Veterans

Cutting benefits for disabled veterans
Project 2025 proposes making it harder for veterans to obtain disability benefits by reducing the number of medical conditions that service members can claim to qualify for disabled status. Under the change, veterans currently eligible for a disability rating but who have not yet made claims could be denied benefits entirely, and those who have already made claims and been granted a disability rating could see their benefits from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and other safety net benefits slashed. Project 2025 also pushes to automate claims, which could increase denial rates—similar to the experience patients have had with health insurance denials—and place a heavier administrative burden on veterans.

Cutting health coverage for veterans and reducing the quality of care
Although the Veterans Health Administration provides health insurance to many veterans, many younger than 65 are enrolled in Medicaid. Roughly 1 in 10 service members rely on Medicaid for health care coverage, with 2 in 5 relying on Medicaid exclusively. Project 2025 proposes capping Medicaid payments to states with no regard for their actual spending needs on health and long-term care and giving states the power to deny coverage of particular services, including long-term services and supports such as home- and community-based care. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, the proposed funding caps could force states to restrict eligibility for certain types of services and supports currently provided through Medicaid. Alternatively, Medicaid funding caps could force states to deny coverage of particular benefits, especially costly services such as long-term care. A separate Project 2025 proposal to force VA hospitals to “increase the number of patients seen each day to equal the number seen by DoD medical facilities” would significantly undermine the quality of care.

Exacerbating veteran homelessness
In 2008, amid the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. departments of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs launched a Supportive Housing program to fight veteran homelessness. Thanks to the program, 81,400 veterans receive support to obtain rental housing, with Congress having appropriated sufficient funds to help a remaining 35,000 homeless veterans to obtain housing and end veteran homelessness entirely.

https://www.americanprogress.org/article/project-2025s-plan-to-gut-checks-and-balances-harms-veterans/