A bipartisan group of senators decides to halt the Department of Veterans Affairs’ commission responsible for facility closures and changes.

Senator Joe Manchin has revealed that a bipartisan group of U.S. senators has agreed to dismantle a commission created by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to oversee closures, downsizing, and other major changes to medical facilities across the country. The West Virginia Democrat, who serves on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, confirmed that the senators would block the filling of vacancies on the VA’s Assets and Infrastructure Review (AIR) Commission and move to disband it as part of the next National Defense Authorization Act.

The AIR Commission had proposed the closure or downsizing of several aging VA facilities, which raised concerns for Manchin, especially regarding the potential impact on rural veterans. Some veterans’ groups, however, had supported the commission’s recommendations, arguing that such changes were necessary to modernise and enhance VA healthcare services.

Manchin stated that, without Senate approval for the commission and its appointees, the process outlined by the 2018 VA Mission Act would effectively stall. This act mandated that the VA develop recommendations for medical facilities, focusing on either expansions, closures, relocations, or other changes to improve healthcare delivery.

For example, the commission’s suggestions included reducing the size of three out of four VA medical centres in West Virginia and closing four outpatient clinics in New Mexico. Manchin, along with several other senators, opposed these proposals, arguing that they would disadvantage veterans in both rural and urban areas.

The bipartisan group of senators expressed their strong opposition to the commission’s recommendations, declaring that the process would undermine the country’s obligations to its veterans. The group’s statement emphasised that modernising VA infrastructure is critical, but that it could be achieved without resorting to the closure of vital facilities. They affirmed their commitment to ensuring the VA receives the necessary resources to provide high-quality care in state-of-the-art facilities.

Senators who signed the letter alongside Manchin include Democrats Jon Tester (Montana), Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján (New Mexico), Maggie Hassan (New Hampshire), Sherrod Brown (Ohio), and Patty Murray (Washington), as well as Republicans Shelley Moore Capito (West Virginia), Mike Rounds and John Thune (South Dakota), Rob Portman (Ohio), and Steve Daines (Montana).

However, the Concerned Veterans for America group condemned the senators’ decision, claiming it would leave veterans trapped in an outdated and ineffective system. Darin Selnick, a senior adviser for the group, described the decision as “short-sighted” and argued that the AIR Commission’s recommendations were the best opportunity to modernise the VA healthcare system to meet the evolving needs of veterans.

In March, the VA issued preliminary recommendations, sparking initial concerns among a group of bipartisan senators led by Manchin. The senators had urged President Joe Biden to ensure that rural perspectives were adequately represented in the commission’s final report.

This latest move by the Senate signals a major setback for the VA’s plan to reform its facilities, with lawmakers now focusing on alternative ways to enhance services for veterans while preserving key healthcare infrastructure across the United States.