Health care financing deputy secretary Moran to leave for Washington state job
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Diverging Reports Breakdown
State Roundup: Report says feds contribute $150 billion to Maryland economy; JHU UM sue to protect federal research funding; how lobbyists influenced legislative session
A report released Wednesday by the Maryland Comptroller’s Office found that Maryland drew more than $150 billion in economic value from the federal government. A new lawsuit was filed by Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, College Park to protect millions of dollars in federal research funding from the U.S. Department of Defense. Del. Chris Bouchat, a Republican from Carroll County who has railed against both Democrats and members of his own party in Annapolis, is gearing up to run for governor next year. Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson announced Wednesday that he had selected Ryan Moran to direct the state’s Health Care Authority, which administers Medicaid for the state, manages health benefits for state employees and coordinates behavioral health supports. Prince George’s County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Shawn Millard II announced that he is leaving his position effective June 18, effective on June 18. The new chief of police for Prince George’S County will be an assistant chief at the Metro Transit Police Department who previously served as deputy chief in the Metro transit Police Department.
JHU, UM SUE TO PROTECT FEDERAL RESEARCH FUNDING: The Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland, College Park, joined by 10 other universities and university systems, are fighting in court to protect millions of dollars in federal research funding from the U.S. Department of Defense, according to a new lawsuit the schools filed Monday. Ellie Wolfe/The Baltimore Banner.
HOW LOBBYISTS, ADVOCATES INFLUENCED 2025 LEGISLATIVE SESSION: Lobbyists and advocates looking to wield their influence with Maryland officials — with a record $58 million behind them — saw both wins and losses this year in Annapolis. For the viewing public, it’s sometimes difficult to discern one from the other. An analysis of data from thousands of new lobbying disclosures, other public records and interviews help understand where lobbyists and advocates tried to put their fingers on the scale in the months before and during the 90-day session that ended in April. Sam Janesch/The Baltimore Sun.
ATTY GEN DECRIES B’MORE HOLDING ROOM FOR IMMIGRANTS: The conditions in the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s temporary hold room in downtown Baltimore used to house immigrants are so poor that they would violate standards if it were a state-run facility, the office of Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said in a new court filing. Daniel Zawodny/The Baltimore Banner.
FEMA FUNDS CANCELLATION PUTS CRISFIELD IN CRISIS: Crisfield officially got word from FEMA last July that it had secured $36 million from the program to launch the first phase of its massive flood-protection initiative. A lot has changed since then. Trump returned to office in January, vowing to drastically shrink the size of the federal government. In a terse April 4 press statement, FEMA announced it was pulling the plug on the disaster-preparedness funding, not just for Crisfield but for all applicants and grantees, calling it “wasteful and ineffective,” though without citing evidence to support those claims. Jeremy Cox/The Bay Journal.
DEL. BOUCHAT TO SEEK REPUBLICAN NOMINATION FOR GOVERNOR: Del. Chris Bouchat, a Republican from Carroll County who has railed against both Democrats and members of his own party in Annapolis, is gearing up to run for governor next year. Bouchat said on Wednesday he is launching an initial slate of television ads in the coming weeks but is not yet formally announcing his candidacy or filing with the Maryland State Board of Elections. Democratic Gov. Wes Moore has said he intends to seek a second term, and a few challengers have begun lining up to get their names on the ballot. Sam Janesch/The Baltimore Sun.
DEPTY HEALTH SECTY TO TAKE POST IN WASHINGTON STATE: Maryland Deputy Health Secretary Ryan Moran, the official tasked with overseeing Medicaid and health care financing, will leave Maryland for a new position in Washington state come August. Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson (D) announced Wednesday that he had selected Moran to direct the state’s Health Care Authority, which administers Medicaid for the state, manages health benefits for state employees and coordinates behavioral health supports. Danielle Brown/Maryland Matters.
BRAVEBOY NAMES NEWS PRINCE GEORGE’S POLICE CHIEF: Prince George’s County Executive Aisha Braveboy, newly sworn in, introduced the county’s new chief of police on Wednesday. George Nader, an assistant chief at the Metro Transit Police Department who previously served as deputy chief in Prince George’s, will replace Malik Aziz, Braveboy said, a week after Aziz was named as a finalist for another job. Jasmine Hilton and Lateshia Beachum/The Washington Post.
It is the third major appointment by Braveboy since her June 3 election, even though she was only officially sworn in Wednesday. William Ford/Maryland Matters.
