Veterans deserve, and are asking for, a VA health care system that meets their needs without being encumbered by layers of bureaucracy. Mission Roll Call supports the VA’s commitment to reorganize the Veterans Health Administration to deliver more consistent care to veterans across the country, enable faster decision-making, and supports clearer accountability. 

The need to streamline the VA’s processes and systems has existed for years. Multiple independent reviews over the past ten years by the Government Accountability Office, the VA Office of Inspector General, and others have consistently identified bureaucratic layering that functionally hampers the quality and speed of care the VA provides. This includes opaque governance structures that slows decision-making and creates inconsistency from facility to facility. The VA’s plan, as announced, is aimed squarely at addressing those institutional weaknesses by reducing duplicative management layers and clarifying roles and decision authority, all while keeping staffing and operations at medical centers and clinics intact. 

The veteran-facing case for organizational reform at the VA is a clear and recurring theme in Mission Roll Call’s surveys. In a May 2025 Mission Roll Call survey (1,292 respondents, margin of error 3%), only 24% of respondents said the current process for determining eligibility for community care is clear and easy to understand, while 44% said it is not clear—an avoidable bureaucratic failure that leaves veterans navigating a maze of paperwork instead of receiving care. Veterans also want modern, transparent systems: 74% said they would use an online portal to self-schedule and track appointments if one were available. And veterans are explicit that meaningful reform requires new approaches to overcome red tape and delays—79% said allowing outpatient mental health or substance use care in the community without a VA referral would improve access. 

These concerns are especially pronounced in mental health care. In Mission Roll Call’s suicide prevention polling, nearly one-third of veterans described access to mental health care through VA or other providers as difficult or very difficult, underscoring that access barriers are not theoretical, but lived. A clear majority of veterans also said suicide prevention requires both clinical treatment and community-based support working side by side, signaling a strong desire for flexible, responsive systems that can meet veterans where they are, rather than forcing care through rigid bureaucratic pathways. 

Veterans also expect accountability from the system that serves them. Mission Roll Call polling shows that 89% of respondents support continued implementation of the VA Accountability Act, reflecting a strong expectation that performance problems are addressed directly and not absorbed or obscured by bureaucracy. 

Mission Roll Call encourages VA and Congress to work hand in hand to implement this reorganization transparently and in compliance with statutory and oversight requirements. Veterans do not benefit from inter-branch friction or implementation drift. They benefit when Congress and VA align on clear authorities, measurable outcomes, and a governance structure that makes it obvious who is responsible for results. 

Veterans have earned a system organized around care delivery, not internal complexity. Mission Roll Call supports reforms that put veterans first, streamlines decision-making, and holds leaders accountable for performance. We will stay engaged to ensure this reorganization delivers real improvements in access, timeliness, and outcomes.