Why The VA Says Wisconsin Hospitals Can Hire Even After 30,000 Job Cuts
On Sparta stop, VA Secretary outlines staffing strategy and backs tougher rules on predatory robo-calls.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins said the Tomah VA Medical Center and facilities across the country are able to hire the staff they need, despite the VA’s recent efforts to cut staff. Collins visited with veterans in Sparta, Wis. on Thursday, May 7, 2026. Hope Kirwan/WPR
The head of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs said understaffed Wisconsin medical centers won’t be blocked from filling needed positions.
The comment comes less than a year after the agency cut nearly 30,000 jobs across the federal VA system, including some positions in Wisconsin.
VA Secretary Doug Collins on Thursday held a roundtable with Wisconsin veterans at the American Legion in Sparta before a planned visit to the Tomah VA Medical Center.
Collins fielded questions and comments from vets about difficulties accessing care and the challenges with applying for benefits. He highlighted his agency’s efforts to respond to the challenges over the last year and eliminate other roadblocks to care.
When asked by reporters about the severe staffing shortages highlighted last fall in a report from the Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, Collins told reporters that there is no hiring freeze at VA facilities.
“The part that we had with staffing issues in the VA is making sure we have the right people at the right place,” he said. “Just simply hiring to be hiring is not a solution to anything. So for us, at Tomah or anywhere else, if they need the person, from maintenance to a cardiologist, they can hire that person.”
Collins said the VA system faces the same struggles with recruiting and retaining medical staff as the rest of the nation’s health care system. He said he hopes to work with Congress to adjust salary caps on certain positions in order to better compete for talent.
The secretary was also asked about new federal legislation to block predatory practices by private claims companies. The bipartisan bill would prevent companies from using auto-dialers to call federal agencies, including the VA benefits hotline.
According to reporting from NPR, companies are using the auto-dialers to access veterans’ benefits information and bill them for claims assistance.
Collins said he is in favor of blocking robo-callers.
“There’s a lot of laws on the books currently that, frankly, I don’t think are being as enforced as they could be on that issue,” he said. “For us, we’re just going to work with what the legislators want to work for.”
Collins emphasized that veterans do not need to pay for help filing for benefits through the VA, and encouraged individuals to reach out to the VA directors or to their county veterans service officer for help.
Republican U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, who represents Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District covering Sparta and the Tomah VA, said he is also in favor of cracking down on exploitative practices.
“They use those calls oftentimes to take advantage of our senior veterans and exploit them for money, and that is shameful. So I’m all about getting rid of robocalls,” Van Orden told reporters.
VA Secretary says Wisconsin VA hospitals are hiring, after Trump administration cut 30K positions was originally published by Wisconsin Public Radio.
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