were also “related to overall staffing issues.”

Despite federal cuts, the report notes that veterans largely remain supportive of VA healthcare. According to a survey conducted by the VA, 94% of New Mexico veterans receiving care at the facility said that they trust the VA to care for them.

“The score still indicates that veterans trust the facility and have confidence in the care provided,” the OIG wrote.