Are Disabled Veterans Affected by 2025 VA Layoffs?

The VA announced plans in March to terminate tens of thousands of employees from the agency as part of the Trump administration’s efforts to shrink the federal government and reduce waste.

Because of this dramatic decrease in staffing, many veterans who receive or plan to receive VA disability may be wondering if these changes will affect their benefits, or if there is a proposal to end VA disability benefits. In this article, we will provide a timeline of important events that have affected the VA this year, explain what to expect in the coming months, and answer some frequently asked questions.

What is currently happening at the VA?

VA Chief of Staff Christopher Syrek told officials at the beginning of March that the department is planning to cut enough employees to return to 2019 staffing levels of just under 400,000. This will require the termination of around 80,000 employees – about 17% of VA staff – after the Biden administration expanded the VA in part to cover veterans affected by burn pits under the 2022 PACT Act. The layoffs are set to begin in June.

The announcement came after several months of other significant, yet smaller changes impacting the department. Below we provide a timeline of VA events that have occurred so far in 2025.

2025 timeline of VA events

• Jan. 20 – Jan. 21: Donald Trump signed an executive order to institute a federal hiring freeze, ordering that no open federal position be filled and no new position be created. The following day, acting VA Secretary Todd Hunter issued a memo in which he said positions critical to delivering health care to veterans were exempt from the freeze. The memo included a list of 39 exempt positions, representing more than 300,000 VA jobs.

• Jan. 27: As many as 60 VA employees were placed on administrative leave following President Trump’s executive order to end diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs in the federal government. DEI initiatives at the VA focused largely on improving outreach to women, minorities, LGBTQ+ veterans, people with disabilities, and religious minorities.  

• Jan. 27 – Jan. 28: The Trump administration released a memo ordering federal agencies to temporarily pause certain federal grants, loans, and financial assistance programs. In response, VA leaders announced that the department conducted a comprehensive analysis of its federal financial assistance programs and determined its 44 financial assistance programs and VA programs would continue uninterrupted. Acting VA Secretary Todd Hunter assured vets that the administration’s government-wide funding freeze would “have no impact on VA health care, benefits, or beneficiaries.”

• Jan. 28: Todd Hunter sent an email to VA employees offering severance pay through Sept. 30 if they submitted a “deferred resignation” by a Feb. 6 deadline. It is unknown at this time how many VA employees accepted the buyout.

• Feb. 4: Air Force Reserve chaplain and former GOP congressman from Georgia Doug Collins was confirmed as new VA secretary.

• Feb. 7: VA leadership sent an email stating most nurses, doctors, and other VA staff responsible for caring for military veterans were not eligible for Trump’s buyout offer as it would affect the care of its 9.1 million enrolled veterans. The VA deemed 130 occupations ineligible, including laundry workers, cooks, nurses, pharmacists, and physicians.

• Feb. 13: In continued efforts to cut back spending, the VA dismissed more than 1,000 probationary employees, or employees who had worked at the VA for less than two years. Most of the VA’s 43,000 probationary employees were exempt from the dismissal because they hold “mission-critical positions” or are part of a federal workers union. VA Secretary Doug Collins said in a statement that the move will save about $98 million annually and the money can be redirected into veterans’ care and benefits. 

• Feb. 24: 1,400 additional probationary VA employees were let go in a second round of layoffs that month.

• Feb 25: Collins posted a video message to social media outlining the VA’s plans to cancel about 875 government contracts he insisted were not providing real benefits to veterans. The VA claimed the move would save $2 billion. Some of the contracts included COVID-19 healthcare services and telehealth outreach services for women, but only 30 of the 875 contracts were listed on the Department of Government Oversight’s website. 

• March 3: The VA announced plans to scale back efforts to cancel contracts, publicizing revised plans to eliminate 585 “non-mission critical or duplicative contracts” officials now say will save the department $900 million.

• March 5: A VA internal memo outlined plans of reorganization of the VA which includes cutting over 80,000 jobs from the agency. VA Chief of Staff Christopher Syrek told officials that the agency’s objective is to cut enough employees to return to 2019 staffing levels of almost 400,000.
  
• April 2: In an act of protest against the VA’s upcoming budget cuts, congressional Democrats announce plans to fight against the administration’s controversial reforms through confirmation holds, legislative obstruction, and unofficial hearings.
  
