“more than $8 billion of the $10.9 billion increase for healthcare services in FY '27 is for community care. The difference is even more significant in the department's FY28 advance request, with the VA asking for a $17 billion increase in community care and near stagnant levels for direct care.”
- Speaker
- Speaker A
- Timestamp
- 22:56 – 24:03
- Community
- Alaska News
- Captured at
- May 20, 2026
From the transcript
And more than $8 billion of the $10.9 billion increase for healthcare services in FY '27 is for community care. The difference is even more significant in the department's FY28 advance request, with the VA asking for a $17 billion increase in community care and near stagnant levels for direct care. Veterans depend on our VA facilities for the gold standard healthcare they need and deserve. And the potential shortchanging of those facilities and the staff, the skilled and dedicated men and women who serve as nurses, doctors, schedulers, psychiatrists, custodians, the entire team threatens the quality of care. Veterans typically prefer to receive healthcare at VA facilities, and yet the funding request for direct care fails to keep pace with inflation.
Related Coverage
VA budget seeks $488 billion with 60,000 Alaska veterans facing shift toward private care
The VA's fiscal 2027 budget requests $17 billion more for community care in 2028 while holding direct-care spending nearly flat, prompting senators to question whether the department is abandoning its own hospitals.
by Walter AlaskaNews3mo ago3 min readAI