PG SCHOOLS SUPER RESIGNS AFTER NO CONFIDENCE VOTE: Prince George’s County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Millard House II announced that he is leaving his position, effective on June 18. Shawn Joseph, co-director of Howard University’s Superintendent Academy, has been named as the interim superintendent by County Executive Aisha Braveboy. Members of Prince George’s County Education Association voted no-confidence in House on June 4, citing concerns regarding the lack of support for educators. Richard Elliott/The Washington Informer.
FREDERICK COUNTY COUNCIL SEEKS TO LIMIT DATA CENTER GROWTH: The Frederick County Council introduced a bill on Tuesday that would limit the land available for data centers, but residents question whether the consequences will be worth it. The bill would limit data centers to 1% of Frederick’s total land mass. Further restrictions would require data centers to build on a 4,200 acre plot north of Adam’s Town. Nathanael Miller/WYPR-FM.
JUSTICE DEPT SEEKS DISMISSAL OF ABREGO GARCIA LAWSUIT: The Department of Justice says Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s lawsuit against several U.S. government agency heads must be dismissed because the wrongly deported Salvadoran national has been returned to the United States. Neal Augenstein/WTOP-FM.
Trump’s Sober Pick for Veterans Affairs Has His Work Cut Out
Doug Collins is an Iraq war veteran with law and divinity school degrees. Only one out of 19 Republicans, Democrats, and Independents voted against him in committee. VA hospitals and facilities need fresh funding just at a time when President Trump and Elon Musk are looking to slash budgets. The VA is running out of money to fund further outsourcing of veterans’ care without inflicting fatal damage on its hospitals, clinics, and 300,000-person workforce (one-third of whom are veterans themselves) The VA MISSION Act of 2018 significantly accelerated the privatization of Veterans’ health care. It was one of Trump’s proudest first-term legislative achievements that Collins supported as a House member. The bill was greatly expanded during the Obama administration and continued under Joe Biden, despite his professed opposition to privatization as a 2020 presidential candidate. It has created an “existential threat to their clinical care budgets,” said a report by the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank in Washington.
The former four-term member of Congress from Georgia is an Iraq war veteran with law and divinity school degrees. An Air Force Reserve colonel, Collins, the son of a Georgia state trooper, has ministered to fellow soldiers as a military chaplain. He also served stints in the Georgia State House and the U.S. House GOP leadership.
At his confirmation hearing last month, no one questioned Collins’s ability to manage the federal government’s second-largest workforce and third-largest agency budget ($300 billion). On the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee (SVAC), only one out of 19 Republicans, Democrats, and Independents voted against him in committee (due to concern about his views on VA patient access to abortion). However, some of those Democrats voted against him on the chamber floor.
The 77-23 vote to confirm the bespectacled 59-year-old was based partly on the nominee’s assurances that he would champion continuity rather than disrupt the nation’s most extensive public healthcare system. Senator Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, the ranking member of SVAC, was one of many Democrats to vote for Collins.
Collins’s promise to stay the course at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) by offering its nine million patients a choice between direct care in 1,350 VA facilities and referrals to private-sector hospitals and providers bolstered the support.
But there’s still plenty of reason to worry about Collins. First, there’s the situation he inherits at the VA-run Veterans Health Administration (VHA), which is running out of money to fund further outsourcing of veterans’ care without inflicting fatal damage on its hospitals, clinics, and 300,000-person workforce (one-third of whom are veterans themselves).
Of course, the incremental privatization of the VA is not new. This costly and unnecessary experiment began a decade ago under Barack Obama with strong Democratic support. It was greatly expanded during President Trump’s first administration and continued under Joe Biden, despite his professed opposition to privatization as a 2020 presidential candidate.
But now the VA is back in the hands of hard-core Republican ideologues who favor wider implementation of the VA MISSION Act of 2018, one of Trump’s proudest first-term legislative achievements that Collins supported as a House member. The bill significantly accelerated the privatization of Veterans’ health care. On the campaign trail last year, Trump touted the MISSION Act-mandated outsourcing as a great system of “rapid service,” in which veterans “go to an outside doctor . . . get themselves fixed up, and we pay the bill.” Collins was a serious legislator, but he is also hard-core MAGA. He was Trump’s pick in the 2020 Republican U.S. Senate primary in Georgia, where he lost to Kelly Loeffler. He even penned a book about Democrats being obsessed with Trump.
