Moulton, Bacon Call for Answers on Reported Cuts to Veterans Crisis Line Staffing
Congressmen Seth Moulton (D-MA) and Don Bacon (R-NE) are calling for answers amidst recent reports that employees of the Veterans Crisis Line (VCL) may have been fired amid cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
In a letter sent to the VA Secretary Doug Collins, the lawmakers write:
“The Veterans Crisis Line plays a critical role in ensuring that veterans can seek assistance in addressing mental health issues, particularly thoughts of attempting suicide. As you know, veterans have an age-adjusted suicide rate that is considerably greater than the non-veteran U.S. adult population. And since the transition of the previous VCL and National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to 9-8-8, the VCL has continued to see a significant rise in call volume with no signs of slowing down.”
The letter requests detailed responses to the following questions:
- How many employees of the Veterans Crisis Line, or employees in positions that provide support to the VCL, received job termination notices or resigned over the past thirty days? How many, if any, job offers were rescinded in the last thirty days for such positions?
- Does the Department plan to rehire any employee of the Veterans Crisis Line whose position was terminated or who resigned in the last thirty days? If any such individuals have already been reinstated at the Department, please describe the roles for which they have been rehired or repositioned?
- How will the Veterans Crisis Line be affected by any recent cuts to the Department’s personnel or funding? Has the Department cut any contract associated with the operation of the VCL? Please describe what the Department is doing to ensure that individuals accessing the VCL will see no diminished quality of service provided by the VCL.
Moulton and Bacon continue in the letter: “As Members of Congress who are proud to lead the effort every year to secure funding for the Veterans Crisis Line, we look forward to continuing to work with you to ensure the best care that our heroes deserve. Our duty to those who have bravely served our country demands nothing less, and we will remain vigilant in our dedication to strengthening the VCL’s ability to meet the needs of our veterans.”
The full text of the letter is pasted below.
Dear Secretary Collins,
We write to express our concern regarding recent reports that employees of the Veterans Crisis Line (VCL) may have been fired amid cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs, or that the VCL may otherwise be affected by staff shortages resulting from associated cuts.
The Veterans Crisis Line plays a critical role in ensuring that veterans can seek assistance in addressing mental health issues, particularly thoughts of attempting suicide. As you know, veterans have an age-adjusted suicide rate that is considerably greater than the non-veteran U.S. adult population. And since the transition of the previous VCL and National Suicide Prevention Lifeline to 9-8-8, the VCL has continued to see a significant rise in call volume with no signs of slowing down.
The Veterans Crisis Line has always enjoyed strong bipartisan support, and we must ensure that the VCL’s critical services are able to meet the needs of those who have bravely sacrificed so much defending our nation. We would be failing our veterans if any cuts to the Department diminished the quality of service provided by the VCL to individuals in crisis, and we welcome your recent public statements that the Department will not be cutting healthcare or benefits.
As such, we would appreciate responses by March 7, 2025 providing clarity to the following questions:
- How many employees of the Veterans Crisis Line, or employees in positions that provide support to the VCL, received job termination notices or resigned over the past thirty days? How many, if any, job offers were rescinded in the last thirty days for such positions?
- Does the Department plan to rehire any employee of the Veterans Crisis Line whose position was terminated or who resigned in the last thirty days? If any such individuals have already been reinstated at the Department, please describe the roles for which they have been rehired or repositioned.
- How will the Veterans Crisis Line be affected by any recent cuts to the Department’s personnel or funding? Has the Department cut any contract associated with the operation of the VCL? Please describe what the Department is doing to ensure that individuals accessing the VCL will see no diminished quality of service provided by the VCL.
As Members of Congress who are proud to lead the effort every year to secure funding for the Veterans Crisis Line, we look forward to continuing to work with you to ensure the best care that our heroes deserve. Our duty to those who have bravely served our country demands nothing less, and we will remain vigilant in our dedication to strengthening the VCL’s ability to meet the needs of our veterans.
Thank you for your attention to this critical issue.