• April 15: VA leaders release an internal memo outlining plans to cut hundreds of payroll workers at almost 50 VA medical centers across the country, handing their workload over instead to the department’s Financial Services Center. Acting Chief Financial Officer Edward Murray stated in the memo that “centralizing these payroll services will reduce administrative overhead, duplication errors, back pay settlements, fraud, and increase efficiencies.” The move will also eliminate jobs for about 300 federal employees and force the relocation of 300 others.
  
• April 16: House Veterans’ Affairs Chairman Mike Bost assures the public that VA staffing cuts won’t cripple the department. Bost told Military Times the VA will continue to provide “good, quality care.”
  
• May 2: The White House releases its budget plan for fiscal year 2026, revealing a proposed 4% – or $5.4 billion – increase in programmatic funding for the VA.
  
• May 6: VA Secretary Doug Collins defends VA staffing cuts and contract cancellations during his first appearance before Congress since his confirmation hearing in January. Despite Democrats’ harsh criticisms of the plan, Collins insists the reform will not interrupt veterans services.
  
• May 9: President Donald Trump signs an executive order that will expand on the existing plans to reform the VA. Some of the initiatives in the order include, among other things, mandating reduced wait times for veterans health care appointments and ramping up efforts to fire poorly performing employees.
  
• May 10: Data released by the VA reveals that 11,273 agency employees across the country have applied for deferred resignation. The top positions requesting referred resignation are nurses, medical support assistants, and social workers. VA Secretary Doug Collins maintains that these staff cuts will not affect veterans’ health care.
  
• June 4: House Republicans unveil plans for a $453 billion VA budget for next fiscal year. The budget includes a significant increase to mandatory health care and benefits funding and a 3% boost in discretionary veteran program spending.
  
• June 16: President Donald Trump nominates Karen Brazell to serve as the next VA Under Secretary for Benefits, putting her in charge of the processing and management of almost $200 billion in financial aid to veterans.
  
• July 7: VA department leaders announce that voluntary retirements and resignations are expected to cut the department by 30,000 positions by the end of September. About 17,000 jobs at the agency have already been vacated this year.

Answers to frequently asked questions

How many VA employees are being fired?

As mentioned above, the VA intends to terminate around 80,000 of the 470,000 VA employees. There is also currently a hiring freeze in place at the VA, which will further reduce staff as natural attrition takes place. Additionally, some VA staff members who were working remotely quit when they were ordered to return to the office in late February. Members of the National Organization of Veterans Advocates (NOVA) believe the combination of changes at the VA will ultimately reduce staff numbers by 25% or more.

What departments are subject to the mass firing of VA employees?

We don’t exactly know yet. If the goal is to reduce VA staffing levels to 2019 levels, that may mean all PACT Act hires and positions will be terminated. This would include medical professionals who conduct C&P exams, staff who support rating decisions at the VA regional offices, and even potentially the dozens of BVA judges hired after the PACT Act.

When will the VA start firing employees?

The VA plans to start cutting staff significantly in June, 2025.

Is there a proposal to end VA disability benefits at this time?

There is not a proposal to end VA disability benefits at this time. However, on March 14, 2025, the House and Senate passed a continuing resolution to fund the U.S. government until Sept. 30. One section of the continuing resolution cuts over $20 billion dedicated to healthcare and benefits for veterans exposed to military burn pits and toxic chemicals. These cuts will take place on Oct. 1, 2025. We do not yet know how this will change VA disability claims for toxic exposure benefits.

What does all of this mean for VA disability claims?

Veterans should be prepared for much longer wait times for VA disability decisions. The consensus is that wait times will look a lot more like they did in 2018 and 2019 under the Legacy system if staffing is reduced back down to 2019 numbers. This means disabled veterans may wait years longer than they currently do to receive benefits.

Is there anything anyone can do to make VA disability claims go faster?

Unfortunately, no. The VA needs people to process VA disability claims and make decisions, and with significantly less employees, claims processes will inevitably take more time.

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How Woods & Woods can help

The VA-accredited attorneys at Woods & Woods have helped thousands of veterans nationwide get the disability benefits they deserve. We strive to provide our clients with transparent, timely updates on their case regardless of changes or fluctuations at the VA, and we are here to answer your questions every step of the way. Call us today for a free case evaluation. You won’t pay us a dime unless we win your case.