Collins and other Republicans assure veterans they can have the best of both worlds. They can continue to receive specialized, high-quality in-house care and exercise virtually unlimited “healthcare freedom” by going outside the VA at tax-payer expense. “At the end of the day,” Collins told SVAC members, “the veteran is getting taken care of,” and “there will always be the VA healthcare system” as “backup.”
This last claim, though, is on a collision course with reality. Imagine how long Kaiser Permanente would remain in business if some 40 percent of its patients could freely seek “out-of-network” care while it pays the bill. Plus, VA hospitals and facilities need fresh funding just at a time when President Trump and Elon Musk are looking to slash budgets.
According to a bi-partisan panel of experts, who sent their assessment to Collins’ predecessor, Denis McDonough, nearly a year ago in a report entitled “The Urgent Need to Address VHA Community Care Spending and Access Strategies,” referrals outside the VA have grown 15 to 20 percent per year and now involve more than 40 percent of its patient population.
The cost of reimbursing for-profit vendors enrolled in the MISSION Act-created Veterans Community Care Program (VCCP) has also “dramatically increased—from $14.8 billion in FY 2018 to $28.5 billion in FY 2023.”
As a result, “some VA Medical Centers are incurring community care spending deficits in the hundreds of millions of dollars and…consuming more than half of their clinical care budgets.” This has created an “existential threat” to the VHA, which, absent “new funding…will likely be forced to consider eliminating direct care services or closing VA facilities.”
This review further noted that hospital closings would ” eliminate choice for the millions of Veterans who prefer to use the VHA direct care system for all or part of their healthcare needs.” Plus, the lesser-known but equally critical medical research, teaching, and emergency preparedness functions of the VHA, which benefit all Americans, would also be gutted.
None of the healthcare experts on this McDonough-appointed panel, whose recommendations he sadly ignored, was against sending vets to private doctors or hospitals “when needed services are not readily available in the VA’s direct care system.” They questioned outside referrals that don’t result in more timely, accessible, or better care.
The panel’s wake-up call has not stopped Congressional Republicans from ignoring problems with private-sector treatment. The journal Health Affairs just published the results of a new study showing that private sector medical services utilized by veterans are of “lower quality” than those offered at the VA.
Last month, the Republican chairs of the Senate and House Veterans Affairs Committees, Senator Jerry Moran of Kansas and Representative Mike Bost of Illinois, teamed up to introduce the ACCESS Act of 2025. It’s an acronym for Assuring Critical Care Expansions to Support Service Members Act.
According to Representative Bost, the ACCESS Act will “protect and preserve the intent of the MISSION Act and the VA community care program so that no bureaucrat can stand in the way of veterans accessing the healthcare they have earned—whether that is inside or outside the VA.”
The legislation codifies and loosens patient referral standards developed during the first Trump Administration, which triggered a surge in costly and unnecessary outsourcing. Senator Moran claims the result will be “great flexibility” for veterans.
Contrary to the claims of Republicans like Secretary Collins and the bill’s sponsors, veterans are not poised to enjoy the best of both worlds—VA direct care and private doctors. As the VA becomes more of a Medicare-style bill payer and less of a direct care provider, its latter function becomes increasingly unsustainable. That’s a problem Collins and the rest of Washington can’t easily square.
US plans to fire 80,000 Veterans Affairs workers as part of Trump cuts, sparking backlash
The VA’s chief of staff, Christopher Syrek, sent a memo to senior agency officials on Tuesday. He told them the goal was to return the agency to 2019 staffing levels of just under 400,000. That would mean cutting about 82,000 staff. The scale of the planned layoffs at the VA is far greater than proposed cuts at other government agencies. To date about 25,000 workers across the U.S. government have been fired, according to a Reuters tally. Another 75,000 have taken a buyout, out of the 2.3 million federal civilian workforce. “The federal government does not exist to employ people. It exists to serve people,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins said in a video posted on X on Wednesday. The VA provides a huge array of benefits and medical help to veterans and critics of the plan said the cuts will adversely impact that care. “I’m sure the VA can be reduced. But if you’re a veteran, you read it in the paper, it kind of rattles you,” Senator Lindsey Graham said.
Item 1 of 2 A sign marks the headquarters of the Department of Veterans Affairs in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 20, 2025.
