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The consequences of privatizing VA medical care — especially in Idaho — would be severe • Idaho Capital Sun [1]

["Raymond O'Dell", 'Carly Erickson', 'Rachel Hayes', 'Ted Epperly', 'Hillarie Hagen', 'More From Author', 'September', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus']

Date: 2025-09-05

My name is Raymond O’Dell. I am a Boise resident, a veteran and I receive my medical care at the Boise VA.

For some time now there has been an effort by the federal government to privatize veterans’ health care. If you’ve been watching the news, you will see that the Trump administration has put this effort in the fast lane. The intent seems to be to bust the VA union (done), critically understaff VA facilities (done) and divert VA funding to “community care” (done). In other words, cripple VA health care to the point of failure in order to justify complete privatization.

You may ask, what is wrong with privatizing VA care? In Idaho it would be catastrophic. The Boise VA sees over 40,000 patients per year and provides veteran specific care related to conditions such as burn pit exposure, Agent Orange, post-traumatic stress and loss of limbs. This care extends from Salmon to Twin Falls and Ontario to Idaho Falls. The impact on Idaho communities cannot be overstated.

Idaho ranks 50th among states in the number of doctors per capita. Communities throughout Idaho are experiencing a severe shortage of primary care physicians, specialty physicians and nurses. This can be attributed to many factors, among them, Idaho reproductive rights laws, Medicaid cuts and the lack of medical schools in the state.

This equates to Idaho citizens competing with one another in a literal health care abyss. When you throw in 40,000 plus veterans who have lost their VA care it further floods a severely flooded system. Community residents suddenly find themselves competing with not only their neighbors for care but also competing with thousands of veterans for care.

VA health care providers are oftentimes veterans themselves and understand the special needs of veterans. All VA health care providers are specially trained in the physical and psychological needs of the veterans they care for. This cannot be said of care outside of VA facilities.

Job loss is another consequence of privatization. The Boise VA employs approximately 1,500 Treasure Valley residents of which one third are veterans themselves. The health care cuts mentioned previously are more than likely to cause those employees to leave the state in order to find employment. The ones who stay will find themselves in a flooded local job market outside of health care.

The Boise VA is a teaching hospital and major training ground for physician residents, nurses and other health care professionals. Nationwide, a large percentage of health care professionals receive part of their training through VA programs, and the availability of residency slots is a major limiting factor in how many physicians can be trained, eliminating the VA would be a serious blow. Eliminating the Boise VA would seriously hinder the ability to train and maintain doctors in the Treasure Valley.

I have shared an awareness of all this information with our elected leaders from the Boise city mayor (who was very receptive) to our Idaho congressional delegation and most everyone in between. Except for Mayor Lauren McLean’s office, most were unconcerned and continue to give “lip service” and promises that are not reflected in their priorities or their votes. For example, U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, would have you believe “Community Care” is the answer and blames Joe Biden, invoking partisanship when the problem is resources.

It is my position that they need to be proactive. By the time they become reactive it will be too late. I do NOT want our elected officials to be able to say “I had no idea this would happen.” Let it be known that they have been informed. What they do with that information will be on them.

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[1] Url: https://idahocapitalsun.com/2025/09/05/the-consequences-of-privatizing-va-medical-care-especially-in-idaho-would-be-severe/

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