WASHINGTON — Physician David Shulkin is headed toward likely confirmation as President Donald Trump’s veterans affairs secretary after offering repeated assurances to sometimes skeptical senators that he will work quickly to meet the medical care needs of millions of veterans without dismantling the beleaguered department.
At his confirmation hearing, Shulkin, the top health official at the Department of Veterans Affairs since 2015, cited efforts during his tenure to improve wait times for veterans needing urgent care, such as same-day services in primary care and mental health at VA medical centers. He urged a more integrated VA network in which veterans could seek outside care, but only in close coordination with the VA.
“VA is a unique national resource that is worth saving, and I am committed to doing just that,” Shulkin said. “There will be far greater accountability, dramatically improved access, responsiveness and expanded care options.”
Pressed repeatedly as to whether he may be pressured by Trump to privatize the agency, he told the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee that he believed that VA hospitals offered unique services in treating battlefield injury.
“We share a common vision that we have to do a lot better for veterans,” Shulkin said, adding that Trump set no preconditions when offering him the VA secretary job. “He knows I will follow my values.”
The 57-year-old physician is expected to be easily confirmed by the Senate. A committee vote is expected as early as next week.
Shulkin would be the lone former Obama administration official serving in Trump’s Cabinet. As secretary, he would take over amid a conservative push to privatize government services.
