False: Trump: Passed Veterans Affairs Accountability Act and VA Choice Program, we got 91 percent approval by our veterans.

By: Ilma Hasan
September 10 2020

Share Article:

Trump did expand the eligibility for the VA Choice Program, but it was passed under the Obama administration in 2014.President Trump's claim of passing the Veterans Choice Program is false since it was passed under former President Barack Obama's second term in 2014. Trump perhaps was referring to four years later when he signed a law that consolidated Veterans Choice and other existing programs into a single Veterans Community Care Program. The Choice program was passed after it came to light that some veterans had died waiting for months to get an appointment at a VA medical facility in Phoenix, Arizona. Under Obama in 2014, the program started allowing veterans to see doctors outside the VA system if they've waited more than 30 days for an appointment or driven more than 40 miles to a VA facility. The program also allows veterans to see doctors outside the government-run VA system at taxpayer expense. Recently, Trump also walked out of a press conference when questioned by a reporter about why he takes credit for creating and passing a bill that was a bipartisan initiative spearheaded by the late Arizona Sen. John McCain and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. While taking credit for the creation of the program is a common falsehood that he regularly repeats, what the commander-in-chief actually did was sign the VA Mission Act of 2018, which modified and expanded the private-care program allowing veterans to seek primary care, urgent care, and mental health services outside the department's system. While urgent care under the newly expanded program is running smoothly, getting primary and specialist care is still a challenge for veterans, according to a New York Times report. Trump has persistently made veterans affairs a core campaigning issue. In fact, the president has lied over 150 times about creating the program, according to a CNN fact check. Furthermore, Trump's claim of 91 percent high approval ratings is misleading. A 2019 poll by Pew Research Center shows he had 57 percent approval ratings from veterans. His claim perhaps referred to Republican veterans who have a much more positive view, an estimated 92 percent favorability of Trump's military leadership than their Democratic counterparts.