DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Daytona Beach VA Outpatient Clinic is celebrating a milestone amid lingering questions about workforce cuts to the Department of Veterans Affairs.
A community outreach event is being held on Thursday to mark the one-year anniversary of Daytona Beach’s VA clinic at 1776 N. Williamson Blvd.
[Watch video below to hear from vet who depends on clinic]
During the event, which is from 10 a.m. - 1 p.m., outreach services for veterans and their families will be featured.
Bill Leman, a Marine Corps veteran, said he’s come to depend on the services provided by the clinic.
“All the military people need something like this. We need all the doctors we can get in there,” Leman said. “I think it means quite a bit. It handles a lot more people than the old one did.”
On Tuesday, VA Secretary Doug Collins spoke about planned cuts to his department’s workforce after a surge in hiring under the Biden administration.
“This year we have finally embarked on a historic effort to reform the VA,” Collins said. “We have been emphatic that we will not be cutting benefits and health care, only improving them, and I think the budget shows that.”
Collins said the goal is to cut nonessential VA employees in what would amount to a reduction in the workforce by about 15%.
Leman said he had concerns about the effect the workforce cuts could have on Daytona Beach’s VA clinic.
“They’re efficient in there,” Leman said. “If they make any cuts here, it’s going to be pretty sad. It’s going to back everything up.”
Collins said the reduction in nonessential workforce won’t impact health care or benefits and would allow the VA to direct more funding towards veteran care.
For more details about the Daytona Beach VA Outpatient Clinic, click here.