Key Points
- Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-NY23) advocated for Veterans when there were problems at the Buffalo VA Medical Center in 2024.
- He has consistently supported legislation supporting Veterans.
- But Rep. Langworthy voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill that reduced access to care for Veterans by gutting Medicaid and reduced food support for Veterans by cutting SNAP.
- Rep. Langworthy was a member of the House DOGE Caucus that supported cutting 6% of personnel for the already struggling VA.
A veteran with stage 4 cancer waited over two months for palliative radiation therapy that never arrived before he died.
This was not an isolated incident at the Buffalo Veterans’ Administration Medical Center. Veterans had been raising concerns for months—complaints of “unacceptable delays” in treatment and “negligence” that led to unnecessary suffering and deaths. At a February 2024 roundtable hosted by NYS Assemblyman Pat Burke, Vietnam veteran Bernie Romanowski described what many were experiencing: “There’s a backlog. Staffing is overwhelmed. A lot of veterans’ issues aren’t really handled. They get pushed back.”
The subsequent VA Office of Inspector General report confirmed this. It found a cancer patient who waited nine weeks for radiation treatment, a veteran who had seizures while waiting 10 months for a neurosurgery consultation, and a patient at high risk for a stroke waiting nine months for a CT scan.
The system was failing.
Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-NY23) responded by sending a letter to VA Secretary Denis McDonough in August 2024, calling the delays “unacceptable” and demanding a full investigation. When the VA Office of the Inspector General’s report was released, Langworthy called the findings “horrifying.” He met with leaders at the Buffalo VA Medical Center and pushed for accountability. In October 2024, he joined Democrats Rep. Timothy Kennedy (D-NY26), Sen. Charles E. Schumer, and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand in requesting a nationwide Government Accountability Office review of VA community care practices.
A problem surfaced, and Langworthy acted on behalf of his constituents to fix it. But the story doesn’t end there.
Langworthy has consistently supported the Buffalo Veterans Administration Medical Center and the entire VA system. Since taking office in 2023, he has voted in favor of VA appropriations and backed measures to improve operations, including on-site medical waste systems and a secure online portal for veterans to access their records.
However, after the 2024 election, the Trump administration’s policies shifted in line with the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025.
Last summer, Langworthy voted for the One Big Beautiful Bill. Among its many provisions, this bill cut food support provided by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for 1.4 million people, including veterans. It also cut healthcare provided through Medicaid and implemented work requirements, raising concerns among veterans who rely on both Medicaid and VA healthcare.
DOGE
But aside from cuts affecting veterans in the One Big Beautiful Bill, there are also personnel reductions from DOGE—the Department of Government Efficiency—which was promoted by Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and Vivek Ramaswamy (who is currently running for governor of Ohio). DOGE was created to significantly reduce the federal workforce, a goal of Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025.
Rep. Langworthy was an early, enthusiastic supporter of DOGE and among the first to join the House DOGE Caucus shortly after it was formed in late 2024. Langworthy said, “The DOGE Caucus just held our first meeting—Congress is ready to work with President Trump, Elon Musk, and Vivek Ramaswamy to cut waste.”
Within the VA, the DOGE cuts led to significant staffing reductions. The VA cut about 30,000 staff positions in 2025—roughly 6 percent of its workforce—in a system already facing personnel shortages.
These personnel cuts included thousands of clinical and support roles, such as nurses, physicians, and patient schedulers. Langworthy justified the cuts by saying, “We’re getting away from the core missions… and we’re eliminating positions that don’t take care of the core mission...”
A System Under Strain
“On any given day in the ICU, it’s a disaster waiting to happen!!” warned a Buffalo VA nurse during a staffing protest.
A 2025 Inspector General review revealed severe staffing shortages across VA facilities nationwide, including Buffalo, pointing to a critical crisis. All facilities reported significant staffing gaps affecting physicians, nurses, and support staff, risking patient care and safety.
In Buffalo, referrals went unprocessed, consults remained unscheduled, and patients were left untracked. Langworthy called for urgent solutions. But in Washington, Langworthy supported policies that drastically reduced the personnel needed to support the system. Langworthy supports the VA and veterans—except when he doesn’t.