Summary VA plans a return to 2019 staffing levels
Veterans groups and Democrats call cuts a betrayal of veterans
Trump and Musk aim to reduce federal workforce size and cost
VA secretary says federal government does not exist to employ people
WASHINGTON, March 5 (Reuters) – The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning to cut more than 80,000 workers from the agency, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters, drawing condemnation from military veteran groups and Democrats.
The VA’s chief of staff, Christopher Syrek, sent a memo to senior agency officials on Tuesday, telling them the goal was to return the agency to 2019 staffing levels of just under 400,000. That would mean cutting about 82,000 staff.
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The memo directed agency staff to work with tech billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to make the cuts. It stated that two goals were to “eliminate waste” and “increase workforce efficiency”.
The scale of the planned layoffs at the VA is far greater than proposed cuts at other government agencies, and will hit a department that looks after one of the most beloved groups in the U.S., its military veterans.
“Now, we regret anyone who loses their job and it’s extraordinarily difficult for me especially as a VA leader and your secretary to make these types of decisions but the federal government does not exist to employ people. It exists to serve people,” Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins said in a video posted on X on Wednesday.
The VA provides a huge array of benefits and medical help to veterans and critics of the plan said the cuts will adversely impact that care.
Everett Kelley, head of the American Federation of Government Employees which represents 311,000 VA employees, said, “veterans and their families will suffer unnecessarily.”
Musk and his team have been tasked by President Donald Trump to slash the size and cost of the federal bureaucracy. To date about 25,000 workers across the U.S. government have been fired, according to a Reuters tally, and another 75,000 have taken a buyout, out of the 2.3 million federal civilian workforce.
Patty Murray, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the job cuts marked an escalation of a “full-scale, no-holds-barred assault on veterans” by Trump and Musk that would put veterans’ health benefits in “grave danger.”
Jerry Moran, Republican chairman of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, indicated he was not entirely happy with how the cuts were being implemented and called on the VA to work with Congress to “legislate necessary changes.”
“The VA is in need of reform but current efforts to downsize the department and increase efficiency must be done in a more responsible manner,” Moran said in an emailed statement.
Anna Kelly, a White House deputy press secretary, said Trump will preserve veterans’ benefits, but will not stand for the “bureaucracy and bloat” at the agency.
Republican U.S. Senator Lindsey Graham, a Trump ally, sounded surprised by the size of the planned cuts. “I’m sure the VA can be reduced. But if you’re a veteran, you read it in the paper, it kind of rattles you,” Graham told reporters.
Richard Blumenthal, the top Democrat on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said the job cuts appeared to be one step in a plan to privatize VA services. “It’s a shameful betrayal,” Blumenthal said in a statement.
During his first term as president, Trump in 2018 signed a law that expanded veterans’ access to private sector healthcare paid for by the VA.
Naveed Shah, political director of Common Defense, a grassroots veterans group, decried the planned layoffs.
“He’s gutting the system that was designed to care for our brothers and sisters in arms.”
News of Tuesday’s memo came on a day when the Trump administration suffered a temporary setback in its efforts to cull workers from the federal bureaucracy.
A board that reviews the firings of federal employees has ordered the U.S. Department of Agriculture to temporarily reinstate thousands of workers who lost their jobs as part of the layoffs spearheaded by Trump and Musk.
The Trump administration walked back on Tuesday a directive to fire probationary workers after a federal judge ruled that their mass terminations were illegal.
The Office of Personnel Management, the human resources arm of the federal workforce, revised a memo to state that it is not advising agencies to fire probationary workers on performance-related grounds.
An OPM official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it was up to individual agencies what to do with their probationary employees, and they can still be let go.
Reporting by Mike Stone, Tim Reid, David Morgan, Nathan Layne and Richard Cowan; Editing by Howard Goller and Stephen Coates
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At Veterans Affairs, plan for sweeping cuts tanks morale
Morale is plummeting inside the Department of Veterans Affairs as tens of thousands of employees prepare for deep staffing cuts. VA Secretary Douglas A. Collins has signaled plans to shrink the agency’s workforce by 15 percent — or about 83,000 employees. VA officials insist front-line health-care workers and claims processors will be spared, but the vague and shifting details of the downsizing plan have only fueled anxiety and speculation within VA’s massive workforce. Many Democrats have already seized on President Donald Trump’s VA cuts as damaging to veterans, and some Republicans worry about the political risks of firings and other reductions at the agency. VA spokesman: “The people you spoke with are probably being misled by The Washington Post’S dishonest, far-left fearmongering.” The agency is in charge of providing health care to more than 9 million veterans through 170 VA medical centers and 1,193 outpatient clinics. The Post interviewed more than two dozen current and former employees, most of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss internal deliberations.
