On Wednesday, June 17, 2026, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) announced massive changes for the 5,000-member structure of the VA Medical Centers’ Police Officers, throughout the United States.
The VA oversees the largest integrated health care system, serving nine (9) million enrolled veterans in over 170 Medical Center facilities. The VA is responsible for physical security at its medical facilities.
The previously independent VA Police Departments will now be consolidated under a newly-created Office of Operations, Security, and Preparedness (OSP).
By October of 2026, the consolidation will be completed, and the VA will have a law enforcement chain of command under the auspices of an Assistant Secretary in the VA Headquarters.
Under the consolidation, the VA will now have a law enforcement chain of command that falls under an assistant secretary at the VA headquarters. Officials said the reorganization will be completed by October.
According to the VA, the change will eliminate the management of a Police Department supervised by individual medical centers’ personnel and civilian administrators.
“Our VA police endured inconsistent policing standards, which led to a lack of both accountability and discipline,” said the new Assistant Secretary of the OSP, Reginald Neal. “Often our professional officers were used to perform non police functions, including in some cases, serving as valets to park cars.”
The decision to create a new command structure for VA Police Officers was spurred by several Reports by both the Government Accountability Office (GAO) and the VA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG).
On April 29, 2026, a GOA Report (GAO-26-107952) revealed significant safety concerns at VAMC facilities. An undercover investigation of thirty (30) VAMC facilities discovered that only two (2) had metal detectors.
One (1) metal detector was inoperable, and when the other was activated, the staff failed to respond.
Undercover investigators also found that staff failed to stop knives from entering the buildings, didn’t intervene when an undercover investigator drank water out of a vodka bottle, and allowed investigators to enter non-public spaces, including labs and treatment rooms.
In another GAO Report (GAO-25-108085) released on March 11, 2025, the GAO reported that VA contracted guards failed to prevent prohibited items, such as blades or batons, from entering VA facilities about half the time. The VA employs approximately 800 contracted guards.
In a VA Office of the Inspector General Report (25-1135-196), released on August 12, 2025, the Report noted that fifty-eight (58%) percent of VA facilities experienced shortages in their forces, making the VA police “the most frequently reported severe nonclinical occupational staffing shortage.”
The lack of a centralized police structure made it difficult to hire, retain and promote seasoned officers. As a result of this situation, the VA lost many senior officers to other law enforcement agencies.
The new centralized structure, according to the VA, will make it easier to hire, retain and promote officers, as it will create a new system that supports career advancement.
The VA is also conducting a review of VA Police job responsibilities, requirements, and then classifying VA police officers at higher pay grades, based on the complex work that they do.
The VA re-classifications will start at the Government Services-6 level, or roughly $48,000 a year for a rookie in a location such as Atlanta, Georgia, an increase of $5,000 from the starting position of a GS-5.
Jobs will also be offered through the chain of command up to the senior executive service level, providing room for promotion and seniority.
According to the VA, these changes will create stability and make the VA a “more attractive place to work” for law enforcement.
“These reforms will help us accomplish that mission by creating a stable VA police force with clear lines of authority, accountability and career progression,” said VA Secretary Doug Collins. “The result will be better police recruitment and retention as well as improved safety and security for Veterans, staff and visitors.”
My Opinion: It appears that the VA is moving “full steam ahead” on the implementation of this structural organizational change within the Police Departments of all the VA Medical Centers.
The VA Police Officers’ mission is to respond to emergencies, prevent crime, conduct investigations and carry out veteran-related safety initiatives.
I was not aware that the VA Police Officers were previously managed by medical facility staff. They should be managed by professional law enforcement leaders.
Hopefully, these reforms will improve police recruitment and retention while increasing safety and security for disabled veterans seeking medical services and VA staff.
John Plahovinsak is a retired 32-year Army veteran who served from 1967 to 1999. He is the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Department of Ohio’s Hospital Chairman and Adjutant of Chapter #63 (Clermont County). He can be contacted at: plahovinsak@msn.com.