Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins skirted questions Tuesday on whether VA employees assigned to carry out Department of Government Efficiency reviews at the department have accessed veterans’ medical records.
During a budget hearing before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee, Collins was quizzed on DOGE activities at the VA by Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia, who noted that he and other Senate Democrats had written to Collins in February asking for information on DOGE but had not received a response.
Ossoff said his questions Tuesday were an opportunity to “bring transparency to an issue about which there’s been a lot of public controversy and concern.”
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In response, Collins said the VA has three employees doing DOGE work who are “looking at contracts and stuff like that.”
Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, was tasked by President Donald Trump at the beginning of his second term with slashing the size of the federal government. Musk and his team, which he dubbed DOGE, gained access to agencies and their data and also began firing federal workers, shuttering offices and forcing resignations. The actions sparked widespread outcry and subsequent lawsuits charging that Musk had no legal authority to overhaul the federal government.
When questioned specifically about the group’s access to VA medical records, Collins said the workers are “acting in their role as employees, as a normal VA employee will do and are authorized to do anything that they are currently doing,” without articulating the specifics of their tasks other than the contract reviews.
He then added that he would take Ossoff’s questions for the record — a response that drew a rebuke from the Georgia senator.
“Mr. Secretary, I asked you these questions on Feb. 13 in a letter. OK, it’s the end of June. I mean, you were a member of Congress. Would that be satisfactory to you?” Ossoff said. “There would be a lot less concern about this if the answers weren’t so cagey.”
“There’s no caginess to it,” Collins responded. “Any VA employee who has access to anything in work at the VA is totally responsible and trained.”
DOGE representatives have worked for the VA since February, with a focus on “identifying wasteful contracts, improving VA operations and strengthening management of the department’s IT projects,” according to the VA.
Collins has said that, under his leadership, the department will prioritize benefits and veterans services, and is focused on slashing unnecessary contracts and streamlining staff to eliminate waste.
The VA has asked for $441.3 billion for its fiscal 2026 budget, up 10% from 2025. The budget calls for increases in mandatory spending, which covers disability compensation, pensions and other benefits, and an additional $6 billion for medical claims for veterans with illnesses caused by environmental exposures.
It funds the expansion of the VA’s planned electronic health records modernization program and provides for 455,874 full-time positions, roughly 3,000 fewer than it had in the 2025 budget process.
The department is in the midst of a staff overhaul with an aim to reduce its workforce by 15%, according to Collins. The VA has dismissed roughly 1,000 employees since the beginning of the year and offered a deferred resignation program that, as of early May, had more than 11,000 applications, according to an internal tally viewed by Military.com.
During the hearing, subcommittee Chairman Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., urged Collins to safeguard physician jobs, which have been exempted from the proposed reductions, and expressed interest in raising salary caps for medical providers to draw quality employees.
“This is something that we can work, together,” Boozman said. “[Hiring is] a huge problem throughout not only the VA, but just in medicine in general. … I know you are really interested in solving the problem.”
Collins agreed, reiterating during the hearing that roughly 350,000 jobs at the VA are exempt from reductions.
“You have my commitment that we’re going to continue to make sure these jobs are protected,” Collins said.
The VA did not respond to a request for clarification on DOGE’s access to medical records.
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