Nikki Haley wants Congress to use VA healthcare.

Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley has a solution to fix the broken VA system: require members of Congress to get their health care from the VA. Speaking at a CNN town hall in Iowa on June 4, Haley, who is running for the GOP presidential nomination in 2024, said that this would prompt Congress to take action.

“I’m telling you, Jake, that would fix it right away because no one else would put up with what these veterans are having to put up with,”

– Nikki Haley

The State of Veterans Affairs

Haley lamented the state of the Veterans Affairs, citing that, on average, it takes veterans 29 days to get an appointment at the VA, which in turn reschedules with patients on the 29th day in order to reset the clock as, starting on the 30th day, veterans can go wherever they want to get health care.

Haley also decried both the lack of telehealth to provide mental health services and addiction centers. “The fact that we’re treating our best in this way is a travesty,” said Haley, referring to veterans.

The Plight of Veterans

• Around 33,000 veterans are homeless, according to the VA and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
• According to the VA, “at some point in their life, 7 out of every 100 veterans (or 7 percent) will have PTSD.”
• Additionally, as of 2020, an average of around 17 veterans take their own lives every day, according to the VA.

Haley’s husband, Michael Haley, a major in the South Carolina Army National Guard, is set to deploy to Africa soon for a year. During the town hall, regarding her husband’s deployment, Nikki Haley said, “It’s not our first rodeo. He did this when I was governor.” She joked that “he seems to find really interesting times [to be deployed].”

“Deployments are never convenient,” she added. “But they’re necessary.”

It’s time for Congress to take action and fix the broken VA system. Let’s honor our veterans by providing them with the care they deserve.