The Veterans Access, Choice, and Accountability Act (VACAA) of 2014 and VA Choice and Quality Employment Act (VCQEA) of 2017 requires the VA Office of Inspector General (OIG) to determine, annually, a minimum of five clinical and five nonclinical Veterans Health Administration (VHA) occupations with the largest staffing shortages within each VHA medical center (facility). Pursuant to this requirement, the OIG conducted a review to identify those severe staffing shortages by occupation. The OIG also compared the number of severe occupational staffing shortages against the previous seven years’ reports to assess changes.
The OIG surveyed VHA-identified facility points of contact to determine severe occupational staffing shortages at each facility. Among the most significant findings in this year’s staffing report were the following:
• In fiscal year (FY) 2025, VHA facilities reported a total of 4,434 severe occupational staffing shortages, a 50 percent increase from FY 2024 in which facilities reported 2,959 total shortage occupations.
• Ninety-four percent of facilities reported severe occupational staffing shortages for Medical Officer occupations, and 79 percent of facilities reported severe shortages for Nurse occupations.
• Psychology was the most frequently reported severe clinical occupational staffing shortage and also the most frequently reported Hybrid Title 38 severe shortage occupation, with 57 percent of facilities reporting it as a shortage.
• Police was reported as a shortage by 58 percent of facilities, making it the most frequently reported severe nonclinical occupational staffing shortage and the most frequently reported of all occupations.
• All 139 VHA facilities identified staffing shortages.
VACAA and VCQEA established authority for the VA Secretary to grant VHA the authority to waive veterans’ preference requirements for external applicants to Hybrid Title 38 occupations, expanding the candidate pool for these occupations based on severe shortages.
The OIG made no recommendations.