The uncertainty is already taking a toll.
Thousands of employees across VA’s health and benefits systems have opted for early retirement in two waves, which would pay them through Sept. 30 to get them to leave, according to internal data reviewed by The Washington Post. Many of these employees said they are opting to leave out of fear that they would be laid off anyway.
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Many Democrats have already seized on President Donald Trump’s VA cuts as damaging to veterans, and some Republicans worry about the political risks of firings and other reductions at the agency.
“The veterans now check in and ask us how we are doing,” one social worker at a hospital in the Great Lakes region told The Post. “They see the news and are very aware of the circumstances and fearful of losing VA support that they depend on.”
A contractor at the VA medical center in Palo Alto, California, described employees as “fearful, paranoid, demoralized.”
“There’s some cracks starting to show,” said an ICU doctor at a Florida facility.
This account of turmoil within Veterans Affairs is based on interviews with more than two dozen current and former employees, most of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss internal deliberations. The Post also reviewed more than two dozen pages of internal agency records and communications.
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In response to questions from The Post, VA spokesman Peter Kasperowicz pointed to problems in the agency that have existed for years.
“During the Biden Administration, VA failed to address nearly all of its most serious problems, such as benefits backlogs, rising health-care wait times and major issues with survivor benefits,” Kasperowicz said in a statement. “The far-left Washington Post refused to cover these failures because it would have made the Biden Administration look bad.”
Specifically responding to the concerns employees shared about morale, Kasperowicz said The Post is to blame.
“The people you spoke with are probably being misled by The Washington Post’s dishonest, far-left fearmongering,” he said.
With almost 500,000 employees, VA is the second-largest federal agency behind the Department of Defense and is in charge of providing health care to more than 9 million veterans through 170 VA medical centers and 1,193 outpatient clinics. In recent years, VA’s budget and workforce have grown significantly — in part to accommodate the PACT Act, which caused disability claims and enrollment in the health-care system to surge.
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Many people involved in planning the reductions have been required to sign nondisclosure agreements, leaving details about the looming cutbacks unclear. Some familiar with the plans said initial cuts will target the agency’s central office, steps from the White House, where 19,000 people work administering the Veterans Health Administration, the Veterans Benefits Administration and the National Cemetery System.
But that would still leave tens of thousands of jobs at hospitals and clinics under threat of future cuts. Collins — under pressure from his workforce, Congress and veterans groups — has attempted to quell concerns by saying that he’s seeking alternative cost-cutting measures in addition to layoffs and might not need to reach the initial proposal of 15 percent.
VA leaders have initially homed in on combining what they consider duplicative offices to cut jobs, according to the people familiar with the plans.
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For instance, they are considering merging suicide prevention and homelessness programs with a mental health office to reduce the number of full-time employees supporting separate programs, according to an internal document obtained by The Post that shows preliminary proposals. Another proposal would combine a program for LGBTQ+ veterans with the Office of Health Equity, which identifies health-care disparities, and the Office of Whole Health, which organizes wellness programs.
Kasperowicz said “no decisions have been made with respect to staff reductions.”
On Friday, a federal judge extended a pause on mass layoffs in 22 federal agencies, including VA, in a lawsuit against the administration’s cuts filed by a federal workers’ union. The pause could be short-lived, however, as the Trump administration has appealed to the Supreme Court.
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Collins, a former Georgia congressman and an Iraq War veteran, has argued that VA has grown too bloated and must be streamlined. But veterans’ groups and bipartisan lawmakers warn that rapid downsizing, particularly without a clear strategy, could harm veterans who depend on the agency for medical care, mental health support and disability benefits.
Veterans’ groups have also warned that staff cuts would disproportionately affect veterans, who make up about a quarter of VA’s workforce. Several groups, including a union organization, are organizing a rally on the National Mall on June 6 — the 81st anniversary of D-Day — in hopes of drawing thousands of protesters against the anticipated cuts.
“Iraq felt safer than being a VA employee currently does,” a veteran and VA communications worker privately told Hill staffers in a written submission shared with The Post. “My leadership in Iraq cared about me as a human and didn’t just see me as a number.”
Some Republicans expressed apprehension about the cutback numbers Collins shared when he testified in recent weeks before the Senate and House committees overseeing his agency.
