Politics Over Patients
How a 2 Trump-Era EO's Are Letting VA Doctors Deny Treatment based on political affiliation or marital status
A Quiet Change with Loud Consequences
In a stunning rollback of basic patient protections, new guidance from the Department of Veterans Affairs—enabled by a Trump executive order—now permits VA medical providers to refuse treatment to veterans based on personal beliefs. Most disturbingly, this includes the possibility of denying care to Democrats and unmarried veterans.
The Language They Removed
According to The Guardian (June 14, 2025), VA policy language that once safeguarded veterans from discrimination based on political affiliation or marital status was quietly removed. While protections against discrimination on the basis of race, religion, and sex remain, the removal of political and marital status from the nondiscrimination policy has opened the door to what some are calling “legalized ideological cleansing” in the VA system.
The Trump Loophole Lives On
This stems from Executive Order 13831, titled Establishment of a White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative, signed by President Trump in 2018 during his first term. Now, well into his second term, that order continues to shape the VA’s regulatory framework—one that increasingly reflects his administration's aggressive stance on so-called “religious liberty.”
The order expanded “conscience protections,” allowing federal health providers—including VA doctors, nurses, and mental health workers—to opt out of procedures or services that conflict with their "sincerely held religious beliefs or moral convictions.” (White House Archives)
From Protections to Prejudice
The implications are chilling. As The Guardian reports, "The Trump administration’s removal of those two categories from the protected list leaves the door open for VA doctors to deny treatment based on political or marital status, which legal experts say is constitutionally questionable but technically permitted under current guidance.”
Outrage from Veterans
On Reddit and other veteran forums, outcry has been swift. One user wrote: “This isn’t healthcare. This is ideological warfare. And the worst part? It’s being done in our name—as public servants—under the guise of ‘freedom.’” Another commented: “What in the absolute fucking bullshit is this? Under no circumstances should political party or marital status determine access to care for anyone.” And I, for one, echo their sentiments.
No Plans for Reform
President Trump has made no indication that he plans to revise or walk back the policy. If anything, his administration has doubled down on framing such changes as victories for faith-based governance and freedom of conscience.
According to legal scholar Dr. Maria Jensen at the Center for Health Law & Policy, “The conflict here lies between the First Amendment rights of federal providers and the Fourteenth Amendment rights of veterans seeking equal protection and care. It’s only a matter of time before this ends up in court.”
The Chilling Effect
Executive Order 14168—“Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government”—signed earlier this year by President Trump, further complicates the situation for veterans seeking justice. The order directs all federal agencies, including the VA, to define "sex" as immutable and based solely on biological characteristics at birth, and to remove references to gender identity and expression from internal policies.
This has created a chilling effect by weakening internal anti-discrimination protections. VA staff who discriminate against veterans on the basis of gender identity, sexual orientation, or marital status may now claim they are operating within the scope of federal policy. In turn, this makes it significantly harder for affected veterans to file successful administrative complaints within the VA system.
Legal scholars warn that while constitutional protections and federal statutes like Title VII and Section 1557 of the ACA still offer avenues for legal recourse, the rollback of agency-level protections means veterans must now rely more heavily on costly and time-consuming civil litigation. As Dr. Maria Jensen noted, “You still have rights—but asserting them just got much harder. Veterans who once had agency-level pathways for justice are now being forced into full-scale legal battles just to access care or defend their dignity.”
Taken together, Executive Orders 13831 and 14168 form a coordinated policy shift—one that prioritizes ideological purity over equal access, religious belief over medical ethics, and political loyalty over the veteran’s oath. They are two branches of the same poisoned tree: one allows VA staff to deny care for personal reasons, the other strips identity protections from the rulebooks entirely.
A Broken Promise
In a nation that promises to care for its veterans, this rule makes one thing heartbreakingly clear: under the current administration’s worldview, some who served are now considered unworthy of service
If you are a veteran impacted by this policy and want to share your story, reach out publicly or anonymously to Topic Nomad.
Bibliography
Trump, Donald J. Executive Order 13831: Establishment of a White House Faith and Opportunity Initiative. 3 May 2018. Trump White House Archives, https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/executive-order-establishment-white-house-faith-opportunity-initiative/. Accessed 16 June 2025.
Levin, Sam. “Trump’s VA Rule Allows Doctors to Deny Care to Unmarried Veterans and Democrats.” The Guardian, 14 June 2025, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/live/2025/jun/16/g7-summit-donald-trump-trade-tariffs-iran-israel-crisis-us-politics-live-news-updates. Accessed 16 June 2025.
Trump, Donald J. Executive Order 14168: Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government. 30 Jan 2025. Federal Register, https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/01/30/2025-02090.
Jensen, Maria. Interview. Center for Health Law & Policy, 15 June 2025.
Reddit user @UnfilteredMedic. “This isn’t healthcare. This is ideological warfare.” Reddit, 14 June 2025. Accessed via public veteran forum thread.
Reddit user @JustaVet84. “What in the absolute fucking bullshit is this?” Reddit, 14 June 2025. Accessed via public veteran forum thread.