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“There’s understandable concern among veterans and VA staff,” Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee Chairman Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) said at a May 6 hearing with Collins. “We need to be strategic, not simply hit a number.”
Lawmakers pressed Collins on the cuts, but he said he would not share preliminary details publicly. He suggested to senators what the agency could do without, such as the small number of staff who design medical spaces, and that he aimed to reassign doctors and nurses who do administrative work rather than care for patients.
One psychiatrist told The Post that a significant portion of their time is spent coordinating care, reviewing safety issues and advising other clinicians — work that often goes unnoticed but is crucial to quality treatment.
“Doctor administration work is important and not replaceable by AI,” the provider said in response to concerns that this administration has encouraged the use of artificial intelligence to replace work done by humans.
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During the House hearing on May 15, Collins and Rep. Mark Takano (D-California) sparred after the Democrat displayed an internal spreadsheet with calculated savings from a 15 percent reduction in every VA job classification, such as a proposal to eliminate 4,000 nurses estimated to save $1 billion.
“This is a leaked predecisional document that is not helpful,” Collins said, disavowing the document. “I have made clear, we will not be cutting front-line health care.”
The pressure on VA comes at a pivotal moment, as the department continues to implement the PACT Act, landmark legislation expanding benefits for veterans exposed to toxins such as burn pits. That law triggered a surge in disability claims — but also prompted the agency to hit new milestones in claims processing speed.
As Collins moves ahead with his reorganization, staff shortages, growing workloads and a demanding return-to-office policy are already straining the system.
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Employees hired before the pandemic with telework agreements had not expected to return to the office because their work agreements came before the public health crisis. Several have since decided to leave their jobs because they said their relocations would be untenable.
At a program that helps find housing and jobs for veterans in need in Palo Alto, one staffer has decided to leave because of the return-to-office policy, while another contractor is being eliminated as part of sweeping contract cuts across the agency, one employee said.
“I keep hearing like, ‘Oh, the cuts won’t affect patient care,’ but it absolutely will,” the employee said. “You can’t function without support staff.”
At multiple facilities, employees say tight quarters caused by the department’s return-to-office policy have made it harder to provide confidential care. Mental health specialists report that they now overhear colleagues’ therapy sessions with veterans, and one office has plans to purchase noise-canceling headphones to restore some privacy.
An internal VA presentation from March projected a deficit of 57,000 workstations across the Veterans Health Administration, leaving little room for providers or patients in some locations. At one hospital, a suicide prevention specialist said they had to take phone calls outside because of overloaded WiFi.
Despite these accounts, Collins has dismissed reports of overcrowded conditions and denied that employees were working out of closets — a claim that is contradicted by a photo shared with The Post of a makeshift desk set up inside a storage closet. “We’re sardines packed in a can,” the employee who took the photo said.
Another employee shared a photo of multiple workstations set up inside a hospital room.
Kasperowicz said the return-to-office policy has been rolled out with the limitations of workspaces in mind, adding that more than 60,000 VHA employees have returned to the office starting May 5, while 45,000 have not because of exemptions or extensions. He declined to respond to specific claims without locations or other identifying details, which The Post agreed to keep confidential.
“While most of VA’s dedicated employees understand the importance of being on-site, a small but vocal minority are telling tall tales in a desperate attempt to avoid returning to the office at all costs,” he said.
The overcrowding has led to a lack of parking at some facilities. At one hospital, employees were told in an email Friday that veterans have missed or been tardy for medical appointments because staff members had parked in the veterans-only parking lots.
Maryland Local, Political Updates
Dr. Meena Seshamani is a Hopkins-trained surgeon, Oxford-trained Ph.D. economist, and a Marshall Scholar. She previously led the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).Current Health Secretary Dr. Laura Scott will conclude her role on Feb. 28. Moore has sent a budget proposal to both chambers of the Maryland General Assembly, and questions remain about how much more new revenue is needed and what budget cuts can be justified. The proposed budget will cut state and local Blueprint funding by about $218 million this year, a cut of about 14%. Moore has also proposed $200 million in cuts for the Developmental Disabilities Administration, which hundreds of advocates rallied against in Annapolis. The fight to pass a balanced budget is now progressing through Annapolis, with questions over how much new revenue will be needed to pay for the proposed budget cuts and how many people will be affected by the cuts. The state Senate is expected to vote on Moore’s budget proposal in early April.
Shortly after announcing a new Commerce Secretary, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) appointed Dr. Meena Seshamani, as health secretary on Feb. 6.
Seshamani is a Hopkins-trained surgeon, Oxford-trained Ph.D. economist, and a Marshall Scholar. She previously led the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
“Dr. Meena Seshamani is among the nation’s top health leaders – with an extraordinary career spanning expertise in public service, medical practice, economics, academia, and advocacy. She has made our nation’s health care system fairer, more affordable, and more accessible to all — including our most vulnerable, from families in poverty to communities with disabilities,” said Moore in a press release. “We thank her for raising her hand to serve in this new role.”
Current Health Secretary Dr. Laura Scott will conclude her role on Feb. 28, and Seshamani is expected to be confirmed by the State Senate in early April.
During this transition, Ryan B. Moran, deputy secretary for health care financing, will serve as acting secretary.
Moore celebrated Scott’s leadership over the past two years as health secretary, where she first served in the acting role from January to March, when she officially assumed the title.
“Dr. Laura Herrera Scott has laid a strong foundation at the Maryland Department of Health over the last two years and is to be commended for her service,” Moore said. “My friend and fellow veteran has done this administration and her state proud.”
Some Marylanders took to social media to celebrate after Moore’s office announced Seshamani’s appointment.
“Amazing news,” one social media user wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Maryland gets the leadership of the incredible Dr. Meena Seshamani, who led Medicare and its drug price negotiation reforms through the Biden years.”
Governor’s Proposed Budget Trims Long-Term Funding for Disabled Community, Education
With federal spending cuts and concerns over mass firings looming, the fight to pass a balanced budget is now progressing through Annapolis.
Gov. Wes Moore (D) has sent a budget proposal to both chambers of the Maryland General Assembly, and questions remain about how much more new revenue is needed and what budget cuts can be justified.
Senate President Bill Ferguson warned that hundreds of millions of additional cuts may be required due to Republican efforts in Washington to lower taxes for the wealthy, while shifting health care costs to the states.
Education advocates Liz Zogby and Kalman Hettleman cautioned that the proposed budget will cut state and local Blueprint funding by about $218 million this year, a cut of about 14%, and reduce Blueprint funding by as much as $2.2 billion through 2029.
American Federation for Teachers (AFT)’s Maryland chapter also lobbied to fully fund the Blueprint in late January and AFT Maryland President Kenya Campbell argued that the BOOST program, which provides funding for students to attend private and charter schools, should be a target for cuts.
“Those numbers are not misprints. They’re not absolutely definitive either. But that’s because the governor’s budget this year is unusually complicated with innumerable open questions and will be a moving target until the details and accompanying legislation can be analyzed in the coming weeks,” read an op-ed penned by Zogby and Hettleman. “Still, the big picture is crystal clear: The proposed cutbacks are astonishingly large, putting the future of the Blueprint in grave danger.”
Moore has also proposed $200 million in cuts for the Developmental Disabilities Administration, which hundreds of advocates rallied against in Annapolis.
The Arc, an organization serving people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, has vocalized criticism of the proposed cuts.
“The families just feel like it was a meeting to have a meeting — and their voices were not heard. It’s that simple,” said Maryland Community Connection’s Executive Director Andre Coats, following a call with state officials to discuss the proposed budget cuts.
Coats emphasized the need for clarity on specific cuts.
“It can be challenging for a lot of people affected by these budget cuts to give feedback because it is such a complex system, and we still lack a lot of clarity in the exact nature of what the budget cuts will be,” he continued. “We know, in general, what they’re talking about, but many of us still have questions about the specificity of the proposals — and how those cuts are implemented have a huge impact on peoples’ lives.”
The Maryland Economic Development Association (MEDA) partnered with Salisbury University’s Business and Community Outreach Network (BEACON) on a recent study, which found that every dollar invested into local development agencies, such as TEDCO, generates $8.81 in state and federal tax return.
“Strong, healthy communities depend on a robust business sector that provides family-supporting jobs for our residents and a tax base to support critical municipal infrastructure and programs,” said MEDA President Richard G. Griffin.
“Local economic development organizations help retain, expand, and attract private business investment that results in a strong financial return to the community – an estimated $8.81 average return on investment for every dollar invested,” Griffin continued. “MEDA is committed to supporting economic developers with best practices and professional development that expands capabilities and helps transform lives.”